"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" Review

"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"

Directed by Peter Jackson

Starring Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Ian Holm

 

RATING

8/10

My geek levels were out of control going into this movie. I had no idea what to expect, and if it would be as good as "The Lord of The Rings". I hate to be one to compare it, but since everybody will do it, I figured it would eventually surface in my mind. When Peter Jackson announced "The Hobbit" would be made into a trilogy, I was a bit skeptical. I had no doubts Jackson, above all, would be the man to pull it off, but I often worried about how thin they would stretch a lotta aspects of the book. Pleased to say, it surprised me quite a bit.

 

"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" tells the tale of Bilbo Baggins, a young(ish) hobbit who is visited by the wizard, Gandalf, who offers him the opportunity to go on a quest with a bunch of dwarves. The goal? Reclaim their land and their gold from a dreaded dragon named Smaug who seized control over The Lonely Mountain, the dwarves' home. Bilbo must now act as a burglar for them and go on an adventure that would align the events we all know...

 

And boy, was this a great start. Praise goes to Jackson for being able to pull this off, because my skepticism was washed away the second things started rolling and the action picked up. Martin Freeman kills it as Bilbo, even more than Ian Holm. He is extremely likable, and very charismatic which makes getting on his side quite easy. Ian McKellen is also fantastic as Gandalf the Grey, with more badassery we've come to expect from him before (or, er, in the future). Also in this film are a few returning faces, such as Elijah Wood, Ian Holm, Christopher Lee, and Hugo Weaving, and even though their roles a very minor, they add plenty of weight to the situations and provide enough geek out moments for fans of the LOTR trilogy. And we gotta talk about the show-stealer everyone will be talking about after this film: Andy Serkis as the schizophrenic ring addict Gollum, whose obsession with one very special item drove him utterly insane. You get plenty of spontaneous insane moments from him, and plenty of what made him very appealing to audiences regardless if you're a fan of LOTR or not. His section in the film, "Riddles In The Dark", is so riveting and compelling, you'll completely forget that you're watching a dialogue-driven scene because it feels so kinetic and captivating mentally. The tension is upped to a ridiculous height when the scene concludes, and it shows how amazing of a motion capture actor Serkis is. Respect goes out to the team who did the motion capture work, because it's freaking mindblowingly realistic with modern technology.

 

My favorite moments in the film is when things start to become really dark and brooding, like the "Misty Mountains" song which is a mesmorizing  and haunting scene, the riddles in the dark, the incredibly epic battle of the rock giants, and the cliffhanger climax (literally, in more ways than one). That said, the visuals are quite possibly the best I've seen all year. Even though its technically a prequel that takes place in the same realm with the same director, it never for one second feels like the LOTR films because it's much more crisp and viscerally stunning. Middle-Earth looks as vibrant and alive as ever before. The songs sung by the dwarves are surprisingly good, and I really hate musical numbers in films. It really sets the more light-hearted and adventurous tone for the film, where I guess the sequels would be a lot more mature and darker. Howard Shore once again did an amazing job with the score, and recycles many themes used in "The Lord of The Rings" films without making them seem like a cheap rehash.

 

As you can tell by now, I loved this movie. Don't go in expecting its predecessors, because the books are much more light-hearted and not so heavy-handed like the other Middle-Earth adventure. However, the film doesn't go by without a couple flaws. The pacing is very brisky. For people who have seen and enjoyed the extended editions of LOTR, they won't have a problem with this at all. But for newcomers or people who didn't like LOTR (screw you), it may seem a bit tedious at times. Granted, some moments in the book are stretched too thin and you feel like they prolonged certain scenes for timesake. The film also tends to rely on CGI at times, but not to the point where you hate it. In fact, it's barely noticeable once you're enticed by the action.

 

"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" is a great beginning to what appears to be a promising trilogy. The return to Middle-Earth is exciting, the characters are hilarious and likable, the action is fast-paced and absorbing, and the visuals would make even James Cameron teary-eyed. Despite it's sluggish pacing, it's overall a very fun beginning to a journey that can only get bigger for such a tiny fellow.