A wonderful rendition of my favourite childhood story

Rating: 10/10 (15 December 2012)

I really enjoyed the Hobbit. I suspect part of my enjoyment came from entering without certain delusions. The Hobbit is a children's story, I was six or seven when I first read it whereas the Lord of the Rings, is not. Any person going to see the Hobbit and expecting the weighty seriousness of Lord of the Rings is going to be in for a shock.
I would argue that more seriousness did need to be injected into this film. I remember feeling tense throughout the dwarfs journey through the mountains as a child. The Goblin king, the wolves and Gollum all had an element of distinct menace as they attempted to thwart out heroes' journey. The Trolls were always humorous villains so I had no problem with Jackson's rendition of their argument but the Goblins were meant to be scary. These come across as the dorky Orcs the bigger ones bullied in the playground.
Now, having gone through such detail character arcs with Gollum in Lord of the Rings and having developed the audience's sympathy so fully there was less chance of making Gollum the truly sinister character he was in the novel. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the schizophrenic riddles game with Bilbo, mouthing along the lines in the cinema like a true groupie, but there were more giggles than concern for Bilbo. Hats off though for the excellent expression of Gollum's glowing blue eyes on the screen, one of the many nods to the book that had me grinning throughout this film.
I may have gotten weird looks when fist pumping over references to the Sacksville Bagginses and Gandalf forgetting the names of the lost blue wizards. I found myself feeling a strong connection to grumpy grey Gandalf throughout this film, it will be interesting to see that transition to the vanquishing-evil Gandalf during the face down at Dol Guldur. Hopefully there will be more development of the other dwarfs once Gandalf departs from the company and the kids are left without the supervising adult. After all, Gandalf appeared to be on the world's worst school trip, frantically counting the number of Dwarfs and muttering through their names after each near death experience.
Rivendell was spectacular as always, Elrond, being the stylish fashionista he is had 3 awesome costumes in the course of '2 days' and Galadriel continues to rock the ethereal white look far better than Saruman. In comparison I must say I was rather frustrated with my first look at the evil in Mirkwood. While the ruins of Dol Guldur were stunning they, and the giant spiders, would have been much more sinister at dusk rather than bright daylight.
I knew, when the cast was announced for the Hobbit, that there was likely to be an uncomfortable amount of dwarf perving on my behalf (using Gimli as a reference any perving could be considered an "uncomfortable amount"). I was not wrong. Kili and Fili (Aka Merry and Pippin) were a pleasant relief on the eyes but Richard Armitage blew me away with his swirling fur trimmed surcoat. It was enough to make me wish to become one of those bearded dwarf women with him using Lord Flashart's line "Like the beard bridesmaid, gives me something to hang onto!" Only, Thorin would never do that. Ever. Sigh.
Now I will admit something that will either rally you to the common cause against an invasive menace or will have you decrying me as a backwards hobbo. I hate 3D. If I can watch a film in 2D I will pick an obscure screening time and see it then. I don't think 3D is necessary to create a good film and when it is used many directors are still so excited by the opportunity they put in shots that have little purpose other than to remind you they're in 3D.
So when I'm being dragged through a panoramic shot of the original Erabor, pre-fiery doom, I get really frustrated when, thanks to the 3D, my eyes can't actually pick any spot that's in focus. And when butterflies and flocks of birds flutter out of long shots of forest I want to grab a dwarven axe and splatter either them or Peter Jackson because, excuse me, I was looking at something more interesting on the screen. That being said, those were the only instances where I disliked the 3D so, 30 seconds out of almost 3 hours of movie seems a small price to pay.
Speaking of over use of technology, the bad CGI white Orc. The albino Uruk-Hai type thing with a Captain Hook vendetta against Thorin. Who for some reason was clean. He's an Orc! They are neither clean nor absentmindedly pet their Wargs when killing an incompetent underling, that is more in the realm of a James Bond villain. One thing noticeable from Lord of the Rings is the idea of an incorporeal menace, the evil you don't see is often more frightening than the one you do. The silhouette or voice of the White Orc giving orders to hunt down the "dwarf scum" would have been more effective in creating a nasty enemy than excess screen time of an unrealistic CGI character.
Now, whilst this review seems to be a big rant against the film, I would absolutely insist on dragging my cousin's children off to see it. I enjoyed myself throughout this film. When the Lord of the Rings films were released many fans griped about Tom Bombadil's absence, elves at Helms Deep etc. but in the end we understood the films were their own medium and rejoiced in them. The Hobbit is neither the Lord of the Rings, nor is it an exact facsimile of the novel. It is not an Elf, like the epic and long-lived Lord of the Rings, it is, in fact, a warm and cheerful Hobbit.