5. The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King
Now this is a no brainer, but without The Lord of the Rings, wed have been unlikely to get an adaptation of The Hobbit at this scale. And interestingly enough, each entry of the original trilogy has had its own unique effect on the new films. The Fellowship of the Ring may have been the first case of being a fantasy film that managed to get a Best Picture nomination (and this is in the days of yore when there were only five nominees), but it was the more epic Return of the King that brought home the gold. The most adored of the original trilogy, The Return of the King pushed the perceivable length of a blockbuster. But even with the multiple endings the trilogy ender justified its length by being more than just an action adventure; its the only extended edition I personally think has any real worth to it. However, this has also helped exacerbate the problem that has been affecting Jacksons work (as well as general blockbuster cinema) ever since overly long films. Both King Kong and The Lovely Bones would have benefited massively from a serious edit and it appears the same is true of The Hobbit. With An Unexpected Journey showing us an unnecessary washing up scene and reams of exposition, its almost as if were watching the extended edition; added length deemed acceptable because it once was part of an Oscar win.