Great

Rating: 9/10 (7 January 2015)

Background:
I saw all of the LOTR trilogy, and read all of LOTR books. I saw the previous two entry's of the Hobbit films, and read "The Hobbit" book.
I do not have a great memory of the books as I read them in middle school, and watched LOTR trilogy in high school.
My favorite previous series entry was "Return of the King" or part 3.
In this instance I thought the 1st entry of the Hobbit series was good, but not fantastic.. and I thought the 2nd was OK (interestingly enough I felt the 2nd film in the last series was OK too), but I thought this film was great.. maybe really great.. and I would watch it again.
I do not think this series lived up to the standards of pushing the film industry the same way with the ground-breaking series that was the first LOTR trilogy, but I do think it matched and succeeded in following up in every way a great series/ trilogy as a stand-alone, and in given new technology, film, and evolution in film making.
I would give the LOTR series an A and this series a B.. but nothing to be disappointed about.
Given the evolution in visuals, film, and so forth this film is one I would probably watch just as quickly as the old ones.
============================================================= NOW for details about THIS FILM SPECIFICALLY (spoilers):
Some cliché story elements/ characters.. but that's not always a negative.. sometimes it's a good cliché. As the story develops there is plenty of organic and new material.
Interesting character interaction between the Hobbit and Thorin the king of dwarfs.
Tauriel was slightly annoying, but a beauty, and I really loved the way the elves were done and portrayed, lead by the Elf king (who really brought the acting effect of a larger empire), and Legolas our beloved un-aging elf.
Some nice battle scenes, but never over-the-top focus on battles. The battles and art direction/ CG did not match what was done in the LOTR series relative to their times. That film pushed ahead in those respects for atmosphere. This film just met expectations.. however some of the scenery, especially at the tomb + town/ sets were really well done.
Overall: some very heartfelt moments. really good, sometimes great acting, and a worthy final film. The "boss" guy wasn't as cool as the ones in LOTR !!
I really would have preferred if this series was a 2-part series instead of a trilogy.