The Hobbit

Peter Jackson Rides Again

The Hobbit-An Unexpected Journey-2012 (3 Stars-out of 4)

The Hobbit-1978

So, The Hobbit is finally here.  I certainly say, it took long enough.  I'm not exactly sure why Peter Jackson held out for so long.  Maybe he was burned out, but it is finally here.  So, I'm sure you're asking, how good is it?

The short answer is, it's pretty darn good.  The high level of quality that you have come to expect from WETA and their special effects.  Peter Jackson and his writing partners do a first rate job of adapting the film as they did last time.  However, there is a small wrinkle.  The Hobbit is a fairly simple book.  It is a very simple, children's book where not too much really happens.  I remember standing in line for the movie thinking, "how in the world are they going to make three 3-hour movies out of this book?"  As I was watching, there was a lot of elements I did not recognize from when I read the book.  It turns our that Jackson has added a lot of elements to the movie that I believe are either from the appendices in Lord of the Rings or other books like The Cimarillion.  There are at least three new elements that have been woven into the narrative.  There is a story about the Orc king that killed Thorin's father and is chasing them throughout the movie.  There is also the mention of a necromancer which is starting the setup to The Lord of the Rings.  This part is starting to bring about the story of the Nazgul and the beginnings lof the awakening of the evil of Sauron and the One Ring.  There is also a whole section on the elves and Elron/Galadrial where Gandalf becomes a detective of sort to figure out why the evil is awakening.

As I said, the special effects are magnificent.  But they get really over the top during the fight with the Dragon King.  There is just way too much action that is designed to show off the 3-D effects.  This is a movie that does NOT need to be seen in 3D.  Don't waste your money.  Go see it in 2D.  The acting is great and all of our familiar characters are back.  The movie ends on the escape from the Goblin King and Gollum.  One of the things I really enjoyed with the film was that you don't really get a good look at Smaug, the dragon.  I think that this will be most of the second film, the battle with Smaug and I'll bet the third film will be that battle of the five armies.  As a lark, I decided to rewatch the original animated film from the 70s to compare them.  Obviously, it shows its wear.  The songs are a little hokey, and the DVD transfer is one of the murkiest and worst transfer I have ever seen.  I know this is a fairly vanilla review, but there really is not much to say.  It is fun if you are a Lord of the Rings fan, and I recommend seeing it.  It is a tad long, but it is good.  I think you will have fun.