It's nice to have a blockbuster that doesn't rush, but sometimes you wish it would to actually give the adventure of the story some momentum.

Rating: 6/10 (26 June 2013)

Missing The Lord of the Rings trilogy in the cinema is one of my biggest film related regrets. Granted, when I finally saw them a few years later, I dragged myself through a Fellowship and Two Towers VHS and couldn't stand them. However, after I got into film, I gave them another chance and saw Return of the King for the first time on DVD with the extended editions and although I'm still not much of a fan of the themes and mythology, it is a jaw-dropping technical marvel and worth it for the spectacle. I rewatched them one more time just before The Hobbit and they continue to grow on me, this time, the storytelling of The Two Towers got to me deeply (and for some reason, the cinematography is so much stronger in that film than the other two). I always wonder what I'd be like as a person if I did see The Lord of the Rings on the big screen as so film fans of my generation got into film by seeing them earlier. Although admittedly they would've been far too scary for my 9 year old self so maybe I wouldn't have enjoyed them in the first place. Anyway, I had one expectation for The Hobbit - spectacle.
On that one basis, The Hobbit delivers. It isn't the same as The Lord of the Rings with a distinct lack of sweeping landscapes and intricate models (although it does have the makeup and production design), but it doesn't look too heavily Avatar inspired where it could've been flat and bland. It's not particularly special, but it's worth watching in the cinema, particularly in end of the second act with the Goblin caves even if there's some shaky CGI. However, the storytelling is another thing. On one hand, The Hobbit is one of those stories that takes the most basic formula for an adventure story and invents things to fill in the gaps, on the other, that method is very sloppy. Just judging Jackson's films and not Tolkien's books; it's an interesting approach, particularly for the intricate detail and rich mythology to go with it, but as an early scene in the film demonstrates where the group of dwarfs are saved by Bilbo by stalling for time, this is a technique that Jackson seems to apply to every sequence. It's nice to have a blockbuster that doesn't rush, but sometimes you wish it would to actually give the adventure of the story some momentum.
It also does have a tendency to disconnect with the characters too much for an exploration of the mythology, which is only a problem when it feels like we haven't seen Bilbo for a good half hour. It's a shame since if it focused on Bilbo for longer, Martin Freeman's mannerisms would be more welcome, but they seem contrived and bizarre, devoid of its potential charm. Unfortunately, some of the conflicts and sequences aren't as creative as they could've been, particularly with the pale orc and wolves, which now feel generic. It's a decent film, but the only scene with any weight is the scene with Gollum, which although it is sometimes hard to follow, it's utterly captivating. Though perhaps that's just because it's deeply rooted into the nostalgia of 10 years ago, which the score also achieves through its welcome revisiting of the original Lord of the Rings soundtrack. This first part is a considerable step down from that trilogy, but I didn't really expect anything more. I may see parts 2 and 3 in the cinema as well, perhaps I'll experiment and try the 3D and 48fps although I really don't think I'll be a fan. We'll see. There's plenty of time before then.
6/10