Slow but steady

Rating: 8/10 (14 December 2012)

I was interested in seeing this in the High Frame Rate format, and only High Frame Rate showing I could find was also in 3D so I took that one.
The movie was very good. I found it a bit slow in the beginning but detailed in its telling of the tale. It picked up nicely from the middle to the end and left me looking forward to the next installment.
As before with my other 3D experiences, I find the 3D effect more annoying than beneficial in any way, and an overall detriment to the film.
In addition, I also found the HFR aspect uncomplimentary to the overall experience. The HFR is very nice in action scenes or sweeping vistas or CGI, but it's very annoying in all the small intimate scenes. Many scenes of the movie felt like I was watching a soap opera on TV, it had that weird "cheap" look to it (even though I'm sure it wasn't cheap at all). Also, the added clarity just serves to expose the imperfections in the set and the makeup and background. The human eye is very discerning to subtle things and with such high clarity I found a lot of the scenes to look strangely artificial. There were several instances where it felt like I was watching a play on stage rather than a movie on a screen, and I didn't like that. Plays are one type of experience, but films, especially modern graphic laden, visual films are supposed to be an entirely different experience.
When it comes to the story and characters and acting and sets and such, the movie itself is on part with the first installment of The Lord of The Rings which I also enjoyed.
I'm looking forward to seeing the Hobbit again sometime (before it leaves theaters) in good old high quality digital and 2D.