The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Rating: 9/10 (19 June 2013)

As a dedicated fan of the Lord of the Rings series and all of Tolkien's work put into it, this was ultimately a must see film for myself. While I did anticipate changes for The Hobbit in comparison to the rest of the Lord of the Rings franchise, I was left with questionable thoughts about it. Because the Lord of the Rings franchise ended in 2003 after making The Return of the King, The Hobbit (made nine years later) was likely to be missing a portion of the necessary and original Lord of the Rings feelings. In some cases The Hobbit felt a bit more merry than the Lord of the Rings movies and I couldn't help but continuously relate The Hobbit back to the original Lord of the Rings series. While The Hobbit is more of an adventurous story, and the dwarfs are very spirited characters, I still believe The Hobbit had an empty feeling in relation with the rest of the franchise. After watching the movie a third time, I found myself settling back into the Lord of the Rings state of mind and came to understand that while it may never be the same, it is nevertheless my favorite story by Tolkien and captures key moments making it an overall wholehearted movie and a good time for any fans of Peter Jackson, J.R.R. Tolkien, and or the Lord of the Rings in general. I suggest forgetting the Lord of the Rings movies all together when going to see this and keeping an open mind. After all there is a nine year difference. Looking forward to the next two movies in this great Hobbit adventure. Overall 8.7 rating.
-Collin Rook