The Two Towers on DVD

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We dutifully purchased and viewed this DVD, The Two Towers, widescreen edition , on the day of it’s release, Tuesday, August 26, 2003. What happened throughout was not understood until stark awakement at the end when it was bad.

The DVD, brand new, was jumping a bit, then really bad. Hmm. So my hubby returned it today and of course, I had to view it tonight. Got to the same part of the movie that was the worst last night, and it did the same thing. Then I tested it via scene selection, as I did last night with the first DVD, and it repeated the error, yet to a later scene. The thing that it is, is this:

Chapter 51, Gandalf and the others appear, this is right near the end … it skips back to Chapter 26 — when the people, on their way to Helms Deep, are attacked. This isn’t exactly my idea of a good way to view a movie. 🙂

So now, we have to check out how it works in my laptop, and how it works on the other DVD player, downstairs. I hope it’s not a DVD disc issue, but on the other hand I hate to see it’s an issue with our DVD player. It’s been around for a while, a second-generation Sony, when second-generation was new to DVD.

All in all , it’s great to have The Two Towers in our home on the TV Screen. I’d just like to see the last several minutes of it as it’s supposed to be run.

I’ve done a little bit of searching online, not much, mind you, to see if any other complaints like this have popped up. Nothing that I found. So here’s my offering to the inernet community. Anyone else having problems with this DVD?

It’s late at night, 12:55am right now, and I just couldn’t resist testing this out on my laptop. Drats, it works fine. Well. That’s that. This isn’t a movie to watch in our Sony player, because of a problem unique to our own, or due to the technology that’s older? That’s what I’m seeking, an answer to that.

Well, I haven’t watched a movie on my laptop in a long time. Oh the picture is smaller, but it’s so much nicer. So this test had a two-fold result. The Two Towers DVD is not broken, and I now will have the desire to view movies on my laptop more often. The picture is so crisp and lovely on this 16 inch LCD monitor.

Maisy

38 responses to “The Two Towers on DVD”

  1. Steve Nahra Avatar
    Steve Nahra

    A friend of mine had the same issue with his Sony player. His disc played fine on his Pioneer DVD-ROM. Between his version and mine, there was no difference in UPC. The whole thing is rather boggling. I’m surprised more folks haven’t spoken up about it.

    Reply
  2. Warbridge Avatar
    Warbridge

    It’s not just you. I’ve tried two copies of the disk from one store, and a copy from two other stores. They all skip when Gandalf is talking about how swift and terrible retribution will be in chapter 51. I’m using what I’m sure is a second generation DVD player (Sony 5 disk changer to be precise) and I tested it on a Sony Playstation 2 as well. Both machines have the skip. My computer with a Pioneer DVD ROM did not. There’s something about the disk that typical players choke on, but the computer hardware can handle.

    Reply
  3. Marysue Avatar
    Marysue

    Thanks to Steve and Warbridge, above, for your comments about DVP’s. It’s nice to know when a problem is universal … to a degree, misery loves company!

    I sure wouldn’t wish this on anyone though. It’s no fun.

    I have yet to test this on our other DVP, which is a much newer Pioneer 5-disc changer. I think I’ll go do that now, actually. That means I have to take the DVD out of my laptop though. I’ve enjoyed having it there at my fingertips whenever I wish.

    One of my favorite spots: To see the Elves arrive at Helm’s Deep. Pure fantasy on the movie writers part, but I love it. I am no Tolkien purist. I say that this is just part of the story that Tolkien failed to write about, but it really did happen 😉

    Well, I googled “The Two Towers skips” and this is the only real report of this I’ve found looking through the first page of returns. I’ve tried a few others search parameters, and come up with nothing. Weird.

