Lord of the Rings on Film

Lesson 8: The Extended Versions and Wrap Up

Extended version -- The Return of the King

Most people now know that the most controversial omissions of The Return of the King (ROTK) were Saruman’s scour of the Shire and his confrontation with Gandalf (Christopher Lee didn’t go to the premiere as a result). The Scour of the Shire and the hobbits’ reaction to it is discussed in Lesson 6; this section discusses Saruman’s confrontation with Gandalf in the text version.

This is after Isengard has been destroyed by the Ents, when Gandalf and company arrive to find Merry and Pippin. Gandalf goes to the tower to speak to Saruman, who at first sends Wormtongue to the door but then appears himself. Tolkien describes how persuasive and musical Saruman’s voice sounds and how Gandalf and Théoden sound rough and harsh beside him.

When it is clear that Gandalf is not fooled, Saruman loses his temper and refuses to accept the terms of freedom Gandalf lays down – that he can go wherever he wants, even to Mordor, but must first surrender the Key of Orthanc and his wizard’s staff. Gandalf then says, "Your staff is broken" and the staff splits. Wormtongue throws the palantir from the window, missing everyone because, as Gandalf says, he does not know whom he wants to aim for most. It is very likely that Wormtongue does not know what the palantir is, and Saruman’s yell of dismay shortly afterwards show that he has found out it is missing.

But the scope of the rest of the film shows why these scenes were left out, and, as Saruman was clearly defeated with the wreck of Isengard in The Two Towers, the decision was suitable for the film.

The appendices again examine the effects of the film and how it was scripted. Commentaries immediately after the film from Jackson, Boyens and Walsh are followed by documentaries on costuming, special effects, design and set, and the producers, editors and actors also have commentary episodes. Tolkien and Middle-earth are again discussed, as is the process from book to film, including the omission of the Scouring of the Shire scenes. The Weta section looks at how Minas Tirith and Gondor were created and shows all the models used in the set designs. There are also sections on horses and on how the Mumkil were used and a section on editing the full trilogy.

The full list of contents is:

· Commentary by director Peter Jackson, Phillipa Boyens and Frances Walsh

· Commentary with design team

· Commentary with production/post-production team

· Cast commentary

· Featurette: J.R.R. Tolkien: The Legacy of Middle-Earth

· Featurette: From Book to Script: Forging the Final Chapter

· Featurette: Designing and Building Middle-Earth

· Featurette: Big-atures

· Featurette: WETA Workshop

· Featurette: Costume Design

· Featurette: Home of the Horse Lords

· Featurette: New Zealand as Middle Earth

· Featurette: Cameras in Middle-Earth

· Featurette: WETA Digital

· Featurette: Editorial: Completing the Trilogy

· Featurette: Music for Middle-Earth

· Featurette: The Soundscapes of Middle-Earth

· Featurette: The End of All Things

· Featurette: The Passing of an Age

· Featurette: Cameron Duncan: The Inspiration for "Into the West"

· Production stills and art galleries (some with optional commentary)

· Interactive Middle-earth Atlas

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