Friday, December 14, 2012

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey 3D (2012): Review

For my Friday Night Movie this week I went and saw The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, and although Bilbo Baggins embarks on an unexpected journey, I did not experience the unexpected  this movie.  Overall, I saw what I expected both positive and negative, but there were a few gems that I really enjoyed.
The first installment of Peter Jackson's The Hobbit trilogy follows Bilbo Baggins, played by Martin Freeman, as he is chosen by the Wizard Gandalf the Grey, played by Ian McKellen to be the last member to join a company of Dwarfs. This company is seeking to take back their home which was destroyed and then occupied by a dragon.
As a person who has not seen the Lord of the Rings (LOTR) Trilogy but thought she had a general idea of the main story points, I found myself confused and struggling to understand the beginning of the movie and things that may have been obvious to LOTR fans.  There was a lot of set up for the story and at times I just wanted it to get on with it.  The story line picks ups about two thirds of the way through and I really enjoyed  if after that.
The big nugget that I really enjoyed was the main scene between Bilbo and Gollum The dynamic of Gollum's two personalities and Bilbo really seemed to work and helped to turn the movie in a more favorable light.
The cinematography through out the movie was everything that I could have expected and was beautiful to watch.  The spanning landscapes  were able to capture the epic nature of middle earth and the land of Lord of the Rings.  The actions scenes were kept in the wider shot, which I found to be a breath of fresh air in a world of tight, clippy action. 
The music seemed to weave in and out of the movie and fit with the different moments and scenes.  I liked how every time the traveling company had their own music which would fade in and out as they had group scenes.
When The Hobbit started I was not sure that I would enjoy the experience of watching the film and that it would be a complete drawn out affair that was focused on just setting up the next two installments, but by the end I was drawn in and plan to see The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug when it is released next December.

My Rating: 2-

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