So last night I went with some friends and saw the Hobbit.
So let's start with the stuff you already know, the Hobbit is based on the work by JRR Tolkien that serves as something of a prologue for the Lord of the Rings. Of course the Hobbit stands alone pretty damn well as a complete and self contained story, which makes sense... That's how it was written.
Jackson for various reasons has decided to split up the Hobbit into 3 movies, while there was some muttering there were no riots across the internet at this news, likely due to Jackson's street cred. But in order to make the Hobbit into a trilogy, Jackson is gonna have to add more stuff. Which in the first movie he does. Alot of it is following the maxium show don't tell by showing us the fall of the Lonely Mountain and the burning of Dale. Others is by Jackson deciding he was gonna take the excuse to plaster chunks of the Return of the King appendix on the big screen (I'm okay with this).
The movie is decidedly different in tone from other adaptions (all one of them) taking on a more serious (but not grimdark) tone. We lose alot of singing, but Jackson and company did managed to slip in some of the bigger songs here and there (I pray that the soundtrack as a complete song of Misty Mountains Cold). The Mark of Del Toro is also very clear in a number of the monster designs, lending a more fantastic and we're not in Kansas air to the movie then the Lord of the Rings had.
I say this movie takes a serious tone, but it's not afraid to laugh. The dwarves in Biblo's home is flat out fun and you'll get more then a few chuckles out of it. Some of the interactions between Gandalf and the others leave you snickering. This is not a movie that refuses to have fun. Which is good, because in the end the Hobbit is supposed to be a fun story!
Spoilers follow:
First off we have the added characters that did not appear in the Hobbit book proper. Azog and Radagast the brown wizard. We also have Sarumon and Gladerial putting in appearances in Rivendell with Elrond. But let me discuss Azog and Radagast and their roles in the movie.
Azog is the great white ork (literally) he and Thorin threw down at the gates of Moria after he murdered Thorin's dad. Thorin didn't take it very well and unleashed a torrent of dwarven crazy hacking off Azog's arm. The great thing about this? They don't tell us this, they show us this. This is covered in the Return of the King Appendix although there are some changes (Azog in the books was killed at the gates of Moria). So what's Azog role? He's Captain Ahab and Thorin is moby dick (amusing role reversal earns the movie 1 extra credit point). Thorin beat him in battle using an axe and a chunk of oak, he took his arm and left Azog to die! Throughout this movie Azog is hunting Thorin and makes the difficulties and conflict more personal and in some ways more intense. This isn't some random Ork/Dwarf violence spawned by racial hatred, it's something driven by the personal vendetta between two characters (... and racial hatred). Azog is also well done and most importantly not overused (he's an ork and frankly not a deep or complex character but he doesn't have to be, some people are just simple). I look forward to seeing what Jackson does with him in the next movie.
I wish I could say that about Radagast, his scenes (rabbit sled) jerk you out of the movie and force also whiplash inducing changes in the tone. The character design was frankly taken to far in the wrong dimension. Radagast is suppose to be like Gandalf and Sarumon, WHICH MEANS HE'S A BLOODY ARCHANGEL NOT A SIMPERING MORON! We don't get much of a grip on Radagast and while I think he was suppose to be funny, I didn't find myself laughing like I did at the scenes with the dwarves in Biblo's home. He's easily the character I dislike the most and the weakest part of the movie. Which is a shame because he's a led into the the bigger plot. I hope now that he's done that, he goes away. Back to your hedgehogs you hedgewizard!
Second off we have the expansion of the book characters, although most of the dwarves aren't developed as individuals, Thorin gets some heavy duty character expansion. They show us a dwarf who takes his duty as leader of his people seriously. Who will literally throw himself into danger to protect those in his charge. Even ones like Biblo who aren't dwarves, who he doesn't know and frankly throughout most of this movie shows that he doesn't even like Biblo that much. For all he says that he won't be held responsible for Biblo's fate... Thorin puts himself on the line more then once to keep Biblo alive and whole. Thorin's nobler and better qualities are on full display in this movie. As are some of his worse ones. He is constantly suspicious of others, he hold grudges against all elves for the actions of one elf kingdom. He's prideful and disdainful of people who don't measure up to his standards (Hey, Lucas? This is what Anakin should have been!). Frankly, this Thorin is well done and you find yourself rooting for the dwarf.
The dwarves as a group... Alot of effort is make to make them as least semi-distinct but even then expect for about 4 or 5 of them, they blur together for me. Their motivations as a group are well done in the movie as are their feelings about this quest. Some could read the book and come away with the feeling that it was only revenge and gold lust that prompted the dwarves on their somewhat lunatic trek across miles of ork infested wilderness to fight a fucking dragon with only 13 troops and a hobbit adventurers. The movie without hitting you over the head with it, makes it clear that there's more going on here (although there's revenge and gold lust to, they are dwarves after all). They have no home. They have been reduced to little remarked tatter of a great and glorious culture that made art, science and trade across the north of middle earth. They are constantly roaming with no safety, no surety and nothing to call their own that they cannot carry. This isn't just about getting back at a giant lizard for killing some of their family and friends. This isn't just about getting their grubby hands on the biggest pile of gold on the planet. This is about reclaiming a home, about retaking their past and reclaiming that corner of the world that is theirs by right! And they be damned if they let anyone, be it wizard, elf, ork or dragon stop them from doing so!
You also get to see Biblo grow into his role as an adventurer and thief. From his actions in the Troll dust up and beyond. This Biblo is alot more reluctant and homesick, but it's because of his homesickness that he decides to hobbit up and throw all in with the dwarves. This is a very modern take on Biblo, which stems I think from our need to crawl into everyone's skull and figure out why they do something so insane as to go pick a fight with a fucking dragon. I don't oppose this however. This is after all for a modern audience.
Let me talk about Gladerial and Saruman real quick. They show up in Rivendell and have a meeting that some are gonna find confusing. But it boils down to this. Radagast has found out that Sauron may have returned as the Necronmancer, a being who can call forth the dead (hey, Aragon can do that... Does that make him a necronmancer to?). Sarumon being a dick discounts this because Radagast is a hippie moron (to be fair, Sarumon does have a point) Gladerial runs interference with Gandalf (we also seriously see that Gandalf is her favorite. I mean like completely her favorite. No wonder Saruman is annoyed.).
I recommend the Hobbit, I saw it in 3D and it was used to compliment the movie not distract from it I thought. I intend to see it in 2D as well for comparison purposes.
I give the Hobbit a flat out A. Go see this movie even if you're not a Tolkien fan. Trust me, you'll have fun... Even down in Goblintown.
"it takes two sides to end a war but only one to start one. And those who do not have swords may still die upon them." Tolken
