The Hobbit

[marshal99]

I think they said that they will be expanding Radagast role in the movie. They are shooting as 2 movies , the extra stuffs they are going to use for the 3rd one - i think Jackson already said that they will be exploring and expanding some events , not just from the hobbit itself since Tolkien has been very detailed in the history of middle earth in his appendixes of his books.
I imagine that they will expand the story of the white council (and Radagast) driving away the growing power of the necromancer aka Sauron from dol guldur. They are already building up to it in the first movie so i can see the 2nd movie about the dwarves and the dragons and the 3rd being the war against the necomancer.

[Jared]

I enjoyed it a lot. I still question the wisdom of making *three* movies out of the story, but they did have a decent endpoint for part one.

I saw it in 3D on what I call a faux-Imax (because if you've ever been to a real Imax theater, there's no comparison). I guess it was 48FPS. It didn't look as unreal or "not right"-ish as I'd been hearing. Maybe at first, I though the costumes, particularly in Dale, looked faker than they should. But I'm not sure that wasn't just an issue with the costume department. The 3D was done well, but I can't say I would have enjoyed the movie any less in 2D. The only film I've seen that I thought *really* was enhanced by the 3D was Avatar, enough that it justified the theater experience once.

I haven't read The Hobbit since before the Fellowship movie came out, and I don't remember it that well. So I didn't even realize that Azog's survival was new. But in thinking about it, it would have been better to use his son. Then he would basically be a twisted reflection of Thorin; two sons in a blood feud sworn to avenge their fathers. It'd be especially interesting to see an Orc with something resembling a sympathetic motivation, and you could still keep him evil in doing so. I hope they kill him in the next one and then have the son. Azog should have been an actor, though. I can understand the Goblin King needing to be CG, but for Azog, it's just needless.

Interesting how they make the Dwarves formidable by portraying them as super coordinated bad asses who jump around like Yoda dispense death like beasts. I totally understand the reason for making them that way...though it does make Gimli in LOTR come across as the worst dwarf ever. Watch any of his fight scenes after this movie, it's like he must have flunked out of their fighting school.

The guy who plays Thorin was great. I kept forgetting he was a dwarf, just because of his sheer presence. I dare say he plays the brooding and heroic commander of men better than Viggo Mortensen ever did.

Bilbo was great as well. It helps that he's just a far more interesting and exciting character than Frodo. He's playing Oscar to a whole company of Felixes, while also discovering his own inner hero.

At some point in this trilogy Jackson really needs to explain something about the damn Eagles. *Why* couldn't they juts fly the dwarves the rest of the way to mountain, after Thorin was OK? What would it have taken them, maybe twenty minutes? They're *birds*, flying it what they do. They're already willing to save people falling off cliffs and battle orcs and wargs for them, so don't give me "non interference." Even one simple line, like "the eagles of destiny dare not fly in the shadow of a dragon's domain..." from Gandalf...fine, I'll take it. But give me *something*!

I dug Gandalf's line about not reembering the blue wizards's names. And Radagast saying the spiders were spawn of Ungoliant. Nice references.

I was a little confused by the council meeting. They believe Sauron is destroyed? I thought they knew that was impossible because of the One Ring. Elrond talks about 300 (or was it 4) years of peace. After fighting who? The orcs? Angmar? Both? If the Necromancer *isn't* just a human conjurer dabbling in black magic, is there anything it could be *but* Sauron?

I'm a little surprised there was no Arwen cameo. C'mon, Liv, just put the ears on for a day.

I fully expect that there will be a young Aragorn appearance before the trilogy is done. I don't think Jackson could possibly resist. And I wouldn't be shocked of Gollum shows up again.

There was absolutely no reason for the framing scenes to be so long. Elijah Wood should not have been in this movie. And setting it on the *same day* as Bilbo's party just felt like self-indulgentand implausible. Bilbo is going to write that entire book in a few hours, really?

The Goblin King was a bit too much like a cartoon character at first, but he won me over with his dying words. I would have made the Goblins a different color than Azog, though.

I quite liked the stone giants scene, though it could have been shorter. We really didn't need them actually getting stuck on separate giants and fakeout smash into the mountainside. I imagine they just reform into and from the moutain, perhaps every night, or only during storms. Though they were much bigger than I imagined. They seem like they're practically the most powerful beings walking Middle-Earth. Seriously, what would the Ents, or all the armies of Mordor, be to one of these things? Nothing but smears.

[Kieran_Frost]

Saw it last night = LOVED IT!!!

