Enjoyable, but an overkill if there ever was one

Rating: 7/10 (20 December 2014)

6.5*
The Battle of the 5 Armies proves there was no need for three films to tell this tale. The entire film revolves around, well, a battle. With a couple of minutes of Smaug and another couple of minutes of Dol Guldur, this film really doesn't justify its purpose. I will not dwell in the departures from the original material - it's not necessarily bad, and it's been many years since I read the book to pretend I'd notice most of them. But some inconsistencies between the Hobbit and LotR films are evident and a little too obvious.
Ultimately, as it is, the three films could have easily been converged to two. The battle doesn't need to last that long - it's not like we haven't seen it before. Overwhelming odds, last minute reinforcements, hobbit interference, Legolas being a poser to impress a redhead, really bad strategy on the orcs' behalf (the dwarfs and elves are about to fight each other, but they don't let them do that, why exactly?), miraculous salvation: Peter Jackson, you should have cut the Eagles. Please. For once, perhaps the good guys could get away with a victory not due to supernatural help?
Since they wanted 3 films, I think they should have just gone even more astray to make it work. Thranduil is an intriguing kind of antihero - give him more depth! He's interesting! Tauriel used to be in love with Legolas, but this seems more or less forgotten. You already bothered to reveal the Necromancer as Sauron, use him! He's freakin' Sauron. He steals the show. I'd sit and watch an hour of his epilepsy inducing Eye am in my own Eye trick. More Nazgul! Or give Christopher Lee two more lines, he is reason enough to watch anything. His thunderous voice can bring down the bloody mountain!
I mean, it's worth watching, but I can't withhold a 'meh'. I would advise against watching it at the cinema. Watching it back to back with the other ones on DVD or something would probably be more enjoyable.