The Start of Another Great Adventure

Rating: 8/10 (5 December 2016)

It really shocks me that The Hobbit films have had such a negative response, especially since most critics seemed to like them, particularly here on IMDb. Saying these films are on the same level as the Star Wars prequels is just absurd. I firmly believe that the only reason people hate these movies so much is because they aren't the Lord of the Rings. Peter Jackson created such a masterful trilogy with LOTR, that most people were only going to be interested in The Hobbit if it was on par with it. And granted, it's not. But it's a great story in its own right, with just enough alterations from/additions to the book to keep audiences entertained.
The first installment of The Hobbit does take its time to get started-- the second act doesn't begin until over 40 minutes in-- but that's not really a problem here. Considering we still have two movies to go, (and extended editions, which I would highly recommend) the lengthy build-up works well. In the book, most of the dwarfs are cardboard characters with no depth or story to them, but here, Jackson and Co. have attempted (successfully, for the most part) to give them personalities and stories. We also have to learn a bit about Bilbo and the reason for this grand adventure, all the while spending some time in the beautiful Shire.
From here on out, the Hobbit still meanders a bit, but inserts plenty of action and fun characters between the exposition and dialogue scenes to keep its audience entertained. There are also enough ties to the LOTR trilogy to keep fans of the universe satisfied, but not to the point of distracting from the main story.
Overall, An Unexpected Journey is not a perfect film by any means, but is still a very fun ride, and infinitely better than most action/adventure movies churned out these days. If for no other reason, check it out so you can then watch the superior second film, The Desolation of Smaug.