Many of you probably saw or heard of “The Tolkien Edit” when it was released in early 2015. That was not my fan edit. It was hastily assembled and had very poor audio/visual quality, especially since the editor used a pirated DVD screener copy of Battle of Five Armies as his source. A guy named David Killstein released his own edit shortly after that, called “There and Back Again.” It had better editing, but the technical quality was still poor. Regardless, both of these edits grabbed a lot of attention because they were the first Hobbit fan edits out of the gate, and it showed people that it was possible to cut a 9-hour trilogy in half (or more) and still make sense. So if you liked those edits, you will LOVE this version. J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit has been created using only the highest-quality media available- full HD Bluray and 5.1 surround sound. Working with 5.1 has given me far more options for audio editing than a simple stereo track. I’ve said it many times since I began working on this edit, but buried somewhere underneath the uneven, bloated Hobbit trilogy is a truly great film. For me at least, I have finally found that film. Hopefully you’ll think so too! Basic Cutlist: - A 542 minute trilogy cut to a single 247 minute film - Well over 600 actual edits and trims made - An Intermission splits the film in half, at the exact point where Peter Jackson originally intended to split the Hobbit when it was still two films. (For the curious, it's the scene where the company first encounters Bard) - Overall, the film remains focused on Bilbo and the dwarves - Unnecessary subplots, characters, and CGI silliness have been jettisoned. That means little to no Legolas, Tauriel, Alfrid, Radagast, and more - Color corrected in several sequences to match LOTR’s visuals more - Edited and mastered in 5.1 Digital Surround Sound - Numerous digital alterations, including a new opening title, gold coating removed from Smaug, Radagast erased from an eagle flyover shot, etc. - Orc subtitles altered to explain plot adjustments - Several unused music cues by Howard Shore have been re-inserted in key scenes, including the famous Misty Mountains theme that was abandoned after AUJ. - Various scenes from the Extended Editions have also been added where needed. Yes, Thorin’s funeral is in here.

Cuts and Additions:

EDITS FOR AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY:

- No Dale/Erebor prologue. This was cut because the dwarves’ backstory is told in a much better fashion when they are in Bag End.

- Bilbo’s opening lines remain, but Frodo is removed

- Some dwarf silliness is gone from the Bag End sequence (just a few shots)

- No Necromancer/Dol Guldur subplot. It distracts from the main quest and was poorly conceived and executed anyways. As it was in the book, it is only briefly hinted at now.

- No Radagast whatsoever

- Azanulbizar flashback is gone, but is featured in my side quest film "Durin's Folk and the Hill of Sorcery."

- Azog. This is one of the biggest issues with the fanedit. Azog is a lousy CGI villain that looked immediately dated upon the film’s release. However, Jackson made him the primary antagonist across the three films and his role is unfortunately essential. Even so, I have cut his role down considerably in AUJ.

- Troll scene has been trimmed, with some silliness removed

- The Daylight orc chase is gone. I spliced the company checking out the troll cave with their entrance to Rivendell.

- No White Council/Galadriel/Saruman

- The Stone Giants, while they were in the book, were overdone and ridiculous in Jackson’s film. They have been cut.

- All scenes with Gollum are untouched except for his initial scene knocking the goblin out and dropping the ring in front of Bilbo. As it is now, Bilbo awakens alone and finds the ring without knowing anything about it...just like the book. The film makes it clear that he sees Gollum drop the ring and decides to steal it instead.

- Goblintown escape has been cut drastically, removing almost all of the physics-defying stunts and cartoonish CGI bits.

- The tree fight/eagle rescue sequence is edited to remove the Azog/Thorin showdown. It was obviously beefed up late in production in order to have a more “action-packed” climax for AUJ. Orcs show up and the party is rescued by eagles. This segues immediately into the beginning of DOS with the company arriving at Beorn's house.

- Other miscellaneous trims here and there



EDITS FOR DESOLATION OF SMAUG:

- No prologue at the Prancing Pony

- Once again, no Dol Guldur/Necromancer subplot

- Once again, no Radagast

- Legolas and Tauriel. Another unfortunate addition by Jackson that cannot be removed entirely. They make a brief appearance in Mirkwood when they arrest the dwarves, and are briefly in the orc skirmish during the barrel chase. Every other scene with them in DOS is gone.

- The barrel chase has been heavily cut. No more Bombur rolling all over orcs or Legolas tap dancing on the dwarves heads

- Laketown scenes have been cut or trimmed, especially regarding Alfrid

- Bilbo’s encounter with Smaug is pretty much untouched. This was one of the high points of the Hobbit films.

- Smaug playing hide and seek with the dwarves is gone, along with the dwarves lighting the furnaces and throwing flashbangs at Smaug’s head. Dumb.

- Smaug bursts out of Erebor right after telling Bilbo he can watch the people of Laketown die. His skin has been digitally color corrected to remove the gold coating in the original version.

- Other cuts here and there



EDITS FOR BATTLE OF FIVE ARMIES:

- Smaug’s attack on Laketown is now dwarf and Tauriel-free.

- Alfrid has been completely removed from the film aside from the opening scene and the shores of Laketown.

- Since the four dwarves from Laketown were never actually there, I removed their reunion scene with the company.

- Some of Thorin’s “dragon sickness” scenes have been cut or trimmed. There were too many of these scenes in the original version and they dragged the film too much.

- The giant were-worms are gone. Azog’s army simply marches out of the mountainside.

- The actual Battle of Five Armies has been drastically cut. I boiled it down to its most essential element- Dain’s army is quickly overrun and Thorin must decide whether to help or not. Everything else that happens is not crucial to the plot. Therefore, most of the fighting in Dale has been cut along with some of the more ridiculous bits of the battle. Everything has been streamlined and is much easier to follow now. It also puts more focus on Dain, which is nice.

- Legolas and Tauriel appear VERY briefly once the battle begins. Legolas warns Gandalf of the approaching army from the north and is never heard from again.

- Ravenhill has been trimmed considerably as well. Fili and Kili's deaths occur at the same time, to make it appear that they were both captured and killed in front of Thorin and Bilbo.

- Unfortunately there is no onscreen death for Bolg since PJ gave him and Legolas the most unrealistic and ridiculous fight scene ever. So let’s just assume Beorn ate him or something.

- Thorin’s fight with Azog is trimmed a bit but is mostly the same.

- The film is basically untouched after Bilbo begins his journey home. I added Howard Shore's sublime "Dreaming of Bag End" over the scene where Bilbo and Gandalf part ways.

- The End!