Bloated but Entertaining

Rating: 7/10 (7 January 2013)

It seems Peter Jackson could not decide what kind of movie he was making. After leaving the theatre I'm not sure what I saw either. There was a Middle-Earth on screen, but there wasn't quite the same magic that I remember from ten years ago.
The things that were good about The Hobbit can be completely attributed to what Peter Jackson got right with LOTR. Gollum's scene was the absolute best part of the movie. Andy Serkis is great at his craft, and you just can't beat a performance like that. Gandalf was also great as always. All of the authentic location shots were stunning just like in LOTR too.
As far as new additions to the cast go I've got to say that Martin Freeman as Bilbo was pretty spot-on. He was quirky, neurotic and clever like I imagined Bilbo to be. However, not a single dwarf was either endearing or memorable. I felt absolutely no attachment to them, and that's because they were simply too cartoony and one dimensional. This made supposedly tense moments feel more like a thrill ride than a movie.
Speaking of thrill rides, I can't believe that we go from 40 minutes of slow paced introduction in Hobbiton to 100 foot tall brawling Rock Giants. Before The Hobbit started there was a trailer for Pacific Rim, a movie where those Rock Giants would probably be a lot less out of place. I understand that this part is in the book, but to nowhere near the grandeur. Tolkien does not specify exactly how big they were, and I felt that Jackson took some insane liberties here. How can you expect characters in a story to be surprised by anything after witnessing a sight like that?
"Hey look a dragon, Bilbo."
"Yeah. That's great. Still not as crazy as those Rock Giants, though."
Remember that one cool scene in The Fellowship of the Ring where they're escaping the goblins in Moria? Aragorn and Frodo teeter precariously on a segment of staircase as arrows are flying by them before they finally topple back onto safe ground. Imagine a dozen moments like that in the span of a minute in The Hobbit. Peter Jackson ramps up the action so much at times that the dwarfs would have to literally be invincible to survive. This unfortunately kills any sense of peril that otherwise should be present.
Visually The Hobbit is good. As much as some people protest, graphics are important in some movies and The Hobbit does not disappoint. However, what looks great as CGI looked a lot better more than a decade ago when Peter Jackson's crew painstakingly made every chainmail suit, and applied all of that make-up to make actors look like Orcs. The Hobbit was borderline Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith with how much of this film was computer generated. Luckily, the CGI is of such a quality that it ALMOST makes up for it.
The Hobbit's soundtrack was superb. I especially liked how they made lyrical songs from the book seem natural and not out of place in the context of the film. A complete far cry from the goofy soundtrack of Rankin & Bass's animated version from the 70s.
I want to end this review on another good note. As much as the Goblin Town part of this movie I felt was a bit overdone, Barry Humphries voice as the Great Goblin was eccentric and pleasantly comical. Oh yeah and the trolls as cockney brigands was sweet too.
7/10
I hope there's more good to come from the *gulp*...next two films.