The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 4K Blu-ray (Extended) (original) (raw)

Extended / 4K Ultra HD Warner Bros. | 2002 | 236 min | Rated PG-13 | Dec 01, 2020

| | | VideoCodec: HEVC / H.265 (62.21 Mbps)Resolution: Upscaled 4K (2160p)HDR: Dolby Vision, HDR10Aspect ratio: 2.39:1Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1 Audio English: Dolby AtmosEnglish: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)French: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)German: DTS-HD Master Audio 6.1Italian: DTS-HD Master Audio 6.1 (48kHz, 16-bit) (more) English: Dolby AtmosEnglish: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)French: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)German: DTS-HD Master Audio 6.1Italian: DTS-HD Master Audio 6.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)Spanish: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)Japanese: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit) (less) Subtitles English SDH, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, Cantonese, Czech, Danish, Dutch (more)Forced subtitles English SDH, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, Cantonese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Korean, Mandarin (Traditional), Norwegian, Polish, Swedish, Thai (less) Discs4K Ultra HDBlu-ray DiscTwo-disc set (2 BD-100) Playback4K Blu-ray: Region free | | PriceBuy on:We may earn a commission from purchases made using our links. Thanks for your support!Other editions Movie rating 2547 ratings. **23%**popularity | | - | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |

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The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 4K

(2002)

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 4K Blu-ray delivers great video and reference-quality audio in this excellent Blu-ray release

Frodo Baggins and the Fellowship continue their quest to destroy the One Ring and stand against the evil of the dark lord Sauron. The Fellowship has divided; they now find themselves taking different paths to defeating Sauron and his allies. Their destinies now lie at two towers � Orthanc Tower in Isengard, where the corrupted wizard Saruman waits, and Sauron's fortress at Barad-dur, deep within the dark lands of Mordor. Based on the novel The Two Towers, the second in The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien.

For more about The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 4K and the The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 4K Blu-ray release, see the The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 4K Blu-ray Review published by Randy Miller III on November 27, 2020 where this Blu-ray release scored 4.0 out of 5.

Director: Peter Jackson
Writers: Fran Walsh

, Philippa Boyens, Stephen Sinclair, Peter Jackson, J.R.R. Tolkien
Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett
Producer: Barrie M. Osborne

» See full cast & crew

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 4K Blu-ray Review

The journey continues.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III, November 27, 2020

NOTE: As of this writing, this title is only available as part of The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy 4K.

Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy broke new ground in the fantasy genre by shooting all three films back-to-back; in all, the entire trilogy took over eight years to complete and cost nearly $300 million. The gamble paid off, and its massive critical and commercial success makes it one of the most ambitious and fully-realized epics in film history. The Two Towers is the second chapter in the trilogy and, despite a few pacing problems in its final stretch (yes, the walking trees), it cements strong character dynamics while staging a number of terrific battle sequences.

All three theatrical films were later released on home video as extended editions, each adding new or expanded scenes that broaden the scope and journey of its characters. Most fans view them as the definitive experience. This extended version of The Two Towers has already been released onBlu-ray, and Warner Bros.' 4K edition ups the A/V ante with a mostly good new 2160p transfer -- which does not include any redone special effects, thank goodness -- and a terrific Dolby Atmos audio mix, both of which bring Middle Earth to life in new and unexpected ways.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 4K Blu-ray, Video Quality 4K

1080p

NOTE: This screenshots for this review are from a previous Blu-ray edition of the film.

This mostly good new 2160p transfer obviously shares more than a few fundamental similarities with the other upscaled presentations in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, as it immediately impresses with robust HDR grading and better encoding while still falling victim to a few problems discussed below. But what stands out the most to me this time around is the extremely rich black levels and shadow detail, which play a very important part in The Two Towers' epic battle at Helm's Deep, a rain-soaked turning point in the trilogy that lands with even more force now. A quick swap with the older Blu-ray reveals the immediate and tangible improvement of these deeper black levels; they're aided further by the film's varied color design, which gets a tangible boost from its new HDR enhancement.

