MY RATING: 10
Running Time: 166 mins
Directed by Peter Jackson
Starring Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage and Andy Serkis
I can hear the chorus of doubters now:
"The Hobbit is too short of a book to be stretched into 2 movies, let alone 3!"
"It's lightweight kids stuff! Nothing like The Lord Of The Rings."
"Peter Jackson is a hack now who can't direct a good movie anymore. Have you seen The Lovely Bones?"
Consider the chorus silenced! The team of Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh and Phillipa Boyens (with an assist from Guillermo Del Toro) have brought us seamlessly back into the Tolkien universe with the first of 3 "Hobbit" films. It's honestly a miracle they were able to pull it off. Some of those criticisms are entirely justified. The novel "The Hobbit" is indeed a short tale that is much lighter in tone than "Lord Of The Rings". And while the merits of any director's work are always a subjective matter, I certainly can't argue with anyone when they say that both "King Kong" and "The Lovely Bones" were a step down from the "Rings" trilogy. However, once this movie gets going all worries are thrown aside. The team has managed to wring so much drama and suspense out of the very small piece of literature they are adapting, largely because they do precisely what movies aren't supposed to do as well as books. By stretching out the book, they are able to go into detail about things that are merely glanced over in the text, creating a more fully realized universe than the source material. Battles mentioned as anecdotes in the text are breathtakingly brought to life in full detail, and some seemingly minor predicaments in the speedy story of the Tolkien book are given import simply by allowing each to have its moment.
This is a movie about storytelling, first and foremost. We are introduced to Bilbo Baggins as an old man, writing down his account of the events that are about to transpire, so that Frodo can finally know the story of his life. As the film progresses, many legends are told and some new ones are born. We witness the dragon attack on the Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor. We are shown an epic battle between dwarves and orcs that sows the seed of resentment in the heart of the dwarf leader Thorin (Armitage) and his sworn enemy the Pale Orc. Though all of this is merely prelude to the story at hand, it is crucial for allowing the events to have the proper weight. Rather than simply following the quest Bilbo (Freeman) must go on with the dwarves and Gandalf The Grey (McKellen), these ripping good yarns allow us to understand exactly what's at stake.
Martin Freeman turned out to be a fantastic addition to the universe, in spite of the doubters' claims that he was too "ironic" for the material (there they go again). There is a clear distinction drawn between Bilbo and Frodo as protagonists which stems from Bilbo's legacy. He is torn between his simple, unassuming Baggins side and his thrill-seeking, more assertive Took side. This allows Freeman some freedom to contribute something new to the film series, and he delivers solidly. Ian McKellen is once again magnificent in arguably the most iconic role of his long career. And surprisingly he gets to kick more ass than usual. The impossibly spry old man (no doubt with the help of a few stand ins) does quite a bit of running, fighting and sword-wielding here, to the delight of us all. I won't spoil how Gollum figures into this tale, mainly because the sequence involving him is such a joy to watch play out, but I have to once again congratulate the great Andy Serkis for yet another insanely good motion capture performance. Anybody can put on the wetsuit with the silver balls all over it and allow computers to capture their movements. But nobody can imbue pure feeling and humanity into a CGI performance quite like Serkis can.
After all the headaches involved in getting this on the big screen, its certainly easy to enter into this new film with some amount of skepticism. But what has finally emerged is a towering epic on par with the first three films in the series; a masterclass in fantasy filmmaking with some of the best, most authentic genre setpieces filmed this year. Say what you will about Jackson as a director, but no one can deny that his style and sensibility is perfectly suited to this kind of movie. He allows us to believe, for a fleeting moment, in a world populated by giant eagles and tree people that coexist with wizards, demons and elves. The movie is imbued with the same spirit of fellowship and brotherhood, as well as the humor and gravitas, that marked both the Tolkien works and the first series of films. I'm so glad to have these movies back, and I'm even happier to report that this first one makes me feel like we never left.
SIDE NOTE: I saw the movie in the standard 24 frames per second rate and I plan to go back on opening night to see it in 48 FPS with some 3D glasses on to see how all the new technology affects my viewing experience. As for now I can't comment either way on those things. I can only say that as a film, without all the bells and whistles, it works perfectly.
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