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- Review count1
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- First reviewDecember 15, 2012
- Last reviewDecember 15, 2012
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IsildursBane's Reviews
Overall rating
5
/
5
The Hobbit Delivers!
PostedDecember 15, 2012
IsildursBane
from Dallas, TX, USA
Age:45 to 54
Gender:Male
Goes to the movies:once every few months
Dialogue
5
/
5
Special Effects
5
/
5
Art Direction
5
/
5
Acting
5
/
5
Story
5
/
5
Camerawork
5
/
5
Intro:
First of all, context is important. I have read the Lord of the Rings countless times since 1980 - I almost have them memorized, and have pictures I took myself of Tolkien's house in Oxford (ok, I'm a bit crazy about this stuff :). I favored those books over The Hobbit, which I have only read once. I really loved Jackson's interpretation of the LOTR Trilogy, and was eager to see what he would do with the Hobbit.
First of all, context is important. I have read the Lord of the Rings countless times since 1980 - I almost have them memorized, and have pictures I took myself of Tolkien's house in Oxford (ok, I'm a bit crazy about this stuff :). I favored those books over The Hobbit, which I have only read once. I really loved Jackson's interpretation of the LOTR Trilogy, and was eager to see what he would do with the Hobbit.
I saw the 3D HFR Version. Jackson is one of the first directors to film a feature in 48 frames per second - that's twice as fast as a normal movie camera. What this means is that the picture is crystal clear, with no blur at all between frames. The result is that you see everything on the screen as if you were right there.
3D I don't care much for, but because my whole family went, we had to do that bit. I think I'll see it again in a couple of weeks just in HFR - that would be my recommendation.
Ok, on to the movie itself.
Pacing:
It starts of very very very slowly. There's a voice over to give background on the situation that the main characters are going to be in - like Fellowship, the back history is provided at the beginning. Then we have the arrival of the Dwarves at Bilbo's house. Much time is spent in his house before the adventure even begins, but this is necessary for character development. After that it speeds up and doesn't stop, with one chase scene and impossible escape after another. This is the only fault I would point out. I think that in order to keep everyone's attention, Jackson felt it necessary to keep the pace up. Personally I would have liked more character development throughout the film (there is some, but more would have been nice).
Script:
Very well put together with witty lines throughout. I never had any doubts on this dialogue going in, what with the LOTR under Jackson's belt. Where dialogue is concerned, Jackson is as far from George Lucas as you can possibly imagine :) The writing credits for the film are as follows: Peter Jackson, Guillermo Del Toro, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens.
Acting:
Impeccable throughout, each character is really very well done by the actors - no complaints here. Gollum - yes, the character we love and hate at the same time (much as he loves and hates himself!). I really think Andy Serkis should get an Oscar for his portrayal of Gollum, given that all the physical movements and his voice are Andy's. I think this time we'll see him get something (even if it's at the end of the Trilogy).
Story:
This is an adaptation, so it's to be expected that Jackson would stray from the book - I'm not going to give a list of the differences. I wanted to view the movie for what it was, not compare it to the book - that's why I didn't read it before going to the theater. That being said, The average movie goer should be able to follow the story even if they haven't read the book. There are some nice touches for fans, like including another wizard that was left out of The Two Towers (Radagast the Brown).
I was VERY worried when Jackson announced that he was going to make 3 movies instead of the originally planned 2. The original idea was to have 1 movie for The Hobbit, and a second movie to depict events that occur in the 60 years between The Hobbit and Fellowship. I think that would have been perfect. But as a rabid fan, more movies in Tolkien's universe is a good thing :)
Conclusion:
Overall I really loved it - Gollum is definitely the highlight. This is a fantastic movie for kids - and that's what it's supposed to be. Remember the Hobbit was Tolkien's first book and was written specifically for his own children - it's not an adult book. LOTR was written after the success of the Hobbit, and at the insistence of his publishers. His intent in LOTR was completely different - he wanted to write an entire mythology, not just a children's book. That being said, Jackson has done a great job of making it entertaining for us older folks as well.
I highly recommend this movie for the whole family. It's a fun romp through a somewhat already familiar corner of Middle Earth that we can all enjoy.
Pros great story, great actors, great for kids
Yes, I recommend this movie.
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