Movie Review: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Colin D Miller December 12, 2013 Editor's Choice, Movie Reviews 3255 Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit series hits its stride in this second instalment [one_fourth] [/one_fourth] [one_half] When Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was released last year, the reception was somewhat divisive. While many of us were pleased to see Jackson return to Middle Earth and bring us the familiar faces of Bilbo, Frodo (briefly) and Gandalf, many felt that the pacing was a little off and Peter Jackson and co had delivered an enjoyable, but very indulgent film. Thankfully, The Desolation of Smaug doesn’t suffer from any of these problems. In fact, it appears to have gone some way to vastly improve on its predecessor. The characters are fleshed out a little more, so now the audience can tell the difference between one dwarf and another. Where An Unexpected Journey trailed along at a snails pace, the story told here could probably keep up with one of Radagast’s Rhosgobel Rabbits legging it from a Warg Rider. It just feels like the production crew finally got a hold on the story here, and while it’s predecessor plays its part in what is presented in The Desolation of Smaug, one gets the overall feeling that the first film in this adaptation is very much the victim from turning such a small book into an epic trilogy. [/one_half] [one_fourth_last] [/one_fourth_last] [one_fourth] [/one_fourth] [one_half] As we all know, Martin Freeman is pretty much pitch perfect at Bilbo and after a colourful and witty turn in An Unexpected Journey, The Desolation of Smaug naturally sees the character turning a darker corner as we see the corruptive power of the One Ring influence him. One of the highlights is obviously his confrontation with the stupendous dragon, Smaug – a very commendable motion capture performance from current rent-a-baddie Benedict Cumberbatch.  They liked him so much, they hired him twice here as we also see him voice the Necromancer. Freeman’s performance during the scene is one of both comedy and absolute terror and it very much mirrors his scenes with Gollum in the last film, with some tense dialogue and daunting game of cat and mouse. It is also worth mentioning that Smaug is yet another wonderful looking creation from the team at Weta Digital, with Benedict Cumberbatch’s dulcet tones fitting the dragons menacing voice superbly. Yet another familiar face… Much fuss has been made of the return of Legolas (Orlando Bloom) and while the purist in me was shouting out “you shouldn’t even be here!†(at least in my head, heckling in a cinema would be rude), by the time we had seen the character in action again, effortlessly killing orcs with such grace and elegance only seen in the likes of a ballet dancer, the cynic in me was sat reluctantly saying “ok, you can stay†Tauriel (Evageline Lilly) is also a worthy addition – a completely made-up character on the filmmakers part, she brings a female touch to the film that would otherwise be greatly missed and while I feared of an awkward romance between her and Legolas, her character has some nice interaction with the Dwarves, not to mention some tension between her and the rest of her kin. As far as the rest of the cast go, they’re all on top form here. Sir Ian McKellan continues to impress as Gandalf the Grey. Luke Evans makes an enjoyable debut as Bow the Bardman and Richard Armitage is ever determined as the stubborn Dwarf king, Thorin Oakenshield. [/one_half] [one_fourth_last] [/one_fourth_last] [one_fourth] [/one_fourth] [one_half] Perfectly realised environments… Visually, the world of Middle Earth is as perfectly realised as ever, with a nice variety of locations of where all the action takes place. From the graceful elegance of the Thranduil’s Hall to dilapidated and creepy ruins of Dol Guldur, each setting has it’s own unique atmosphere that sets it apart from the rest and Jackson and his crew should be commended for crafting such a finely detailed universe. These matters are further helped by Howard Shores score, which graces each setting with its own particular theme. It’s a trick that was employed in the previous trilogy and paid off to great effect. If there is one problem with The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, it is the ending. After a riveting and breathlessly action packed third act, the film ends quite abruptly. However, when a film does finish and leaves you sitting there wanting more, I think it is safe to say that the filmmakers have done their job. No doubt the purists will complain that certain liberties have been taken with the story and in places have deviated from Tolkiens established path, but there is no getting away from the fact that The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is one highly entertaining piece of cinema. [/one_half] [one_fourth_last] [/one_fourth_last] Summary: Action packed, amusing, finely acted, breathtakingly paced and perfectly realised, I loved The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug and I honestly cannot wait for the next one. Verdict: [rating=5]
