I'm not sure what my expectations were going into this film. I mean, I loved the first Hobbit film "An Unexpected Journey", and all the LOTR films, but so-called "middle" films of a trilogy are notoriously difficult, and with hearing that much of the content of this movie wasn't in the book of The Hobbit made me a little apprehensive. (I haven't read the book, I only know this from reading about the film before it's release.) So with the pre-amble over, let's get on, shall we?
THTDOS (as I have decided to call it - catchy as the title is, and fun as it is to say "Smaug", it's a little lengthy to type out constantly) picks up pretty much where the first one left off - all the gang are in view of Erebor, the Lonely Mountain, but there's still a looooooong way to go before they get there. And I mean a really really long way. But don't lose heart *adopts chipper tour-guide voice* there's lots of adventures to be had along the way!
Fans of LOTR will like this one I think. Although, yes, it's not faithful to the Hoobit book, it's got the caves and the spiders - eugh - and the elves! One of my favourite moments of the film was the time spent with the elves. Not only do we have the return of the beautiful Orlando Bloom (swoons) but also the character of Tauriel, flying the flag for all the action-loving ladies, and the fabulous Lee Pace! Truly, some of his lines, and his cloak-swishing, it's all brilliant! And a little elf-related love interest thrown in there too, cheeky...
Honestly there's so much to talk about with this film, where to go next with talking about it I do not know. Ummm oh yes, Luke Evan's Bard. I really liked the story here with this character and the little town and Stephen Fry being Stephen Fry. But in all seriousness. I felt this added a human element to the film, among all the dwarves and elves and wizards, and meant that we as an audience were able to connect more with the peril the ordinary people faced. You can sympathise with the hardship of the Company as well of course, but some of what happened in that little town on the water may have brought a tear to my eye.
Righty, obviously, OBVIOUSLY, I've not mentioned the elephant in the room yet. Or should I say the dragon in the title? (See what I did there, eh, eh? Oh never mind.) Smaug. Mhmm oh yes, the Big Bad, with a name that is just so satisfying to say. Smaug. Smaaaaaaug. Okay now it sounds weird.
But yes, Benedict Cumberbatch and his wonderful voice - and a little of his motion-capture - brought this dragon to life and in all his glory, he is magnificent. The first shot we get of the full Smaug kinda takes your breath away, not gonna lie.
The whole scenery inside Erebor is amazing, but more so are the scenes between Smaug and Bilbo. You really feel the fear of Martin Freeman's Bilbo through the screen, and the tension is palpable I tell you, palpable. The interaction here is amazing, it's hard to imagine what it was like for Freeman to act opposite his Sherlock co-star while Cumberbatch was mo-capping a giant red gold-hoarding dragon...
Other than Smaug we've got some big contenders in the baddie corner. The Great White Orc, enemy of Thorin Oakenshield, is back, but apparently being governed by a greater force of evil (I don't want to give too much away here.) Gandalf is on tippity-top form battling said baddies - can we give a big shout out to Sir Ian McKellen, for the amount of very physical action scenes he performs so splendidly at the grand age of 74!
The ending is quite emotional as the climatic scene is thrilling and exhausting, but in a good way. And there's the added "bonus" of getting to the end and knowing there's a WHOLE YEAR until the final installment *sobs*.
For me the only things that were vaguely negative are the length as mentioned (I mean it can drag just the slightest in the middle), and the deviation from the book, also mentioned.
Verdict
I really enjoyed the film, in case you couldn't tell, but perhaps would appreciate someone asking Peter Jackson if he's ever heard that "good things come in small packages", or maybe even mention to him the phrase "short and sweet".
The book, should you wish to read it. I've got my copy - just yet to start reading. How awesome is that illustration of Smaug?
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