A disappointing second installment.

Rating: 4/10 (2 April 2014)

This film continues the story of "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" and, in my opinion, is the worse of the two. The length of the film as a whole, at 2 hours and 41 minutes, isn't the problem. The problem is that the ending drags on for 40 minutes and is ultimately bare and dismal.
The score, though average for the beginning of the film, is ineffective for the later part. For a film like this you need an eruptive and explosive score, and in this we are lacking.
The acting here is much better and more believable than it's predecessor, though Richard Armitige's (Thorin Oakenshield) performance could still be improved.
Unlike in "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," the size proportions of the Hobbits, Dwarfs etc. are a constant, which improves the believability overall. Similarly, the graphics are slightly improved here which, again, improves the credibility.
The battle scenes - especially the scene at the river - are beautifully orchestrated and easy to follow. That quality is of the greatest importance in an action film; and this film has more than it's fair share of action.
The gore is kept to a minimum, but there are far more beheadings than one would think necessary. It does, however, give more substance to the battle scenes, rather than hiving just boring sword swings and arrow fire.
The dialogue could be improved in explaining the situation at hand. Like the antecedent, there are gaps of important information that I very much hope will be explained and tied up in full in the next film.