The Best Hobbit Film

Rating: 9/10 (6 December 2016)

After the very entertaining first installment, An Unexpected Journey, the Hobbit trilogy is back with an even better second chapter. Unlike the Lord of the Rings films, where I felt the middle chapter (The Two Towers) was the weakest, I feel it is the best in this series.
The movie opens with a bit of exposition, but after that, the excitement doesn't let up much, except for a somewhat lengthy stay at Lake-Town. Characters such as the Master of Lake-Town, that are barely even mentioned in the book, are fleshed out quite well and given stories of their own. Howard Shore's score is better than in the first movie, mostly because he branches out into new territory more, just like the film itself does. There is also some great acting in this movie, particularly from Martin Freeman, who expresses just as much in non-dialogue scenes as he does in scenes with dialogue. Smaug the dragon is absolutely incredible, and they spend just the right amount of time with him to satisfy audience expectation without the story becoming dull. The ending, although it differs from the book, is quite exciting, and leaves audiences with bated breath in anticipation of the next chapter.
There are a few negatives, however. Some of the CGI, particularly during the Barrel Chase scene, is not that great, especially compared to the masterful job done on Smaug. There are also a few characters that feel unnecessary (including Legolas) and a romantic subplot that is both cheesy and creepy. This movie definitely takes more liberties (both canon and non-canon) from the book than the previous film, some of which work, and some of which don't.
All in all, The Desolation of Smaug is a superior second installment that I would highly recommend to fans of Tolkien, and fantasy lovers in general. Readers of the book will have to be ready for changes, but that's the case with just about any book-to-film adaptation. I would also advise you to check out the extended edition, which adds in some more scenes from the book, a side-story or two, and even a bit more action.