    Reply
  4. Marysue Avatar
    Marysue

    I just tested this DVD on the Pioneer player, and it worked flawlessly. I kept expecting NOT to see that scene of fire-brightness in the distance, the view of Mordor as Ganalf the White and troupe sit on their horses and reflect on the battle …

    It’s at chapter 51, a few seconds into the chapter that the SONY can’t handle it. On that player I can fast forward through it. It’s just annoying that this happens. How many other people only have one player and just can’t successfully watch this movie through. Makes me re-think which player is in which room in our home 🙂

    Reply
  5. Sean Poyser Avatar
    Sean Poyser

    I had the same problem only this is with my Sony PS2, on Chapter 51, when Gandalf says the word swift, it cuts about 20 seconds into chapter 52, then continues just fine. You’d think that since sony owns the patent on CD & DVD technology they’d test DVD’s and their stupid copy protection crap on their stuff first. I’m writing them a nastygram, and I want my PS2 replaced at their cost.

    Reply
  6. Dave Avatar
    Dave

    Thank god. I thought I was going nuts. I managed to get the disk to play scene 51 properly after fooling around with the Digital Video Enhancer (DVE) feature on my Sony DVP-C675D but after a few plays the problem started again. This is insane!

    Reply
  7. Warbridge Avatar
    Warbridge

    It isn’t just Sony, but judging by the messages it seems to be Sony more often than not. IGN has a short piece up regarding their readers complaints baout not being able to watch the movie. See the link. Not much detail wise, but hopefully there will be more news.

    dvd.ign.com/articles/436/436356p1.html?fromint=1

    And replacing your PS2 won’t help. It isn’t likely to be the player’s fault, although a PS2 is not a replacement for a full fledged DVD player, but if it plays most other things fine then it is the disk, not the player.

    Reply
  8. Marysue Avatar
    Marysue

    I wrote the below as it’s own entry on September 8, 2003, link directly below.

    www.hyperthinking.us/weblog/archives/000097.php

    The Two Towers DVD – PT II
    We returned our second copy of TTT DVD a few days ago. I didn’t open until yesterday, just not wanting to find disappointment with it [see previous post and comments]. So I waited until I was curious enough not to be thrown off by the result it would bring about.

    I chose to select a scene in our Sony DVD player, which had been the one to throw the Chapter 51 glitch at us each time we tried to view it with the first or second DVD we brought home. I chose chapter 51 and was amazed to see it play through. Hurray!

    So I went back to the main menu and started the movie from the beginning. It played without a hitch or glitch. Success!

    We bought 1, returned it.
    Exchanged for a second. Returned it.
    Exhanged for a third. Keeping it. It works.

    Keep trying folks. There are good and bad discs, apparently, out there, and it’s a game to find the right one. It’s really sad that this is the case, but it’s what we have to work with.

    Now, here’s hoping that the Extended version of TTT will be flawless!

    Reply
  9. Marysue Avatar
    Marysue

    Bad new for us now. The third copy of TTT we bought, worked flawlessly the first few times.

    I watched it the other night when I couldn’t sleep, and dozed a few minutes only to find I was watching chapter 26 next, though I’d been way past it last time I recalled being awake.

    So, handy dandy remote in hand — I ran through chapter selections and finding chapter 51 and yep, it skips, but only back to chapter 50 I think it is, when Frodo [and Sam] is in Gondor. This error keeps repeating now, just like that.

    I’ve tried thing in fastfwd modes, and slowfwd modes, on the fastest forward it goes through, on the other ones it either hangs and then skips ahead into chapter 51 leaving gaps in the little Gandolf speech, or it hangs and hangs, or it hangs then goes back to chapter 50 with Frodo in Gondor.

    Weird. In regular play, it won’t play through now, but on X2 fastfwd it plays it. No other forward speed will, and the glitch is different depending on which forward speed used.

    We give up. No more returns.Has New Line Cinema said anything yet? I haven’t checked to see. I will later.

