Synopsis:
An introverted Hobbit is enlisted by a wizard into the company of 13 dwarves who seek to take back their kingdom from a vicious dragon named Smaug.
Does
anyone else feel it? Does anyone else feel that the world is finally falling
back into place? Well if you do, it’s probably because Peter Jackson is taking
on J.R.R Tolkien’s literature once again. It’s been 11 years since Jackson’s
epic trilogy begun and 9 since The Return
of The King swept the Academy Awards; safe to say the man who pours his
heart and soul into these films hasn’t lost a single step. The world has been
dark since the trilogy ended but now, with The
Hobbit beginning its own saga, order has been restored. Another annual
event of sitting down to Jackson’s middle-earth masterpieces has begun and it’s
been kicked off beautifully.
Actually,
when describing The Hobbit: An Unexpected
Journey I feel that the word “beautifully” really doesn’t do it justice.
When you apply the advances of VFX to the outstanding backdrop of New Zealand,
you’ve basically cooked up a storm of pure spectacle. If this doesn’t get the
Oscar for Best Visual Effects I’ll have lost faith in all humanity (EDIT: Just watched Life of Pi... simply untouchable.. apologies for the original bold claim). It’s been
comped to perfection and it pulls us in as an audience. The visual effects also
complement the character and set design which is already enchantingly flawless. Particularly the dwarves; each one is unique and due to excellent casting the characters are
brought to life. Although some shine more than others, nobody is forgotten. Even
the orcs and goblins have been given major facelifts making them seem twice as
terrible and malevolent. Unfortunately, in terms of theatre experience it may
have been harmed by the choice to shoot in 3D. As the picture quality is
greatly reduced in 2D (which is what this should be enjoyed in, as in 3D the
picture quality is of course ALWAYS shocking and a blatant waste of a dimension).
I’m hoping it could have been an issue regarding the screen I watched it in but
be warned. By the time it comes out on Blu-ray/ DVD this will have been
rectified so it’s not something to gripe about too much.
The
bottom line is you can feel the passion, intensity and the unrivalled ambition that’s
driven a production which has spanned several years already. You can feel it in
every sequence, the absolute desire to make this live up to and dare we say
even overtake Jackson’s previous efforts. Interesting that he should choose to
make it more reminiscent in style to that of The Lord of The Ring’s trilogy as opposed to trying to capture the
fairy tale essence of the Hobbit novel; of which many had expected Del Toro,
originally planned to direct, to drive forward with. Maybe it would have been
interesting to see a more fairy tale styled film. The Riddles in the Dark
chapter of the film, despite a sterling performance by Andy Serkis, really lost
a lot of the mystique and appeal through it being very brightly lit. Not to
mention a more linear story may not have gone amiss. The long narrated intro lead
by an old Bilbo Baggins may have been better incorporated as back story,
conveyed once described by a character during the main adventure as opposed to
opening the film outright. This also has the potential to take the audience out
of the experience, making us far too omnipresent, as opposed to going along
with the adventure. But this really is nit-picking.
As
wonderful as Del Toro’s version would have been, in retrospect this has allowed
the Hobbit to act as a prequel, in turn allowing Jackson to delve deeper into
Middle-Earth’s rich history and expand on its characters. Such examples are the
addition of Radagast the Brown and The White Orc General Azog. Obviously a lot
of poetic licence has been taken with The
Hobbit’s first instalment, and surely Jackson and his army sized crew will
continue to do so in the next two. Anyone who expected otherwise would be a fool,
especially considering the track record of the former trilogy. Things will not
be the same as they were in the book, which is necessary evil, as now a connection
and motive has been established between the two trilogies and we are truly brought
back into Tolkien’s universe. Just sit back and enjoy the ride, the longer the
better.
It
has to be long, there are 15 in the main group of protagonists in this instalment
alone… 15!! The film must be bulked out further to allow the audience to relate
to the lovable dwarves who, from what I’ve seen, by the end of the series will
have captured everybodie’s hearts.
I suppose
if any fault can be picked out in the storytelling would be its need to rely on
the epic. What I mean by this is that it could be argued that there are too
many clichéd epic poses and pauses made by the cast. But of course this is The Hobbit. We’ve been waiting almost a
decade for this and if anybody has been given licence to overdo it a bit… it’s
Jackson. There should be epic poses all around, lap it up and enjoy.
Overview:
Once
you understand The Hobbit is from the
same world as The Lord Of The Rings,
you’ll see it for what it is, pure spectacle at its best. You can see the
effort that’s gone into this film. This isn’t about the box office… the success
of middle-earth’s cinematic portrayals has come naturally from hard-ass work
and a love for the source material… BRING ON ROUND TWO!!
Rating:
★★★★
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