While I was unable to get to see first movie of The Hobbit trilogy, An Unexpected Journey, during the first weekend. I was finally able to make the time to see it this past weekend. It’s a long move (clocking in at 2:45) and it was hard to imagine how the slight tale of The Hobbit will be extended to a full trilogy. Since it was directed by Peter Jackson, I knew that it would at least look good. So let’s check out what happens.
The movie starts with Bilbo and Frodo on the morning of Bilbo’s eleventy first birthday (which is the start of the LOTR trilogy) and Bilbo starts narrating (and writing down) the story of the Hobbit. We also see some of the background of the novel with the Dwarf kingdom and the coming of Smaug. From there we actually get into the actual events of the novel with Gandalf and the coming of the dwarves. We start on the journey, see the battle with the trolls, come to the rock giant battle and the kidnapping by the Goblins. We see Bilbo sneak away and meet Gollum, get the ring, beat Gollum at the guessing game and manage to escape just after Gandalg comes back to rescue them. Then we have the brief battle of the Orcs and the escape to Rivendell. Along the way, we meet Radagast the Brown and see what has him spooked about the forest.
Once in Rivendell, we have a meeting with Gandalf, Saruman and Galdriel. Saruman wants to ignore Radagast’s warnings of the Necromancer, even after he is confronted with the evidence of Morgul Sword. None of this is in the original book, but is inserted into the movie to tie into the LOTR trilogy as well as to help explain where Gandalf will be going when he leaves the group in the next movie. After Rivendell, we have the major Orc battle and the saving of the quest by the Eagles. With the movies ending on Bilbo’s ominous note that the he believes the hard part of the journey is behind them.
Martin Freeman is very good as Bilbo. He does a wonderful job showing Bilbo as a conservative hobbit, but one who has an adventurous streak and the ability to put his fears behind him when the need arises (such as when the Orcs are attacking Thorin. Speaking of Thorin, Richard Armitage is a great Thorin. He’s royal and brave with an untrusting nature. But when he witnesses Bilbo’s bravey, he’s quick to admit that he was wrong. Ian McKellen is still doing a great job as Gandalf, but the rest of the crew is just sorta crammed together with little to differentiate them.
Overall, it’s a decent enough film. It’s very long and there just isn’t enough story to sustain this over three movies. I didn’t see the movie in 3D (much less in the high-frame rate IMAX), so I can’t comment on how that looked. The movie is shot gorgeously with great backgrounds and a lot of attention to detail. I do have a complaint about the fight scenes, which Jackson mainly films with short jump cuts making it difficult to see what is going on, especially in the Goblin battle. It’s a decent enough movie and will be enjoyable if you don’t mind the slight story and don’t mind the tie ins to the greater Tolkien universe. Recommended