    Reply
  10. Sean Poyser Avatar
    Sean Poyser

    On Return number 5. Same as last post by marysue. The first 3 copies skipped in the same place, the last two copies took a couple plays before skipping started to happen. In both Chapter 52 & 50. No more returns for me either. I want All three as compensation + the money in gas I spent driving (171.6 miles for all) + refunds for the other DVD I purchased of the first one. Kinda pointless having part 1, and a separate trilogy set. I will keep an eye on New Lines website and if I see anything I will checkj back here to see if anybody hasn’t already posted.

    Reply
  11. Greg Avatar
    Greg

    There is something going on with this disk that is way beyond my knowledge of how DVD players work. Here is my case history: bought the first copy of The Two Towers, played it on a Denon 2800, experienced freeze and lock-up, returned disk and got second copy, experienced freeze and lock-up, played dvd on Panasonic DVD player – no problems. Contacted Denon, I had problems with the 2800 before, Denon sent me a replacement unit, a 2800mk2. This player also has problems with the disc. Played the disc on a second Panasonic player (older, non-progressive)no problems. Whatever the problem is, only certain players seem susceptible to it. Denon has been fantastic in terms of support, but I wonder what the issue is.

    Reply
  12. Marysue Avatar
    Marysue

    dvd.ign.com/articles/450/450699p1.html

    Amazing news. Finally. Will it help? I don’t know if it’s worth it. We’ve had three separate sets of TTT, and to send in the third one, just the movie portion I’m supposing, is like … “frodo throwing the ring into the fire …?” He couldn’t do it in the end.

    At least corporate entities respond, that’s impressive, it only what, a month later?

    Here’s a very interesting artilce about DVD Rot. Ick. TTT definitely has it. Be aware!

    www.afterdawn.com/news/archive/1655.cfm

    So on second thought, yes I’ll send it in, but hey, why does it seem rotten on my Sony, but not on my Pioneer. This will take a bit more thinking and research … before I let go of a disc that at least if in the case I could return to a store for a new one. I say openly that I haven’t called that phone number to hear what they have to say.

    Reply
  13. Rich Avatar
    Rich

    Thanks for the update. I’ve had the same experience, and have been searching for the cure. After returning the disk twice I’m glad to see the flaw has been recognized by the manufacturer.

    Reply
  14. David H Avatar
    David H

    I’m so glad that you posted your experience with TTT on this website. I too returned my TTT DVD and got the same problem with the second DVD. I finally returned it tonight for a third DVD and this time, on a hunch, I got a DVD with a different promotion (Chrysler sweepstakes as opposed to the first two which had the Best Buy Adventure Card). This disc did not appear to be manufactured by WAMO when I opened it. It did not skip on Ch. 51.

    Reply
  15. Marysue Avatar
    Marysue

    Thanks for posting your experience as well! We bought ours at Circuit City. Definitely all WAMO discs.

    We are still unresolved on what to do for the #4 fix … exchange with the store, or send the disc through the mail … or …

    Reply
  16. Clint Pepper Avatar
    Clint Pepper

    My story is just like all of yours. It took me three bad disks before going to the source. Thanks for the link. I’ll return my disk and get a new one. Thanks again.

    Reply
  17. Mr. Smith Avatar
    Mr. Smith

    Our problem with the Two Towers DVD: A skip in an early part of the movie: the Uruk-hai camp, Pippin and Meri (sp?) are tied and talking about having made a mistake leaving The Shire. The picture jumps. Exchanged the disc and the second one had the exact same problem.

    Reply
  18. Mr. Smith Avatar
    Mr. Smith

    By the way, we are in Japan and the player is a Yamaha purchased about two months ago.

    Reply
  19. Mr. Smith Avatar
    Mr. Smith

    The manufacturer is Nippon Herald Films, Inc.

    Reply
  20. Mr. Smith Avatar
    Mr. Smith

    It also jumped when we played it in the store when we went in to exchange it.

