All I could ever ask of The Hobbit!

Rating: 9/10 (25 December 2012)

The Lord of the Rings trilogy is an impossible standard of a trilogy. The Hobbit is an entertaining, heartwarming, and humorous film that nobody will recognize that views it with a critical eye.
Having seen it in 48 frames per second I see why people dislike the technology. As a teenage film critic I couldn't help but notice the mistakes. The speed of the frames is jarring at first, many things that would look real look fake...then, I start seeing plates flying, start hearing the dwarfs sing, and start feeling the emotion and humor and the action starts and I'm entranced in the likability of the film. Slowly I'm not watching a movie but being transported into Middle Earth. The frame rate stops becoming annoying and starts enhancing the experience.
If you treat this like a movie you won't enjoy the fun. If you try to treat it like actual events in the Lord of the Rings series you miss the point of the film. Bilbo is recalling the story from his memory, and like Gandalf says in the movie, "All good stories deserve embellishment." This is the way it's being told, maybe not how it happened.
The editing is slower than modern films. Many complained about the pace, but every scene has a purpose in future sequels, no scene is poorly written, and I loved every single one of these characters, including the trippy Radagast.
48 frames isn't perfect yet, isn't the new standard, but a new way to watch film. If you find yourself too attached to the cinematic experience this will be different. It's not headache 3D, it gives the feeling of a live performance with awesome effects, and gives HD minus the annoyance. I love it! It turns of the film critic and brings in the story lover.
This deserves a 10, it is by far the most immersive films of the year, but because it is a prequel to a superior series I cannot raise expectations too high. My advice is put your 3D glasses on, your notepad down, and enjoy a new way of viewing cinema.