: Significant new scenes provide more context for the characters, including: "Concerning Hobbits"
The Extended Edition restores , bringing the total runtime to a massive 3 hours and 28 minutes. Unlike most "director's cuts" that merely add pacing fat or deleted scenes that drag down the momentum, every single added second in this edition deepens the characters, restores the prose of J.R.R. Tolkien, and enriches the cinematic world. What is Restored? The Exclusive Scenes : Significant new scenes provide more context for
: Detailed looks at how miniatures, prosthetics, and armor were hand-crafted. What is Restored
: Frodo and Sam witness Elves leaving Middle-earth for the Grey Havens. For book readers, the extended edition is a gift
For book readers, the extended edition is a gift. As one critic noted, "Book-devotees especially will delight in the re-inclusion of Bilbo's voiceover on bucolic Hobbit culture, the extension of Aragorn's backstory, and the small additions on the other members of the Fellowship". "If any section feels improved, it is Lothlórien with Cate Blanchett's Galadriel: here we get the famous gift-giving sequence which will prove significant in the films to come".