    Reply
  21. mad max Avatar
    mad max

    I just exchanged my first TTT and the second skips. I have an RCA DVD Player. It’s about two years old. Both copies would not play Ch.15 -19 on the first disk. The second disk played but skipped intermittently throughout. I even bought a lens cleaner for $20. I decided to check out the web to see if anyone else was having problems. It was a major disapointment to get about an hour into the movie and have to deal with the exchange biz. I’m going to try my third out tomorrow. I’m going to try it out at the store before I bring it home. I guess they produced twice as many TTT than the felowship. A year ago my First fellowship skipped and my second played fine.

    Reply
  22. Ben Avatar
    Ben

    I’ve bought Two Towers extended edition as soon as it came out a couple of days ago. My DVD player (Goldstar) wasn’t able to read the 3rd and 4th disks (appendices)… I returned it and bought another set. Same problem… Not even access to the menu. But my DVD player plays all the other DVDs that I put in. Any thought?

    Reply
  23. Marysue Avatar
    Marysue

    Ben,

    We have the Extended Version of TTT but haven’t tested it [read: played] yet. Though I did just run and put the first appendice in the Sony DVD Player, that’s the third disc. It played the menu and the first thing we clicked, but we stopped it then, since it did work. [we are going to watch it later].

    So, how old is your Goldstar DVD Player? My Sony is old, and is the one that had the problem with the theatrical release, 3 times, and we just never resolved the problem. It played fine twice, then never again. I can watch it fine on my computer, or on the other DVD player we have, which is a Pioneer DVD player.

    It’ll be interesting to see if the Extended version has problems or not. Keep us updated as to what you find.

    Reply
  24. Kelly Avatar
    Kelly

    I have the same problem, not able to play disk 3 and 4. I have a zenith 5 disk changer dvd. I can play the appendix from the first movie extended set. Why not this second movie extended set? I returned it an the new ones do the same.
    I can play it on my computer though.
    If any one knows what is going on I would like to know.
    Kelly

    Reply
  25. Kelly Avatar
    Kelly

    I just got off the phone with zenith support.
    They told me that the firmware on the player has to be updated.
    The new piracy protection on the disks is what they are blaming the problem on. The support person asked me to box up the unit. She is sending Ups out to pick up the player and they will update it then send it back.
    I got the info from the support url listed on the back of the two towers paper index. support.interactual.com then went to the link “home dvd players” located on the left colum of the web page. This finaly directed me to zenith’s support phone number.
    Hope this helps anyone else with the problem.
    Kelly

    Reply
  26. Sarah Avatar
    Sarah

    I have a Zenith DVD/VCR player which plays the Fellowship discs fine but won’t play disc 3&4 for Two Towers. A guy I emailed at Zeniths support center said this;

    At this time, our factory is looking into a software upgrade to resolve this issue. It is related to the way the manufacturer of the DVD’s has encoded the special features discs. Many DVD player manufacturers are experiencing the same difficulty with these two particular discs. Feel free to contact us in the future if you have any additional questions or concerns. Thank you again for contacting Zenith Electronics.

    He didn’t say they could actually fix the problem! So, If anyone’s had theirs fixed already let me know. My player was an x-mas gift last year and it looks like I’m be asking for another player this year. Any suggetions?

    Reply
  27. Brad Avatar
    Brad

    Yep, same problem here, won’t read disks 3 and 4. Mine is a Sanyo dual DVD/VCR, not very expensive but fairly new. What DVDs will this work on, or will I have to just watch it on my computer? Very annoying.

    Reply
  28. Robert Avatar
    Robert

    Audio problems persist with the Two Towers. I have purchased three disks including the extended version. The music overpowers the level that the voices are recorded. You can be driven to boredom trying to hear and pick out the script most of the time. Although with the extended version, it becomes very hard to hear the dialoge further into the movie. The DVD is Panasonic with no problems with any othermovie.

