Hobbit comes of age !

Rating: 10/10 (14 December 2013)

Well, to start with, let me answer the most fundamental question which everybody's been asking. Is this movie better than the first Hobbit? The answer is Err  you will find below :) It's very difficult to make sequels which are better or at least on par with the original movie and you can imagine the herculean task it takes to make not just one but multiple sequels (and prequels too) which arguable are as good if not better. Only a couple of directors can do that and without a doubt Peter Jackson is one of them. LOTR series was an outstanding success and one of the major reasons for that is every time a sequel is released it didn't only exceed the expectations of the viewers and critics alike but it also remained true to the original story. May be it's due to the fact that Peter directs all the movies at once and then splits it into three during the post productions. Okay..hmm. So now, what about the Hobbit movies? Hobbit movies brings with them an aura of their own, different from the LOTR but as much immersive. Everyone would like to see middle earth more but without getting bored. An important thing to note is that although, Hobbit and LOTR may be connected in more than one way, they are as different as it can be. Peter again takes us through the amazing places (real or CGI?) but each one of them different from what that has already been shown. Take an example, Lake Town which feels like Rohan from the LOTR with its decaying ruler and all that but that's where the similarity stops. As the case with earlier movies, you will feel that you have actually transcended into a different world with its own chaos.
The movie starts immediately after the events of the last Hobbit movie. Thorin and the gang continues with their quest of the Misty Mountains with Gandalf and Master Bilbo and in the process makes few friends and foes (more foes actually). Last time, Bilbo found his courage (a la The Ring) and this time he makes sure to use it to the fullest, there were quite a few instances where Bilbo's obsession with the Ring is shown but then, he also utilizes it to bail himself and the Thorin company out at the same time. After going through elves, human settlements they finally reach Dragon's Dungeon, and oh boy! Smaug is truly stupendous. You need to see it to believe it. Many people criticize HFR but in fact, the true beauty of the work that is gone in making the movie can only be appreciated when you watch this movie at 48FPS. Every frame looks so crisp and clear as if you are standing right in front of them. The river stream chase is so masterfully done that it would surely put many a car chases to shame. There is may be one another reason why Peter went HFR and that is, he is so confident with the CGI work that is done on the films, that he can show you the movie in the clearest way possible. I am not exaggerating but the CGI work is best, in fact better than the last movie. It's very sharp and incredibly life like. The dialogs could have been better and the scenes look like a bit stretched sometimes, but then when you have a visual spectacular going on, it can compensate that a bit. The film follows the basic modus operandi as with the previous movies. There are parallel stories which pan out and finally start merging in to a big climax and that's exactly what is going to happen in the next. The buildup is pretty awesome this time and I would say better than the Two Towers and the next movie is surely going to be an epic finale.