I'll start off my review saying that I am a massive fan of Peter Jackson's Lord of the RIngs trilogy. All three of those films are fantasy masterpieces in my book and is one of my favorite film trilogies of all time. For being a fan of Lord of the Rings, I was both skeptical and excited for The Hobbit. I was excited to return to Middle Earth, however, with the high frame rate and expanding the film into a trilogy I was concerned that Jackson was turning this into more of a visual cashgrab. No need to worry LOTR fans, this installment is sure to please all of you regardless of the issues with 48 frames per second.
It's wonderful to return to Middle Earth and it has never looked better. The visuals are astounding here, the details and the scenery all look so beautiful. The monsters and the CGI are very impressive as well. Gollum even looks better this time around, this is the best he's looked in all of the movies. I also think the 3D here is incredible, it's even better than Life of Pi's.
The cast was great in their respective roles. Martin Freeman does a wonderful job as Bilbo Baggins, he mixes seriousness and humor very well. I was also surprised by Ian McKellen's returning performance as Gandalf, he seems to be having more fun with the role than in previous roles where he was more serious. It's also refreshing to see Cate Blanchett, Christopher Lee, and even Elijah Wood return as their respective characters. I also thought that the dwarves were fun to watch too.
I really enjoyed the story of this film as well. It stuck really close to the book and its tone. However, although it's a strength for the film, it's also its biggest flaw. The film tends to change tones very quickly from fun and playful to violent and serious. Sometimes this tonal change works. Other times it's awkward and feels unnecessary. I also thought that the burp and gas jokes were not needed for this kind of film. I know that it was originally a kid's book, but I feel that the film would have worked just fine without those types of jokes.
As most of you are wondering, how is the 48 frames per second? Well, it was very distracting at the beginning, but close to the end of the film it wasn't as bad. It's definitely a new thing and it's very weird to watch, but I feel the next two films are going to look better. I think the way it was left was intentional for Jackson to show his audience so he can learn for the next two films. It's not great, but it's weird and not the best technology around. However, it does not ruin the quality of the movie.
If you are a LOTR fan, then you will enjoy The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey as much as I did. It's not as good as the original trilogy nor is it supposed to. It is its own movie and it works well on its own. I'm excited to see what Jackson has up his sleeves for the next two films, I'm hoping they're going to be better and better as each film comes along. Definitely see this over the Christmas season, it's well worth it.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10- Near Excellent
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