The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Review

Justin and I saw The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey on December 15, 2012. This was a fantasy driven movie with incredible effects, amazing characters, and great scenes that take you back to memories of reading the book. This was honestly one of the first big books I read back in 6th grade for Mrs. Christie's Reading Response Journal entries. I loved the book, and I loved the movie. Bilbo Baggins is one of my favorite characters: He is a character that starts out as somebody that is a recluse and wants to keep to himself, but through interactions with Gandalf and the dwarves, who want to reclaim their mountain kingdom from a dragon known as Smaug, he becomes a brave, intelligent companion keen on helping the cause and showing what a hobbit of Bagend is made of. I've always liked Bilbo, and disliked Frodo because I feel Frodo is weak, whiny, and crying for Gandalf to help him all the time. I liked the intro showing what happened to the Dwarf Kingdom, and the issues with the Elvish kingdom. It is a great way to show why Legolas and Gimli disliked each other at the start of the LOTR trilogy. The dinner/meeting scene to organize the fellowship to gain control of the kingdom was hilarious. Justin and I were laughing at the line: "That's a bit excessive isn't it?" when the heavyset dwarf comes out holding a wheel of cheese to eat. The audience follows this troupe on their adventure and feels the intensity in each scene whether its the encounter with the trolls, or the obstacle of survival with the Stone Giants and the encounter with the Goblins in the caves of Moria. My favorite scene is the Game of Riddles with Gollum and Bilbo, and I absolutely loved watching it unfold. I felt it was well done and I always have liked Andy Serkis's portrayal of Gollum. I like the schizophrenic nature of the character, and how obsessed with the ring he is. Bilbo is intelligent and is able to get away from Gollum, but the riddles exchange was perfectly executed. The battle scene at the end with the orcs and the Fellowship of the Dwarves displayed why I love the fantasy drama: characters that your creativity imagines battling each other through walls of fire, sword fighting, and brave risks. Thorin was basically obliterated and Bilbo rushing to save Thorin elicited a big applause from the audience. I knew the eagles scene had to be where the movie was going to cut, and the way they ended the movie for the second installment was perfect. Great action, scenes, effects, characters, and tremendous performances by Martin Freeman (Bilbo), Ian McKellan (Gandalf), Richard Armitage (Thorin), and some nice cameos by Elijah Wood, Ian Holm, Hugo Weaving, Cate Blanchett, and Christopher Lee, to which somebody turned and asked me: "Is he still living?" I said: "Yes, surprisingly enough." This is a definite 5/5. It was so well executed and personally I've always liked the actual story of the Hobbit better than the Lord of the Rings trilogy.