I was very nervous going in because the Lord of the Rings (2001-2003) is my favourite film of all time, and I knew the prequel couldn't live up to that... but I was nonetheless very, VERY happy when I left the cinema. I saw it in 3D, but truthfully I didn't much care for it one way or another. I'm not a 3D fan, and it almost never seems worth the extra price and wearing glasses the whole time. The Dwarf music was beautiful; but I would have liked a little more original score from Shore (esp. when Thorin faced off against Azog). Loved Ian McKellan, as always; and Sylvesta McCoy was adorable. I hope Cate Blanchett kicks ass in the next part; I so, SO want to see her lay down the gates of Dol Guldar; or defeating the armies attacking from there (yes I know, that's from 'later on' but why not, it would be incredible). The only part I felt was silly was the giant rock beasts...

Overall: 9/10, 5 stars.

[Tobias March]

I haven't read The Hobbit since before the Fellowship movie came out, and I don't remember it that well. So I didn't even realize that Azog's survival was new. But in thinking about it, it would have been better to use his son. Then he would basically be a twisted reflection of Thorin; two sons in a blood feud sworn to avenge their fathers. It'd be especially interesting to see an Orc with something resembling a sympathetic motivation, and you could still keep him evil in doing so. I hope they kill him in the next one and then have the son. Azog should have been an actor, though. I can understand the Goblin King needing to be CG, but for Azog, it's just needless.

Azog was played by an actor - in fact the chap was in 30 Days of Night and played Billy I think.

[marshal99]

Azog was played by Manu Bennett or at least the mocap - the guy from spartacus , Crixus and will be playing deathstroke in Arrow.

[FanboyStranger]

I was a little confused by the council meeting. They believe Sauron is destroyed? I thought they knew that was impossible because of the One Ring. Elrond talks about 300 (or was it 4) years of peace. After fighting who? The orcs? Angmar? Both? If the Necromancer *isn't* just a human conjurer dabbling in black magic, is there anything it could be *but* Sauron?

400 years after the last rising of Angmar, which I believe culminated in the fall of Fornost and the collapse of the Northern Kingdom of Arnor. (Not at home, so I don't have the books in front of me.) The Witch-King of Angmar led the evil armies in that last war, and it was prophesized that he could not be killed by the hands of man, so it was assumed that he was the Necromancer until Gandalf went and investigated Dol Guildor. The movie substitutes Radagast for Gandalf, but since Radagast is a little out there, not everyone believes him. (Saruman for his own duplicitous reasons.) Also, most of the evil things in the world went into hiding in the Ettenmoors (like the stone trolls) or as relatively disorganized tribes (orcs and gobllins) during the Watchful Peace, which is why the trolls in the Trollshaws and roving bands of orcs in the Lone Lands were so alarming to Gandalf and Elrond.

[SephirothDZX]

I don't think he necessarily said Sauron was destroyed, I thought it was something along the lines of Sauron could never regain is full power?

[MKTerra]

Finally watched this the other day!

So many scenes had me thinking "wow, the heroes would be totally screwed if the enemy had some archers right about now." Lucky for them, it never happened

The goblin escape would make a crazy theme-park ride, or an impossible video-game level.

[Frank]

It was OK. Fun but that's it.

Loved the Ork King, he's the kind of villain the other movies should have used.

[marshal99]

It was good fun and entertaining , the purpose of going to the movies is to be entertained and the hobbit fulfilled that. Will be a long wait for the 2nd one though even though it's already been filmed.

[aNamored]

Finally saw this and -to my surprise- I loved it.

Yes there are many things I had issues with, but the little girl who loved the book found a lot to like in the movie. Now if they would just wipe the bird product from Radagast's face-hair, I would be thrilled. Sylvester made the movie for me, but Martin, Richard, Ken Stotts, and Ian were great too.

[MKTerra]

Forgot to mention, I didn't even realize trolls could talk until now. In the LOTR movies they pretty much just roared while trying to squish you.

[Matt]

Overall, I quite enjoyed it. Rather entertaining with some fine acting throughout.

A few things didn't sit right, though. The Goblin King was ... off somehow. He was just too comical and about as threatening as a limp sponge.
The riddle contest had no threatening air to it, perhaps because the scene was far too brightly lit ... I don't know. It felt like a game and not something Bilbo's life desperately hinged upon.

[aNamored]

For some reason I want to see the next one will be released around the same time as The Hobbit was in 2013 and the third being released in late 2014.

That is the plan now. :)

[Frank]

Overall, I quite enjoyed it. Rather entertaining with some fine acting throughout.

A few things didn't sit right, though. The Goblin King was ... off somehow. He was just too comical and about as threatening as a limp sponge.
The riddle contest had no threatening air to it, perhaps because the scene was far too brightly lit ... I don't know. It felt like a game and not something Bilbo's life desperately hinged upon.

I think that was the point with The Goblin King, he was essentialy a big fat spoiled brat. Even his voice was wussy. The idea was he rules these guys cause he's bigger physically and there's nothing more than that.