    Reply
  29. Tamu Avatar
    Tamu

    This is the fifth copy that I have bought. My husband is an English teacher and has been teaching it in his class. When we get to chapter 51 it just stops. Does any one know if the disk will be replaced somehow and who do we need to contact to get it replaced? If you know email me at tamu38260@yahoo.com it will help me very much thanks.

    Reply
  30. Mad Hatter Avatar
    Mad Hatter

    Bought TTT extended version
    Disk two freezes for a few seconds after Haldir talks to king theoden, is this a glitch in the DVD or is it supposed to be there. Would really really appreciate some expert advice I have teruened the version four times now. Help….

    Mad Hatter

    Reply
  31. Christopher Avatar
    Christopher

    I talked with Zenith Customer Service today. They are aware of the problem they are having and also with Sony and Hitachi units. The person I spoke with said they are still uncertain if they will release a firmware upgrade on a disk that can be loaded into the machine or if they will put out a recall on the machines and we’d have to ship them in. He said to sit tight until February for it all to get worked out.
    The Zenith Customer Service Number I called was: 1-877-993-6484 option 1.

    Reply
  32. Kelly Koon Avatar
    Kelly Koon

    Hi, all.
    Just a note to update everyone on my experience with the zenith dvd player and the two towers appendix disks not playing. When I had contacted zenith they had no clue what the problem was and they footed the bill to ship my dvd player to the service center. They replaced the head and upgraded the firm ware to the latest version.
    When I got it back, with high hopes I plugged it all back in and put in disk 3….. nothing.
    I tested the other disks. The movie plays fine, but still the appendixes do not.
    I contacted zenith support again and now they are saying they have no immediate solution.
    (Same as noted in some of the recent posts.)
    I would be ticked off but zenith has actually tried to provide good service (if not good support). And it has not cost me anything.
    So I guess we will just have to wait and see.

    Reply
  33. Chris Avatar
    Chris

    I feel all your pain zenith owners, same problem. Disk 3&4 don’t wanna run.Here’s to hoping theres a solution. Cheers!

    Reply
  34. Dave Avatar
    Dave

    Same problems with disks 3&4 not playing on my Sonique / Rio / Go Video DVD-VHS combo unit. They just cycle endlessly between chapters 1 & 2. Both work correctly on a friend’s Sony PS2. (No problems with skips in chapter 51 on either system, though.)

    I’m looking on the web for FW upgrades for my DVD player, but no luck so far. Maybe I can re-format and re-write disks 3 & 4 …

    Reply
  35. Robert Avatar
    Robert

    I’m having the same problem with discs 3 & 4. I have a Sanyo dual dvd/vcr. Sarah, is your Sanyo a DVW-5000? Anyone else with a Sanyo player having this problem?

    Reply
  36. Jonathan Avatar
    Jonathan

    Hi. Having exactly the same problem with my copy of TTT Extended DVD (region 2), purchased from HMV in the UK. I’ve already returned it once, but both times, the second disk skips and freezes on Chapters 14/15/16. I’m glad to know I’m not the only one, but feel sad that it’s not possible to watch the movie without this happening every time! I’m using an internal SAMSUNG DVD-ROM drive purchased in 2001… Going to return it tomorrow and get a refund – then try some other store – perhaps there is a recurring problem with certain batches? Good luck to everyone in sorting out their problems with this DVD…:)

    Reply
  37. Jorge Avatar
    Jorge

    Similar problem with discs 3 and 4. They run but with periodic cuts.

    No problem with chapter 51.
    Player: Sony 405

    Reply
  38. Robert Avatar
    Robert

    I called Sanyo and they said the discs won’t play on my dvd player (DVW-5000). They purchased copies of TTT Extended Edition and tested on the DVW-5000’s they had there, and none of them would play it. They talked to New Line and so far haven’t gotten a clear answer as to what the problem is.

    One thing I’ve noticed about my discs is that there seems to be a physical difference between the appendices discs and the movie discs. The movie discs appear to be a little thicker. Anyone else notice this?

    Reply

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