Possibly the best Middle-Earth film to date.

Rating: 9/10 (13 December 2013)

I feel I need to start by saying I have not read The Hobbit, nor any of the Lord of the Rings books for that matter. I will not be discussing any aspect of the film in relation to the book. I have, however, seen all the Lord of the Rings films, and An Unexpected Journey in their theatrical and extended cuts. That being said, and having thought about this for a while, I can honestly sum up my feelings on The Desolation of Smaug in one sentence.
I believe this is the greatest Middle-Earth film to date.
I enjoy the Lord of the Rings films, my personal favorite being Return of the King. Largely because of the fact that Peter Jackson brilliantly brought the story to life in a way that felt like you were watching an dramatized account of long lost history rather than a fantasy story. However, I do believe that the films are, put simply, too long. The films aren't terribly consistent in terms of pacing, and there are some great moments in between what feels a little dull at times. They go from genuinely engaging to sometimes flat out boring very quickly, and repeat that cycle throughout the films. (And, no I don't mean solely elaborate fight scenes when I say engaging.) This was my major flaw with the trilogy.
In 2012, when An Unexpected Journey was released, I went in with mixed feelings. After seeing it, I found it had the same problems mentioned above, but without much engaging scenes in between what felt like filler. The movie moves at an infuriatingly slow pace, and it could easily be half as long and still feel monotonous. Not to mention the fact that the entire film has an atmosphere of silliness, which makes it impossible, when the characters encounter actual danger, to feel any sense of concern for them. This set my expectations nice and low for The Desolation of Smaug, and I'm overjoyed to be dead wrong.
The Desolation of Smaug is brilliant. There is one thing that separated it from all the films preceding it, and that is that the movie was NEVER dull. Having been introduced to all the characters in the first film, we return to the group continuing their quest toward the Lonely Mountain. The movie immediately gets going at a fast, thrilling pace, and just gets more and more engaging. The company comes across many obstacles, while still being pursued by the Orcs, minions of the Necromancer (whose presence much more evident in this installment). But the film reaches its climax the second that Smaug the dragon appears on screen, who, voiced magnificently by Benedict Cumberbatch, is easily the best and most terrifying part of the film. The film ended wonderfully in such a way that screams "the best has yet to come". This movie is an all together thrilling experience from start to finish, and for the first time in this series, it earns every second of it's running time. I won't go into detail plot-wise, to avoid spoilers, but I have nothing but praise for this movie and urge you to see this at your nearest IMAX as soon as humanly possible.