The Hobbit: A Not-So-Unexpected Movie Review

So a couple of days ago, Andy and I went to the downtown cinema in Nelson for the 10:30 showing of the Hobbit, which we had booked a week in advance.  Due to unforeseen events, we ended up at the 12:30 showing instead (as Andy detailed here).  As a result of technical difficulties, we ended up watching the regular 3D version instead of the 48fps version we had originally signed up for.  In a way, I was glad that our first viewing of the movie was in the original mainstream format so that I could give it a fair review based on its merit, without the influence of visual distractions (whether for good or for bad.)

Anyway, I had read some reviews for The Hobbit ahead of time out of curiosity, but was determined not to let the mixed reviews affect my own opinion, as much as that can be helped.  I figured, if you came into the theater expecting something as epic as The Lord of the Rings, you are setting yourself up for a major letdown.  So I prepared myself on that front.  I also knew that The Hobbit would have a lighter tone and lack the gravity of the previous trilogy.  After all, it was a kids book that Tolkien had written for his own children.  It wasn’t meant to be as serious as LOTR.  This is one of the reasons I have reservations about Peter Jackson turning it into a trilogy, but I digress…  Lastly, Andy and I had read The Hobbit together earlier this year or last year and knew it would be tricky to put on the big screen for a multitude of reasons, which I will explain later in my review.

But with all the mental preparations I had coming into the theater, I left the movie thinking it was… okay.  As expected, it wasn’t as great as LOTR.  But it wasn’t horrible either.

The Pros:  The number one pro on my list is Martin Freeman as Bilbo.  He was casted perfectly!  I didn’t know how I’d feel about the newcomer, but I loved the way he portrayed Bilbo.  His comedic timing is spot on and he brings a human quality to the whole film, which is refreshing when you’re surrounded by the constant silliness of 13 dwarves.  I also loved the subtle mannerisms and facial expressions that he had, which reminded me of Pippin from LOTR.  Secondly, I liked the character of Thorin, which I expected I would (considering Aragorn was my favorite character from LOTR).  Like Bilbo, he helps the film stay grounded and provides the element of seriousness it needs to make us care about their quest.  Thirdly, when Gollum appeared on the screen, a wave of nostalgia came over me.  It was like greeting a long lost friend.  Strangely enough, I didn’t feel that way when Gandalf, Elrond, Galadriel, Saruman, or even Frodo made an appearance (probably because the scenes with the latter four seemed rather unnecessary).  But the scenes with Gollum and his interactions with Bilbo were well done and one of the highlights of the movie.  In concluding my pro list, I enjoyed many of the battle scenes, particularly towards the end of the film.  Every time I saw one of the characters in trouble and a whole horde of dwarves come to the rescue, I got a rush of adrenaline.  Those scenes made the movie fun, but I wish there had been more of them!

The Cons:  Now for the cons…  I guess the number one con (which if I think about it, would have been very difficult to turn into a pro, so nothing against Peter Jackson) is the lack of character development in the 13 dwarves.  Out of the 13, I can honestly only recognize 6 of them: Thorin (obviously), Dwalin (since he was the first one introduced), Balin (Thorin’s right hand man), Bombur (the big one that eats all the time), and Fili & Kili (since they also had a formal introduction.)  That’s it.  What about Bifor, Bofur, Gloin, Oin, etc… I don’t even remember all their names.  They probably only had one line or less and you never got to know them at all.  Therefore, it was hard to care much for them.  There were a number of points in the movie where the dwarves were in trouble and I wouldn’t have minded if a couple of them fell off a cliff or got eaten by a warg just so I wouldn’t have to keep track of them all.  Again, nothing against Peter Jackson- I am aware that it would’ve been very difficult to give all the dwarves the appropriate screen time they needed in one movie (maybe in the next movie… or perhaps the extended edition?)  The second con on my list is the pacing of the film.  This ties in to the strange fact that Peter Jackson decided to turn The Hobbit into a trilogy.  The whole first half of this movie dragged quite a bit (especially the scene in Rivendell with Gandalf, Elrond, Galadriel, and Saruman.)  Towards the end of the movie, right when the action starts to pick up, it just ends.  Was hoping for a bit more, but they are clearly setting up for movie 2.

So those are my pros and cons.  One more pro for us personally was being able to recognize some of the locations in the film- Hobbiton being an obvious one and many more that seemed “familiar.”  Actually, if you have been following our blog at all, our next stop on our way out to Abel Tasman National Park just  happened to be at a filming location for both Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit!  Canaan Downs up on Takaka Hill, where we camped for a night, definitely looks like Middle Earth.  See for yourself!

So in conclusion, the film was not bad, but not great.  Considering I was a HUGE Lord of the Rings fanatic back in the day, but tried to watch this movie with an open mind and an objective stance, take my review as you will.  Generally speaking, though, I do usually like movies better the second time around and will probably see it next in 48fps.  So maybe, my opinion will change…

If you do go and see this film, I would love to hear what you think and whether or not you agree with my viewpoints!

Note: Now that we have completed our Hobbit interruption, we will now return to updating you all on our Abel Tasman mini-trip last week!