Movie Review - The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Peter Jackson's new film "The Hobbit" brings us back to Middle Earth and takes us on a completely new yet slightly familiar journey together with a mish-mash of old and new characters.

This time however the adventure is shown through the eyes of Bilbo Baggins, the uncle of Frodo Baggins (of Lord of the Rings fame). Baggins is played by Martin Freeman......

I’ve always said time and time again that I hated dwarves be it in comics, movies and whatever, the only two exceptions when it comes to dwarves comes in the form of Snow White’s seven and the dwarves from “The Hobbit”. Seeing “The Hobbit” last night reaffirmed my love for these dwarves, if not even ranked it up higher for me.

Peter Jackson returns for a ‘fresh’ new trilogy in Middle Earth once again working with another novel from J.R.R. Tolkien. The Hobbit is pretty much the story of Frodo’s uncle Bilbo Baggins. If you’ve seen the first movie you’ll know that Bilbo’s been carrying Sauron’s ring with him for decades. And for the uninitiated that was because Bilbo was lucky (or unlucky) enough to stumble on the Ring when Gollum dropped it in the caves beneath the Goblin mountain. We’ve all seen glimpses of that sequence in the first 15 minutes of Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring but with the older Bilbo played by Ian Holm but this time it’s played to perfection by Martin Freeman. Anyway on with the review:

The Good:

Prequel Introduction

The Hobbit might have some threads that leads directly to the events that transpire in LOTR but it certainly won’t alienate new viewers. It’s got fresh new faces in the form of Thorin’s company of dwarves and a younger Bilbo. It’s an introduction (or re-introduction) to the fantastic world of Middle Earth with all the unique and fantastic creatures roaming around.


No Overarching Events

My gripe with LOTR (even in the books) was the fact that it follows too many characters. In the Hobbit, Jackson and the rest of his crew take a different route by adapting a straight story by Tolkien. It’s basically one huge quest to slay a dragon. There are no other characters that the plot needs to follow as they’re all there usually in one scene. With a few notable exceptions such as the time Bilbo got separated from the party and encounters Gollum or that moment when Radaghast the Brown appears. All the times that we take a break from the dwarves actually moves the story forward.

The Costumes and Looks

Jackson and his team certainly show us once again why he’s the right man for the job of adapting “The Hobbit”. He’s become such a master of the Tolkien-esque world that he seems to eat and breath in it. It’s obvious when you take your first look at Erebor and the dwarves. Or when you first encounter the Hobbits in the Shire. All the costumes were pretty to look at too. The makeup for guys like Bifur and Dwalin stand out as well. All in all it’s eye candy with substance.

There be Singing



Unlike the previous trilogy where the singing has been cut down to one or two, the Hobbit boasts of three songs. The two songs were sung by the dwarves in Bibo’s home and the other sung by the Goblin King when the company gets captured. It’s a departure from the previous trilogy and a throwback to the source material which is kinda cool. So far the best song from this fantasy epic hands down has got to be “Thorin’s Song” which is a reprise of “The Lonely Mountain”.

Good Fighting

If you’re catching The Hobbit for the fight scenes as much as for the story, you wont find it lacking. There were several set piece battles here and there throughout this almost 3 hour movie. Be sure to not fall asleep when the Dwarves make their escape from the goblin encampment. I tell you by the time that it’s done you’ll totally be floored (especially if you catch it in IMAX).

Cameos

There's no shortage of characters from the first trilogy here in this prequel trilogy. Elijah Wood's Frodo is seen for a short second or two which basically tells viewers what had happened to Frodo and Bilbo before we see Frodo under the tree, reading a book in Fellowship. We're also treated to this guy:



Yes! Christopher Lee's Count Dooku Saruman the Wise also makes a short appearance here in the film, once again to play the part of Gandalf's rival/adversary/chief nemesis/friend. He's got this more 'friendly' vibe in his appearance here which is very different from the Saruman we see in LOTR.

THORIN OAKENSHIELD

He might be a dwarf with a funny last name but trust me, if you've never read the book and just base your judgment on his appearance, you might be making a big mistake of underestimating this guy. Just wait for this vicious battle scene towards the middle and all your doubts about taking this guy seriously gets blown across the four corners of middle Earth. You can't but have respect for a guy who gets a last name "OAKENSHIELD".

Cate Blanchett

Cate Blanchett reprises her role as Lady Galadriel. This time though we see her slightly younger. While seeing all her seens together with Ian McKellen, I couldn't help but wonder, "Is she also suffering from the Benjamin Button disease?" She looks totally hotter here in "An Unexpected Journey" than in all three LOTR movies combined.



Gollum



Yes the key token character from the past trilogy is also here. It's a rather short role but it's also an important turning point for the lives of the people from Middle Earth. It's this moment where Bilbo and Serkis' Gollum trying to outwit each other that will make you say "a lot of people died all because of your stupid games you nincumpoops!". Anyway, Gollum's appearance here was both creepy and cool. Check out the IMAX version if you want to get creeped out immensely as the camera makes a weird close up on the mad character.


BAD

Its not really a bad thing but the filmmakers certainly took some liberties in the book. They boosted the role of Azog the Defiler to some extent making it almost certain that he'll be making an appearance in the next movie and the movie after that. Purists might scoff at the idea of seeing the Dwarves being rescued in the last minute by Gandalf or see the conversation between Gandalf and Bilbo in the film's opening moments.

 

Sure liberties were taken from the source material but it's all in good faith as it certainly makes the whole plot more interesting. Which makes it more of a good thing but rather than a bad thing; still this might be a bad factor for Tolkien fans and even for those that actually took the time to read the novel.

Other than the above mentioned reasoning, there's nothing else I see wrong with the way "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" panned. It's nothing short of a spectacle to watch with all the scenery and the creatures and the foreshadowing.

I'm giving THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY a score of 11 out of 10. Giving it an extra one point to neutralize any valid argument against the film. 

Again I'd like to thank the good folks at Warner for this special priviledge. May you guys continue to have unexpected journeys next year! Please like them on Facebook - Warner Bros. Philippines