Not Lord of The Rings, but Who Cares Still Amazing

Rating: 7/10 (19 December 2012)

Every great story has a beginning. That is what The Hobbit is to The Lord of The Rings. Before I actually start I want to acknowledge that a lot of critics are very hard on this movie. People need to realize that this is the beginning of three movies and the next two are sure to be a lot better but this isn't Lord of The Rings, it is a completely different story with a completely different goal. The book itself was made for kids and the movie is very by the book, and that is not a bad thing. I watched this movie and did not compare it because there is no comparison. As A huge fan of the series I could not do that. It is a separate movie from the others and should be viewed as an individual trilogy. The story for the Hobbit is one of revenge and adventure. Bilbo Baggins is a simple hobbit who lives in the Shire but one day is visited by the wizard, Gandalf who offers to go on an adventure. After a night with 13 dwarfs and the wizard himself Bilbo sets off the help the dwarfs reclaim their lost land of Erebor on the Lonely Mountain. Years before the dwarf city had struck a mine of gold in their city and it was attacked by the Dragon Smaug. It was overrun and for generations the dwarf kings have tried to get it back. Is this movie perfect, no but it wasn't as bad as people say. Radagast the Brown is the Hermit of Middle-Earth and has taken a lot of the brunt of the pickiness of this movie. I think he served his purpose and was fine in the movie as he was. The thirteen dwarfs are forgettable but they aren't all supposed to be relatable. The audience isn't supposed to remember all of them; they are just part of the story. You are supposed to connect with Thorin Oakenshield, Balin, and the two brothers, maybe even the really fat one. The rest are just fillers for the story and provide muscle and even comic relief. The beginning was a little slow and even a little boring and that made it a little tough to get into the world of Middle-Earth once again. At times I didn't feel like I was in Middle-Earth. There was a lot of CGI where as in the original trilogy there were extras in costume instead of CGI goblins. It was a little disappointing and some scenes were pointless. I could have done without the boxing mountains. I understand it was part of the book and Peter Jackson wanted it to be as much like the book as possible but there should be a limit. People also say the movie was too long. To that I say absolutely not. People were saying scenes should have been left out for the extended addition. Why wait? Put it all in one and save me some money later. My major problem was that I saw basically everything I was looking forward to so now I'm not as excited for the other two. That isn't really a problem as much as its me just being stupid. Also, I didn't like how Bilbo found the ring. In fellowship it seemed like the ring left Gollum while as in the Hobbit Bilbo found it by pure chance. Small things so let's talk about the positives. Middle-Earth itself looked amazing. The atmosphere was there, Middle- Earth was back once I felt like I was there. I loved seeing the three trolls and paying attention to how close it resembled the book. The wargs looked great. Gandalf didn't look ten years older and the character of Bilbo was very believable and relatable. The dwarfs were entertaining and the entire movie itself had a funny side to it. I found myself chuckling at times and it was a lighter side to the story I enjoyed. The little things made me really enjoy the movie. Especially seeing old characters even as cameos. I loved seeing Frodo, old Bilbo, Saruman, Galadrial, Elrond, and of course, Gollum. My favorite scene was with Gandalf, Elrond, Saruman, and Galadrial talking about the Necromancer and the morgal blade. It had so much information and foreshadow for the next two movies and the three that have already been made. The Necromancer is obviously going to be Sauron and Gandalf knows that there is a greater evil at work in Middle-Earth. It was odd seeing Saruman on the good side once again but it shows a lot of his character. It was also strange seeing Elrond and Galadrial speak as if nothing was wrong. Every time we saw them before they were talking about the end of the world and the destruction of men. Now they are happy and it's just a side I laughed at. Their so naive and it all changes just sixty years later. The Hobbit connected so much with the Lord of The Rings and even though it has its flaws it was still very enjoyable. Overall, this movie is not, and was not supposed to be, as good as the other three but it was still very good. Go see this movie if you were a fan of the original three. This movie was made for the die-hard fans like me. You have to know a lot about the story and Middle-Earth to enjoy the full experience. Maybe that is why critics did not enjoy the film as much as anticipated. This movie is doomed to comparison and for that it will not really be remembered as a classic or one of the best like Lord of The Rings. It will make a lot of money but will only be remembered by the true fans of Tolkien. I give The Hobbit the WillyT Honorable Mention because it had some obvious flaws, but I will surely buy it on Blu-Ray and enjoy it again and again.