1/3 of the story is missing...

If you want your questions asked then the movie should have been 10 hours long or do you want it actual to the the book hours of tree bear talking?

And I am really afraid that the most of them wont even be in the exended version. I think that the idea that Hobbiton wasnt safe reminds someone of september 11 ;-)
So they just cry for a longer time to fill up the space.

hi, i know i might sound stupid but i never understand what was the palantir. can someone explain to me what it is and tell me about the episode with aragorn looking in it? (why is it so important?) i didnt read the books....

"Where are Saruman and Grima?"

In the extended edition of RoTK

"Where are Prince Imrahil, the Sons of Elrond and the Dunedain?"

They would have made the movie more complex and added even more characters without adding anything of significance.

"Where is the confrontation between Gandalf and the Witch King?"

Gone. The version they had in the movie translated better to the movie.

"Where is Lieutenant Gothmog?"

What was the name of the Orc-commander that led Sauron's forces?

"Where are the Houses of Healing?"

They would have made the movie longer without adding anything of significance.

"Where is Theoden King's funeral?"

It would have made the movoe longer. Maybe it's in extended edition.

"Where are the Easterlings?"

Were they needed? Would they have made the movie better?

"Where is Ghan-buri-Ghan?"

Yet another character that gets 5 minutes of screen-time and is never again heard of. They might as well remove him, and they did.

"Where is Denethor's Palantir?"

It would have added yet another plot-twist to the story and it was not really required.

"And where in the good name of Tolkien is the Scouring of the Shire?!"

It has been reported OVER AND OVER AGAIN since the release of FoTR that there would not be Scouring of the Shire! The movie needs a climax and a closure. The climax was the destruction of the ring. Scouring of the Shire wopuld have been a major anti-climax! As someone said in one forum, it would be the same if in "Return of the Jedi", Luke goes back to Tatoiine after destroying the Emperor, only to find out that there is a minor Sith Lord terrorizing the neighbourhood. We then spend 20 minutes watching him track him down and kill him.

RoTK's theatrical-release couldn't really be any longer than this. It's already as long as it could be! Adding the stuff you mentioned would have made the movie longer (which it can't be), it would have added more characters to the story (the story is already FULL of characters) and they wouldn't have made the movie one bit better, quite the contrary!

QUOTE "Where is Aragorn's look inside the Palantir?"

This is the only scene I think should have been included. The others really only add to the length of the film and introduce more characters in a movie that has plenty already. The Palintir scene though shows Sauron that the Heir of Isuldur has returned and keeps his eye on the West instead of his own lands where Frodo & Sam are. I think it also would have shown Aragorn as someone who is accepting his destiny and who is mighty enough to confront Sauron and wrestle the Palintir away from him. There doesn't seem to be enough of Aragorn as more than a great fighter in the films.