The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

The Christmases of 2001, 2002 and 2003 were special. For three Decembers on the trot, we were whisked away to Middle Earth to experience adventure and fantasy on an epic scale never before seen in cinema. The Lord of the Rings trilogy was a triumph, both critically and commercially, pleasing loyal Tolkien fans and money hungry studio bosses alike.
Almost ten years later, Peter Jackson returns to Middle Earth, the scene of his greatest success, with The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the first part of a trilogy based on J. R. R. Tolkien's book that preludes The Lord of the Rings. There have been a series of ominous warning signs during the production, with original director Guillermo Del Toro dropping out, followed by the worrying announcement that the rather modest sized book would be split into three films.

While The Lord of the Rings books deal with an epic battle between good and evil which threatens the whole of Middle Earth, The Hobbit is a much smaller and more personal story. It follows the quest of a band of dwarfs, accompanied by Bilbo Baggins and the wizard Gandalf, to reclaim their home and treasure in the faraway Lonely Mountain. The Hobbit reads like a children’s book when compared with the darker, more adult Rings trilogy, and this tonal difference is mirrored in An Unexpected Journey. The film plays for laughs and slapstick gags from the offset, with the threat level never venturing beyond ‘mild’ even when the adventure is in full flow.

Martin Freeman proves a fantastic bit of casting as the homely 'every-man' Bilbo. His breakthrough role in The Office seems a million miles away as he potters around Bag End, complete with over-sized hobbit feet, and he is easily the most likable halfling thus far. His quest companions are mostly well cast too, with Ian McKellen once again bringing that meaty, thespian experience to the role of the Grey Wizard. However, it is slightly puzzling that many of the dwarfs aren't given more time to develop their characters considering the story has been fleshed out so much.

While An Unexpected Journey never threatens to rival its epic predecessors, there is still much to admire here, from the beautiful swooping shots of the majestic New Zealand countryside, to the carefully and creatively choreographed battle sequences. Jackson still has the power to take your breath away with stunning images, from the mythical city of Rivendell - nestled into the cliffs of a mountain and flanked by lush flowing waterfalls - to a flock of giant eagles gracefully gliding between the misty mountain tops.

The battle sequences are mostly exhilarating and always accompanied by an excellent rousing score, but some are hampered by a disappointing muddle of computer effects. While the orks in the Rings trilogy were beautifully crafted using an effective combination of actors in makeup and prosthetics, here Jackson relies on CGI to bring his nasties to life. While CGI is clearly a valuable tool in a fantasy filmmakers arsenal, helping to bring fantasy worlds to life in a way that directors of previous generations could only dream of, it should be used with care.

Sometimes, less is more. Over use of CGI can hamper a film by lowering the sense of danger and threat, as seen in the likes of King Kong (2005), the Star Wars prequels or Indiana Jones 4 (2008), and while An Unexpected Journey never stoops this low, certain scenes are cluttered with countless CGI characters. During one set piece in particular - a goblin chase through a mine – it is impossible to retain any sense of danger due to the sheer amount of computer effects on show. What should be nerve-wracking and visceral, instead becomes technically impressive but trivial. The sense of danger eventually evaporates completely, making you feel like you are watching a cartoon or a video game.

The main villain, an albino ork named Azog the Defiler – who was a minor character in the book but given a starring role here – is needlessly created using CGI, and has that horrible ‘plastic’ quality that plagues computer generated characters. This is a real shame, as Jackson has shown in the past that he understands how to use CGI sparingly to great effect, although perhaps his work on King Kong (2005) marked the beginning of a change in mind-set.

The decision to split the book into three films is also problematic. While an extremely talented director, Jackson has shown a tendency for baggy film making, with many of his most recent efforts – Return of the King (2003), King Kong (2005) and The Lovely Bones (2009) – lingering for at least 20 minutes too long.

Each of the books in the Rings trilogy is roughly 400-pages-long, which forced Jackson to ruthlessly pick and choose the most dramatic and cinematic moments to include, while leaving a considerable amount of footage on the cutting room floor. By comparison, The Hobbit is 270-pages-long, and An Unexpected Journey deals with just the first third of the book, meaning Jackson ends up giving minor characters starring roles and fleshing out small occurrences into blockbuster action set-pieces.

While The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) was the perfect set-up for the epic adventure that was to follow, An Unexpected Journey meanders and feels self-indulgent, lingering too long on scenes or characters that are peripheral to the main story arc. The entire sequence with the Brown Wizard feels shoe-horned in to flesh out the adventure, and is followed by an action set-piece that is nowhere to be found in the book.

An Unexpected Journey is an exciting and entertaining adventure, which boasts some stunning visuals and has clearly been meticulously crafted with an abundance of love and care. However, Jackson fails to come close to the high benchmark he has set for himself. Despite its flaws, this trilogy opener will entertain and excite, but falls short of the ‘modern classic’ status enjoyed by its predecessors.

Note: This review was based on a 48fps screening of the film in 3D at Cineworld Dublin's new IMAX-lite screen. It is the first time a film has ever been released in 48fps - 24fps has been the norm for the last century - with only a small number of cinema's worldwide kitted out to project it this way. The increased frame-rate makes the images on screen look hyper-real and crystal clear. It creates the rather jarring illusion that you are in the room with the characters, or right in the centre of a heart thumping action sequence. On the flipside, the images on screen often looks too real and some of the cinematic charm is lost. In some of the early Shire sequences, it's impossible to avoid the thought that you are watching a very high budget soap-opera.