Peter Jackson's done it again... brilliant but long

Rating: 7/10 (31 December 2013)

The second installment in the Hobbit story had a lot to live up to, first in terms of The Lord of the Rings, and secondly The Unexpected Journey. This sees the band of dwarfs and Bilbo (with ring) get to The Lonely Mountain to try and claim it back from Smaug the dragon. They go via Mirkwood and so we meet the elves and get introduced to Legolas (Orlando Bloom, who's a little less elf-sylph-like around the face in this one...) Adventure and fun ensues. There's orc-slaying a-plenty with a never ending supply of elvish arrows in the quiver, a barrel of laughs as dwarfs make a getaway and lots of dwarvish physical humour especially at the expense of the fat dwarf and I always get a giggle from Nesbitt's antics and his silly hat (Bofur, the dwarf). Even Stephen Fry does an almost unrecognisable star turn in this film as the hideous Master of the Lake Town. Richard Armitage (Thorin) has the most acting range, possibly, in terms of the adventure-party and his voice caries the gravitas of his Dwarf-King-in-Waiting status. There's a little romance, which is rather touching, but the star of the show is Smaug the dragon, beautifully realised and brilliant CGI - flawless. Wizard Gandalf (Sir Ian McKellan) has a relatively small role in this film, which is a shame but he does do some fierce battle with Sauron/the Necromancer. However, the main (non CGI) star I think is Martin Freeman as Bilbo; I love his little gestures and comedic timing and characterisation of the Hobbit, especially when he's in a quandary.
Once again the special effect that allows hobbits and dwarfs to stand short next to men is really clever and I struggle to get used to seeing familiar (tall) actors made to look small but that is dwarfed (pardon the pun) by all the CGI which I really do get tired of, although it was less in your face and obvious than the last film; I realise it is necessary but sometimes it LOOKS less convincing. Overall this is enjoyable, accomplished and an entertaining part of the overall story for a Middle Earth fan, and it has all the elements you would want from a Hobbit story. I haven't read the book for a long LONG time so can't remember how close it sticks to the book but much of it rang bells. No matter, I know it was done by a fan of Tolkien and someone who would want to do it justice (note Peter Jackson's cameo in the opening scene) and he's done an excellent job. Again. I think I preferred the story of the first and it was more exciting (gripping/suspenseful) but this was a better film and the SFX were largely better. I preferred the first one over all in terms of opinion coming away, as I felt this one dragged a bit and got a bit bogged down, and it could have been shorter.
For this film to make sense, I imagine you'd have needed to see the first of the films. Not a film for arachnophobes, as an aside.