The Hobbit - a Review
I went to see the Hobbit yesterday. Got up at 8 to see it at 10 and I wasd pleased to see that I wasn't the only one. What I could see from the others reactions, they shared my opinion: A really good movie.
Please Notice that I have read the book beforehand and was kind of scared, what PJ would make of this. I think he interwove Hobbit, LotR and even the Silmarilion with beauty. There might years until they pick up The Silmarillion, but you could the feeling that PJ is toying with the idea at least. The way the movie went, it's possible to connect the dots. What non-bookreaders say about the film, I have no idea. I just now that that I forgot at some points that I actually knew the storyline, due to all the new scenes and details PJ handed us.
One of those is, in my opinion, Elrond leading the orc attack. It was daring, because most movie goes only know Elrond as the intelligent, but domestic host. Or as the disapproving father, but not as a Lord who actually gets his hands dirty. But he does and I enjoyed every minute of this character developemt. Also PJ set the image of a warrior!Elrond probably as prelude of the Attack of Dol Guldur. TolkinGateway states that known commanders where Gandalf, Saruman and Galadriel, but Elrond is certainly involved. So in the council scene we have all these people mostly balanced in screentime and enough threats woven to get the viewer to the point why Dol Guldur needs to be attacked.
This is great work in my eyes, because it's not eyes to take the viewer and make him follow the threat, when there are plotlines. The Lord of the Rings was easier to follow, because we all knew it would come down to: "get rid of the ring". In "The Hobbit" is more diffcult to archive this goal, but Bilbos speech at the end summarizes what The Hobbit is about and how it's different from The Lord of the Rings. Gandalf said: "It's the small, normal people, who keep the darkness at bay. Not the exceptionable ones."
The members of the fellowship have been exceptionable, all of them and this made them were easier to handle, because they were different. Bordering on stereotypes.
Here we have groups with overlapping interests. Overlapping, but that doesn't equally mean that they have a common goal and the tension isn't solved immediately the movie creates much subtext. Sometimes the small scenes had almost been to short for the amount of threats you had to keep track of. But PJ is a good director and he manages to let the storylines meet up again without a crash. IHe greats a good pacing. Personally for me, it was a heartbeat to fast, something I will have to get used to, but it was still good.
Or perhaps I just to rewatch the movie, because I admit: it was a lot visual input. Some fondly call it scenery porn and I agree. Of course these shots were intentional, New Zealand is a beautiful country and it helps to pull the viewer into the world Tolkien has created. The feeling I actually got was that I had something returned for my expensive tickets (with 3D and over length it sometimes not even remotely funny anymore). I didn't leave the cinema with the feeling that I could have had the same thing in front of my TV.
There's a reason The Hobbit is a great success in my eyes and I knew this reason the moment I gazed upon the Erebor in the first few minutes. Because the dwarven city shows some incredible depth and concept, not just a nice visual. There was history, culture and drama in just in the first minutes and the work compared the appreciation the film will receive for this part, will never compare! PJ could have been content with a miniature Dale, some dark mines, Thror's hall and flames for Smaug's attack. He didn't. he simply didn't, he went and filled the gabs Tolkien never got around to fill.
The small fugly guy with the Goblin King for instance. Usually the dark races are large in numbers, easy to kill, dump and very ugly. This small goblin was disabled, not a warrior and still had incredible position, right at the Kings side. Not to mention that he could read and write! Please note this goblin as the probably first character in a high fantasy setting, who could write! Usually orcs don't even get that much credit. Goblin don't even make the list.
All in all: I'm very happy with the movie. We have to keep in mind that the Hobbit isn't simply a continuation of a successful movie, but the expanding of an entire universe and PJ treated the Hobbit this way.
I can wait for the Desolation of Smaug.
mangacrack