The Two Towers relies far less on fantastic environments that Fellowship. It's also the "walkiest" of the three films by a landslide and its lush, varied New Zealand landscapes benefit greatly from the improvements of the new presentations. From deep green grassy plains and snow-capped mountains to rocky valleys and moonlit fields, there's a vivid but deceptively realistic color palette waiting around every corner. Of course, The Two Towers' more unnatural environments, elements, and encounters benefit as well, from Gandalf's deadly showdown with the fiery Balrog (seen in flashback from Fellowship) to the piercing and ever-watchful Eye of Mordor adjacent to Mount Doom. These bold and vivid color punctuations work in tandem with 4K's more efficient encoding to create just as many stunning, pause-worthy moments as Fellowship, whether it be a sweeping wide shot or a stunning close-up. All the while, the increased HDR color space yields just as many brilliant whites as deep, inky blacks, none more immediately impressive than a certain returning wizard who's been granted a radiant new wardrobe and angelic aura.

One such area where this new 4K presentation might actually be a step down from the Blu-ray is in at least one flashback sequence exclusive to the Extended Edition: "Arwen's Fate", which looks a bit brighter and has had most of its color intentionally removed. In my opinion it doesn't affect the scene's power to a great degree, but I'm generally against changes like these on principle and some fans might be even more turned off by how these flashback scenes looks now. This only represents a fraction of the total running time, but it's certainly worth mentioning.

Another area is in the return of sometimes fairly noticeable digital noise reduction, whether baked-in to certain special effects or applied to this new master after the fact; this still bothered me on principle, yet it didn't seem quite as glaring overall; perhaps my eyes were already used to how Fellowship now looks, but your mileage may vary. Similarly, the (thankfully original) CGI effects are slightly more refined than those in Fellowship; especially Gollum, which is fortunate because he gets much more screen time during this leg of the journey. As a result, the live-action and CGI elements blend together a bit more smoothly this time around, bringing this solid 4K transfer into overall stronger overall territory than the Blu-ray; again, with that DNR caveat in mind.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 4K Blu-ray, Audio Quality

Not surprisingly, the new Dolby Atmos mix -- which, as always, automatically folds down into lossless 7.1 if your audio receiver does not support the format -- takes full advantage of almost every channel, serving up another extremely wide and immersive sound stage that likewise surpasses earlier home video presentations. With all that walking comes a lot of weather, as infrequent but steady downpours -- an early one with with Sam and Frodo, during the search for Theodred and, of course, the rain-drenched nighttime battle of Helm's Deep -- make terrific use of Atmos' height channels. So do the handful of cutaways staged in the underground caverns of Isengard (also known as "the Orcs' lair"), where felled trees and heavy machinery create a massive, almost industrial atmosphere. (Speaking of trees, let's not forget those other cutaways during the final stretch that bring a more subtle amount of echo and LFE.)

Of course, the main sonic showcase here is the fierce battle at Helm's Deep, which begins with a foreboding rumble of approaching soldiers and builds to a thunderous assault with each wave of attacks, each bringing with them a great amount of discrete channel separation, quick panning effects, the overhead whoosh of arrow volleys, and the heavy clang of steel on steel. But even the occasional cutaways to interior scenes, where most of the women and children wait in hiding, serve as a great contrast to all the chaos happening outside the stone walls. It's a demo worthy stretch only equaled by, well, most of Return of the King, but one that's also complemented by the film's quieter moments, crisp dialogue, and ethereal music cues during Aragorn's dreams. A top-tier track from every perspective.

Optional dubs and subtitles (including English SDH) are included in a variety of languages listed above, while the forced subtitles for select lines of Elvish dialogue are also still present.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 4K Blu-ray, Overall Score and Recommendation

Even in its extended format, The Two Towers isn't quite as well-balanced as either cut of Fellowship of the Ring but it's still a great fantasy film that's gotten a little better with age. Warner Bros.' new 4K edition boasts a mostly good new 2160p transfer with terrific color, as well as a stunning Dolby Atmos mix. It's currently only available as part of The Motion Picture Trilogy 4K set which contains no extras.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers: Other Editions

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