A perfect adaptation of a great story

Rating: 10/10 (21 December 2012)

An absolutely stunning fantasy adventure. I was enthralled from start to finish. Does it help to know the book, and the mythical background? Maybe, but I can't unknow it, whereas those ignorant of the story of how (and why) a wizard calls in on a homely hobbit to persuade him to go on a quest, have a choice.
Great though the Lord of the Rings movies were, Jackson and his team have created a more complete fantasy world than was possible 10 years ago, and populated it with humour and humanity. As was the case with the last trilogy, the actors make a great ensemble, with enough strong performances to carry the story without any of them overwhelming. Where previously the studios were wary of making audiences sit through long movies, Jackson can here take his time, not just in expanding (not padding) the original tale with additional material that helps stitch the entire of Middle Earth into existence, but in allowing critical scenes time to unfold and draw you in.
The action sequences are just mesmerising. Knowing that they are created with 'special effects' does not matter if you allow yourself the pleasure of wallowing in the details and being carried breathlessly through the backstory of the loss of the dwarfs' home of Erebor, and the fights with trolls, wargs and goblins.
But the two most telling moments - proof that within this oft derided genre are the essentials of what story is about - are the most quiet. The scene where Bilbo and Gollum meet under the mountain for the first time climaxes with the critical moment for the whole of Middle Earth where the hobbit, hiding from Gollum, who is in turn hiding from the dwarfs, has the chance to kill the pathetic creature from whom he has obtained the ring. He changes his mind. But the most affecting moment for me came after the rumbustious goings-on when the dwarfs first arrive, and Bilbo wakes to find they have tidied up and gone, leaving him to his ordinary life. The silence ringing round Bag End is terrifying, and it is this realisation that he has lost his chance to live a real life that compels Bilbo to change his mind once more, and propel him out of the door.
Now, to find a cinema where I can watch it again, this time in 48fps and 3D!