Definitely an improvement

Rating: 7/10 (22 January 2014)

The Desolation of Smaug certainly improves over it's lacklustre-but-OK predecessor. I will say this for the movie, it boasts one of the most amazing CGI dragons that I have ever seen and some of the most rousing action that both builds suspense and moves along at a fun, swashbuckling pace. However, the film suffers from the same problems as the first film: there is just not enough plot to carry it's running time. When watching the film, one does sense a lot of needless subplots focused on characters that - no offence to them - we just don't care about. The Kili-Legolas-Tauriel love triangle for example, just doesn't hold enough interest. I will admit that long time fans will enjoy Legolas' appearance but it doesn't really add anything to a story that didn't contain the character in the first place. Another problem is that Gandalf barely gets any screen time in the already bloated movie, even though he is featured prominently on the poster. I know that Gandalf has a habit of leaving at random moments but come on, he could have been more central to the story.
On the light side, the visuals aren't nearly as disorientating as An Unexpected Journey, looks like Mr. Jackson has toned it down a bit. A high point for me was the barrel chase, which not only had some good visual effects but was an all round fun action scene. The cliffhanger also had me breathless. It was so beautifully orchestrated that it left me gasping to see There and Back Again. As for Ed Sheeran's "I See Fire" - I usually hate his music but his song ties up the movie perfectly, as does Howard Shore's trademark soundtrack. Overall, the film is a major improvement but is not without major flaws and I cannot wait to see what Jackson does with There and Back Again.