Aylmer to Zazzoo and Beyond: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Saturday, December 15, 2012

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Review

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
(2012 - December 14)
Adventure | Fantasy
169 min

Rated: PG-13 Extended sequences of intense fantasy action violence, and frightening images. What parents should know.
Grade: B+

Director: Peter Jackson
Writers: Fran Walsh (screenplay), Philippa Boyens (screenplay), Guillermo del Toro (screenplay), Peter Jackson (screenplay)
Stars: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen and Richard Armitage | See full cast and crew

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey follows title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor, which was long ago conquered by the dragon Smaug.

Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior Thorin Oakenshield. Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain, first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever... Gollum. Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths ofguile and courage that surprise even him, he also gains possession of Gollum's "precious" ...a simple, gold ring that is tied to the fate of all Middle-earth in ways Bilbo cannot begin to know. -- (C) Warner Bros

I saw the film in the 3D format but not the HFR-3D (42 frames per second) which use has received mixed reviews by the critics. (Read more about it here) I was not bothered by the 3D, in fact, there were some very interesting and effective uses of the technology, for example the birds that came flying off the screen into the theater.

The Hobbit has been highly anticipated following the phenomenally successful Lord Of The Rings (LOTR) trilogy (over $3 billion for the three films). The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is one of this year's films that I have been anticipating and really hoping that it would be great! I did in fact like it, for the most part. There are a couple of problems, however, with The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

The major problem with this film is that it is too long. The 2 hr. 49 min. running time could have been easily pared down about 20 minutes worth. When one thinks that this singular small book (in comparison to the three books of the LOTR trilogy) is being expanded into three episodes of its own, equal in length to the LOTR. Well, you have to wonder why the decision was made to spread the material so thin. The Hobbit is simply not substantive enough to warrant the expanded length and consequently its pacing begins to be bogged down.

The LOTR trilogy is a dark, monumental epic of Good and Evil in conflict, reflective of the World War II era in which a substantial portion of it was written, but “The Hobbit,” was originally published in 1937 and began as a simple bedtime story for J.R.R. Tolkien's children. It consists of events that precede the considerably more complex LOTR. It is more of an adventure story, more a lighthearted fairy-tale where comical elements are very much a part of the story.

So, in light of this decidedly different tone of the two film trilogies, if you are expecting more of LOTR you might be disappointed. The prolog exposé is overly long and slow, but it's when we get to the comical elements that the film began to loose me. It was like Peter Jackson was channeling the worst, most annoying, silly, sophomoric characteristics of Steven Spielberg (think "The Goonies", shudder and shudder again). The ludicrous, stupid and humorless 'theme park cinema ride' through the underground kingdom of the goblins was a real turn-off for me.

The falls, hits and blows that our heros take are reminiscent of 'Warner Bros.' cartoon violence were a character gets smashed flat by an anvil and then pops back all fresh and new in the next scene. It cheapens the integrity of the entire project, although Barry Humphries as the Great Goblin (a far cry from Dame Enda Everage) was a delightful surprise. The end result, however, is a film that is solid and acceptable where it should have, and could have been soaring and exceptional. Hopefully Mr. Jackson will do better with the next two installments.

That being said, the beautiful sets, the exquisite costumes, the impressive New Zealand scenery, the solid acting (Andy Serkis' repeat performance as Gollum is indubitably one of the film's highlights) and of course, Peter Jackson's visionary talents make the Hobbit well worth seeing, and I am still anticipating and will definitely be seeing the next two films.

Plot

Via Wikepedia

(Spoiler Alert)

On the day of his 111th birthday, with Frodo Baggins leaving to wait for Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo Baggins decides to write down the full story of the adventure he took sixty years ago. Bilbo writes about how, prior to his own actual involvement, the Dwarf Thror becomes King under the Mountain and brings an era of prosperity to his kin until the arrival of Smaug the dragon. Drawn by the amount of gold that the Dwarves have amassed, Smaug destroys a local town of men before driving the Dwarves out of Erebor. Thror's grandson, Thorin, sees the Elves up on the hillside and is dismayed to find them taking their leave rather than aiding his people leading him to despise Elves ever since.

