The Fellowship Of The Ring: Extended Edition

When The Fellowship Of The Ring was first released in 2001, 178 minutes was a seriously lengthy running time. Even though it was undoubtedly an event film, cinema managers were not confident that mainstream audiences would stick it out. The massive success of the film and its sequels is one of the factors that encouraged blockbusters to adopt the longer running times that we routinely see today – but even with a trilogy of films running at this length, Peter Jackson was unable to capture the full sweep of Tolkien’s epic tale. Now the extended editions of the films are about to grace the big screen for the first time, filling out the story.

First things first: this will probably disappoint a lot of fans, but there is still no Tom Bombadil. That part of the story was simply never filmed. So what is new?

To begin with, we spend a lot more time focusing on the journey itself. This was important to Tolkein and helped to tie in the first book with its prequel, The Hobbit, in which there was extensive emphasis on day to day aspects of travel. One can see why this was the obvious thing to cut when the film had to be shortened, but it doesn’t feel like useless padding. It provides a deeper sense of the relationships between the hobbit protagonists, lets us get to know Merry and Pippin better as individuals, and illustrates their developing bond with Aragorn before we reach the point on Weathertop where he will risk his life for theirs.

Boromir, too, gets more development, and we’re given a bit more insight into his love of his homeland and his conflicted feelings regarding Aragorn, whose bloodline overrides his hard work and devotion where its future is concerned. Framed by this, Boromir’s desire for the ring seems more reasonable. At least to begin with, it comes across as a genuine longing for the power to protect his people, rather than the sinister pursuit of power for selfish ends.

The time that our heroes spend in Lothlórien is considerably extended here. It becomes apparent that the brief exchange of greetings when we first meet Galadriel was in fact made up of snippets from a much longer conversation, and we see what Gandalf’s fall in Moria means to her, hinting at how lonely it might feel to be one of the oldest people in the world. There is a discussion of strategy which gives more order to later events. Additionally, when Frodo gets his phial, a light he can rely on in dark places when all other lights go out, everybody else gets a gift as well, and we learn just how much of an impression Galadriel has made on Gimli.

With a significant extra section of plot explaining the subsequent orc encounter on the riverbank, the film’s final battle no longer feels random and instead connects with earlier and later events as part of an escalating pursuit, adding to our overall sense of the danger that our heroes are in. It’s a much more satisfying denouement for this first chapter, and will make you more excited for what is to come.

Tellingly, despite all this extra material, the film does not feel slower and does not become boring. If anything, it’s better balanced, with a more fluid sense of momentum. We might not strictly need to see all these things, but they enrich the rest. As most films benefit from having more chopped out of them, this speaks to the quality of Peter Jackson’s work. Those who enjoyed the films the first time round will find this a treat, and newcomers would be well advised to experience it for the first time on the big screen.

Reviewed on: 13 Jan 2026