The Gist: In the first (of three) of Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit adaptation Bilbo Baggins meets the band of dwarves that will become his companions in a trip to a lonely mountain where a vast treasure lies hidden, guarded by a ferocious dragon. Many dangerous and terrible foes, however, stand between them and their destination.
I am a huge Tolkien fan and absolutely loved all three Lord of the Rings movies. Peter Jackson masterfully brought to life the characters of a story that I had loved reading many years ago. I was therefore elated when news broke that he would adapt The Hobbit, a novel that came out long before the Rings trilogy and shares many themes with it.
The two are, however, decidedly different. The Hobbit is much shorter, plays out more like a children’s tale, and is written with less care than Rings. A lot happens in The Hobbit and sometimes things are mentioned but never really explained or elaborated further. I often found myself wondering what was happening that we couldn’t “see.”
Jackson had decided to adapt The Hobbit in two movies by padding the somewhat slim tale with extra material found in the appendixes of the Rings trilogy or other Tolkien’s works. Eventually, the two movies became three and, unlike many, I welcomed the news. Not only because that would allow me to go back to Middle Earth a third (and final) time, but also because I felt like two movies were not going to be enough to flesh out all that could and should be fleshed out.
At the same time, I also understand, having read the novel, that The Hobbit is not as compelling a story as Rings. A lot happens, and some events are fundamental to Rings, but it has a lighter tone and is much less fascinating and engrossing. It should be judged in the perspective of this light and viewed for what it is, not submitted to the litmus test of “is this a worthy successor to Rings?” It simply cannot compete on that level.
And yet, I was pleasantly surprised. Jackson & Co. did a wonderful job adapting the novel. The screenplay is very faithful to the book and all the added material is integrated so well, one would never know it wasn’t in the original story.
The acting is great, the score (by Howard Shore, the master who composed the Rings ones) fantastic, and the visual effects are the best I’ve ever seen. Gollum, the Trolls, and the Great Goblin are simply wondrous.
I watched the movie in the new HFR (High Frame Rate – 42 fps) 3D format and had no issues with it, except that I’ve now firmly come to dislike 3D in any variation. If anything, it was thoroughly distracting me from the story unfolding before my eyes.
I see 3D simply as a gimmick now, used to lure moviegoers back to the theater by giving them “more” (and charging them more for it). I don’t need that. Really. Rather, give me cheaper tickets, less previews and ads before a movie, and a stricter silence and behavior code during the show and I’ll come back, but until then, I’m better off at home with my surround sound, my large screen plasma TV, and a blu-ray disk of the movie of my choosing.
The Bottom Line: If you’re a Tolkien or Jackson fan you will not be disappointed. The first in the Hobbit trilogy is a feast for the eyes and a tale rich of adventures that sets the stage for an even bigger payback in the next two installments. The final frames’ glimpse of the dragon are one of the best hooks I’ve ever seen.
Grade: 8
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