Bilbo's involvement in the story begins when he is tricked by Gandalf into hosting a party for Thorin and his band of dwarves that doubles as Bilbo's recruitment as the Dwarves' "burglar" to help them steal their treasure back from Smaug. Though Bilbo refuses at first, he decides to join the company on their journey to the Lonely Mountain. During his first night sleeping in the wild, Bilbo learns about how the Dwarves met when they were fighting back for the Dwarven city Moria that fell under Orc dominion. The leader of the Orcs, Azog, also known as "The Pale Orc," killed Thror. Thorin, devastated, fought back, using part of an oak tree trunk as a shield. He succeeded in chopping off Azog's forearm to turn the tide of the battle with Azog presumed dead. However the battle proved to be a pyrrhic victory, as the vast majority of the Dwarven army was killed.

Gandalf leaves the company after he comes into conflict with Thorin after proposing that they seek Elven aid on their quest. The group gets captured by mountain trolls, but Bilbo is able to stall the trolls from eating them until dawn, when Gandalf arrives and saves the company. They search the trolls' cave and find treasure and Elvish blades. Thorin and Gandalf each take an Elvish blade, with the latter finding an Elvish shortsword which he gives to Bilbo.

The group encounter Radagast the Brown, a wizard who lives in Greenwood with nature. He tells them of a strange presence he encountered at Dol Guldur and how it is poisoning the forest. The group is then chased by Orcs and Wargs, whom Radagast distracts with his rabbit powered sled allowing the group to escape through a cave, while the Orcs are attacked and defeated by elves.

They are cornered and manage to escape through a stone passage as the Wargs and Orcs above are slain by Elven riders. Gandalf reveals that he has led them to the Elven stronghold of Rivendell.

Elrond reveals the names of the two swords and also reveals the map's indication of a secret door that will be revealed on Durin's Day. Gandalf talks with Elrond, Galadriel and Saruman the White about his involvement with the dwarves, explaining the presence Radagast encountered and expresses mild suspicion that this Necromancer is Sauron, a dark lord from the Second Age.

The others are skeptical, believing Sauron to have been defeated forever, and that this necromancer is not a true threat. Gandalf shows them the sword of the Witch King (which should be impossible to remove from his enchanted grave), found by Radagast as proof. Though the others are against him aiding them, Gandalf believes Smaug may become a greater threat if allied with Sauron, so sends Bilbo and the Dwarves, who have already departed during their meeting, ahead towards the Misty Mountains. Galadriel speaks with Gandalf, saying that she will come if he ever calls her before she leaves.

Passing over the Misty Mountains the group barely survive an encounter with stone giants, and Thorin declares that Bilbo was not fit to have joined them, prompting Bilbo to try and leave.

However he and the Dwarves are captured by goblins and taken to the Goblin King, who reveals that Azog is still alive and has placed a bounty on Thorin's head.

Separated from the group as they were captured, Bilbo encounters Gollum, who accidentally drops a mysterious ring while killing a stray goblin to feed on.

Picking up the ring and placing it in his pocket, Bilbo finds himself confronted by Gollum and they play a game of riddles, the stakes of which are that Bilbo will be shown the way out if he wins or eaten by Gollum if he loses. After Bilbo wins by asking Gollum what he has in his pocket, Gollum realizes the ring has ended up in Bilbo's possession and attacks him. Bilbo discovers the ring grants him invisibility and escapes a furious Gollum.

Gandalf arrives and saves the Dwarves from the goblins, slaying the Goblin King during their escape. Still invisible because of the ring's power, Bilbo takes pity on Gollum and resists the urge to kill him, and escapes the caves to find the group, Gollum swearing to find the ring and to hate the name of "Baggins" forever. Bilbo overhears the dwarves, who assume he has fled home and abandoned them, and rejoins them regardless, keeping the ring he found secret. As Thorin presses to know how he avoided the goblins, Gandalf, spotting the ring, persuades Thorin to drop the question.

The moment of triumph is cut short as they are ambushed by Azog and his hunting party. After taking refuge in cliffside trees before the Wargs uproot most of them, Thorin charges Azog but is defeated and knocked to the ground. Bilbo shows his true courage as he defends Thorin from being beheaded before the group is saved by eagles, who fly them to safety on the Carrock. After being revived Thorin admits he was wrong about Bilbo and finally accepts him as being worthy of being part of their quest.

In the distance, they see the Lonely Mountain, and take a thrush bird as a good omen. The thrush flies to Erebor, picking up a nut and bashing it against a stone. The noise echoes throughout the abandoned rooms of Erebor, which are still filled with gold. Out from under the gold, the nose and eye of a dragon appear. The dragon's eye opens, and the film ends.