A lengthy but riveting film, well worth your time.

Rating: 7/10 (29 March 2014)

At 2 hours and 49 minutes, this film is lengthy but well worth it in the end, although it does take about an hour and a half to get any real plot development.
The acting talent of Ian McKellen (Gandalf) and Martin Freeman (Bilbo) are particularly noteworthy. Most of the humour shown arises from the facial expressions of Bilbo. It's a dry humour that I'm particularly fond of. Thorin (Richard Armatige), I find, isn't very believable as a character, and the acting here is quite poor.
I noticed that the size scale of the Hobbits and the Dwarfs are inconsistent. There's a point where Bilbo is shown to be only slightly taller than a fully grown pig, then later he's shown to be just as big as a pony.
The graphics are incredible and realistic. Your sympathy for Sebastian the Hedgehog and hatred of the pale Orc Azog is dramatised via the graphics, and this is what they're for.
The dialogue could be improved. Half of the plot movement is created through dialogue, but the information you need is not clear. Some information is missed out altogether - when you first see the Goblins I thought they were Trolls.
I've always loved the Lord of the Rings score, but here it could be improved. At around 1 hour and 55 minutes, in a scene where the group are travelling across the mountains of Middle-Earth, the music could be a little more demanding, it should have more 'oomph.'
The battle scenes are directed brilliantly. The camera shots are perfect; where in most films you'd go from fight to fight, and be unable to make sense of it, this film is a massive improvement. The gore is kept to a minimum, which I admire, but some horror is included. The horror isn't necessary but it makes the film more riveting, and would be worse without it.
I loved the ending. It's a perfect way to create suspense for the next film "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug."