Not flawless, but an enjoyably immersive outing.

Rating: 8/10 (27 December 2012)

As far as enormous motion pictures go, this trilogy opener is right up there. It may run an hour shy of any of the LOTR instalments, yet director Peter Jackson packs in just as many sprawling set-pieces, spanning vistas, jostling subplots and larger-than-life characters, for better and for worse. The action sequences are well-choreographed and, from a technical standpoint, simply outstanding; the computer effects are mostly seamless and, unlike in LOTR, it's often difficult to see where flesh ends and green screen begins. There's a catch though: the increasingly gigantic battles against and/or amongst Goblins, Orcs, Trolls and Storm Giants lack a sense of real danger thanks to the 13 Dwarfs and sole Hobbit continuously escaping with barely even a scratch. You know, because they have lots of courage and stuff. But hey, it looks terrific. As do the New Zealand – sorry, Middle Earth – landscapes (which unsurprisingly get countless high shots lavished upon them) and the grand, CGI-rendered sets; both of which are gloriously shot by the Oscar-winning cinematographer Andrew Lesnie, who has worked with Jackson on each of his films since Fellowship of the Ring.
A blockbuster can't succeed without a decent storyline and An Unexpected Journey is no exception. In addition to J.R.R. Tolkien's award-winning 1937 novel, screenwriters Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens and Guillermo del Toro (who was originally going to direct, but pulled out due to a delayed production schedule) pillage the plethora of appendixes and unfilmed LOTR material, as well as introducing new information to pad out the proceedings. They wisely never skimp on characterisation and tell enough back-story to enlighten those of us who aren't overly familiar with the book; however there are also a handful of talkative scenes that well and truly outstay their welcome. Despite a gazillion characters warring for screen time, the major players are all rounded out nicely too. Bilbo, as played by the sublime Martin Freeman, is a charismatic, humorous and captivating protagonist who is easy to spend a few hours with, whilst Dwarf leader Thorin (Richard Armitage) is a vertically challenged, but much more interesting, version of Aragon who almost steals the show from Mr Baggins.
Definitely not flawless (most frustratingly, Gandalf's powers appear to be bound by narrative necessity) however this first entry is immersive enough to be a rollicking good time at the cinema.