• Fanedit Title: The Hobbit - the Baliscon Cut

• Original Movie Title:  The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey/The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug/The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

• Original Release Date: December 6, 2012/December 13, 2013/December 4, 2014

• Original Runtime: 8 hours, 52 minutes

• Fanedit Release Date: January 25, 2024

• Fanedit Running Time: Standard Edition runtime - 4 hours, 9 minutes/Extended Edition - 4 hours, 30 minutes

• Time Removed/Added: 9 minutes cut

• Synopsis: Bilbo Baggins lives a simple life with his fellow hobbits in the shire, until the wizard Gandalf arrives and convinces him to join a group of dwarves on a quest to reclaim the kingdom of Erebor.

• Intentions: I grew up with the book and the Rankin and Bass cartoon, and I'm familiar with the 2.5 hour edit that follows the animated film, along with others working to match the book, but I wanted to craft a version that satisfied my own idiosyncratic needs, along with my dad's - he's the one who raised me on fantasy and sci fi and he's been a lifelong Tolkien fan who read and comprehended the Silmarillion like it was a dinner menu.

The extended version of my edit is for him and for others who want an experience closest to the book, so elements like the Goblin King's song and Beorn are retained. I took that version and cut twenty minutes out to better satisfy fans of the Jackson films who expect a quicker, more active pace.

Ultimately I wanted to shape the story around Bilbo. After An Unexpected Journey, all of the additional elements added to the trilogy like Legolas and Tauriel, Alfrid and the Master, Azog and Bolg, and Gandalf and the Necromancer, all work against focusing the story on Bilbo, the titular Hobbit of the film!

So long story short, my vision was to hone the edit down to focus on Bilbo and his arc by retaining only the scenes he's included in.

Change List: 

Elements cut from both editions:

• Frodo, Radagast, Galadriel, Saruman

• Main speaking roles for Tauriel, Alfrid, Bolg

• the Ring's influence over Bilbo's actions

• All scenes with Legolas and older Bilbo beyond short cameos

• barrel ride fight scene

• the dwarves' attempt to smelt Smaug

• Bard's son helping him slay Smaug

• Out of place humor and excessive action

Elements exclusive to the Extended Edition:

• The Goblin King's song

• Beorn and his assistance in the Dwarves' plight

• The Mirkwood vine scene

• The introduction of Dain Ironfoot

• The uncut final battle between Thorin and Azog

• Bilbo's encounter with the Sackville Bagginses