At the Theater - "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" - This middle chapter of the continuing saga of 13 Dwarves, a Wizard and a furry-footed, good-natured diminutive sort seeking to vanquish a Dragon and recover a powerful gemstone is the kind of big-budgeted, grand entertainment that I appreciate, with healthy doses of soaring action/adventure, wonderment, drama, humor, heart, dazzling FX work, fantastic set pieces, gorgeous cinematography, confident direction and a stellar cast putting in great work. This is all so very familiar yet undeniably warm and comfortable (as opposed to the detached Star Wars prequels and the most recent Indiana Jones debacle). Considerably stronger than it's immediate predecessor (The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey) it's an altogether pleasant and entertaining experience that left me wanting more.
Martin Freeman (The World's End) is far and away a superior leading Hobbit/Actor as "Bilbo", soundly trouncing Elijah Wood's presence and performance as "Frodo" (from the initial trilogy) in every facet. I took a shine to his character in the first film, where I was NEVER comfortable with Wood's icky wide-eyed wonder.
Ian McKellen (X2) returns as the powerful Wizard, "Gandalf", while Richard Armitage's (Cinemax's Strike Back) reprisal as the head Dwarf in charge, "Thorin", further cements his stock as leading man material for future projects. Of the band of 13 Dwarves and the respective actors portraying them, this outing gives substantial quality face time for Ken Stott as the elder Dwarf, "Balin", and Aidan Turner's handsome "Kili".
Luke Evans (Fast And Furious 6) makes his franchise debut here as "Bard" (yes, he's still my pick as the next Bond), a Lake-town resident and smuggler who assists our heroes along their journey. Harboring a long-standing personal score to settle with the infamous Dragon slumbering in the nearby Lonely Mountain, his character is sure to play a major role in the events of the third film. As someone who hasn't read any of the Tolkien novels, I'm fairly certain how this is going to turn out.
The lovely Evangeline Lilly (Real Steel) provides support as the sympathetic Elf warrior, "Tauriel". Her character is a new addition, supplying the centerpiece of a blossoming love triangle with "Kili" and Orlando Bloom's fellow Elf "Legolas". Fans of the original trilogy will appreciate Bloom's substantial appearances here.
Brit Benedict Cumberbatch (12 Years A Slave) supplies the excellent voice work of the fearsome, gold-hoarding Dragon, "Smaug"- the digital effects here are commendably sharp, though I still prefer the stop-motion and animatronics approach used to render my all-time favorite screen Dragon, "Vermithrax Pejorative", in 1981's Dragonslayer.
Lee Pace's Elvish King "Thranduil" appears a little too youngish for the role, especially when it's taken into consideration that his character is the father of Orlando Bloom's "Legolas" (Pace is 2 years younger than Bloom). It's a bit awkward when the two share scenes together in close proximity.
Stephen Fry (V For Vendetta) makes a few appearances as the balding, yellow-toothed Master of Lake-town, while Swedish actor Mikael Persbrandt plays "Beorn", a Skin Changer with the ability to transform into a massive bear. There isn't much of the character here, though I'm sure we'll see plenty of him in the next volume. Manu Bennett (Starz Spartacus) returns to voice the antagonistic, hulking, white Orc, "Azog".
Keep a sharp lookout for Stephen Colbert (Comedy Central's The Colbert Report) in a cameo as an eye-patch wearing spy, along with a very early appearance by Director Peter Jackson as a carrot eating pedestrian.
I have only two minor complaints, one of which concerns an elaborate white water barrel riding sequence in desperate need of a trim- it's the type of Peter Jackson excess hinted at in the Battle of The Pelennor Fields in LOTR: Return Of The King and marring his 2005 version of King Kong (Bronto stampede, bug pit, 3 T-Rex showdown, etc.,).
Secondly, it's disheartening to see yet another CGI rendered Orc ("Bolg", with Lawrence Makoare supplying the underlying framework) as an important character with substantial screen-time. One of the more commendable elements of the first three LOTR movies was the fantastic practical makeup effects used in creating and presenting the Orcs. It's a shame to see Jackson and WETA slowly but surely departing from old-school, tangible methods. Perhaps I would have been more accepting if the digital effects work were on par with those used to create the seamless "Gollum", but that sadly isn't the case.
I checked this film out in 3D and had the good fortune to witness a young girl, sitting with two other similarly aged females, give out a yelp and swat at a digital bee as it came off the screen towards the audience- apparently a good number of other theater patrons noticed this reaction and it elicited quite a few laughs. The 3D is very good but not the greatest I've ever seen, strange in that it appeared so outstanding in the trailer I saw for this film some months prior...
There's an excellent sequence where our heroes are besieged by a horde of over-sized arachnids, while the climactic showdown with a certain fire-breathing behemoth is thrilling. Expect references to a certain couple of characters from the original trilogy and a host of events which set up the events therein. This was interesting, deftly handled stuff for those familiar with the franchise but newcomers will more than likely find themselves lost fairly quickly. And then there's that damned ring...
Howard Shore once again provides the original score- it's not amongst my favorite thematic music but it has grown on me over the years. The cinematography is as outstanding as ever, with a wealth of shots of New Zealand countryside once again subbing for Middle-earth. Although clocking in at 2 hours and 41 minutes, this is the shortest of the LOTR/Hobbit films and also the most skillfully edited. This film's cliffhanger-style ending may find those seeking immediate satisfaction pretty bummed, though I recognized it for what it was- a fitting conclusion to a central episode in a trilogy. This is very good stuff and I'm looking forward to December of 2014...
Highly Recommended
9.0 out of 10
Director: Peter Jackson
Cast: Ian McKellen, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Ken Stott, Graham McTavish, William Kircher, James Nesbitt, Stephen Hunter, Dean O'Gorman, Aiden Turner, John Callen, Peter Hambleton, Jed Brophy, Mark Hadlow, Adam Brown, Orlando Bloom, Evangeline Lily, Lee Pace, Cate Blanchette, Benedict Cumberbatch, Mikael Persbrandt, Sylvester McCoy, Luke Evans, Stephen Fry and Manu Bennett
Run-Time: 161 minutes
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for extended sequences of intense fantasy action violence, and frightening
FWIW-
The Lord Of The Rings: Fellowship Of The Ring 8.5
The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers 9.5
The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King 8.5
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey 8.5
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