Directed by Peter JacksonWritten by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson, Guillermo del Toro★ Too many great people to choose three of them
What has not been said about The Hobbit yet, I wonder? With all the praise (along with a tiny dash of criticism) wandering around the media and blogosphere, is there at all any way to defend your action of writing a review on this movie? Shouldn't we highlight lesser known arthaus gems that could change the world?
Oh well, I don't have an answer. But perhaps this question will do: when a movie deserves praise and attention, shouldn't we just give it as much of that as we can?The Hobbit might be a film that could change cinema. Or it might not. Yes, we already had franchises/ book adaptions that were incredibly great despite the huge amount of sequels (coughHarryPottercough) - but then again, how often does this happen? Yes, Life of Pi already seems to have changed the image and horizon of 3D - but then again, I saw The Hobbit in 2D and it was awesome. Yes, we've seen a lot of breathtaking fantasy in the last few years (aka my lifetime) - but then again, won't it always be fascinating?
The most surprising thing I noticed about The Hobbit was the humor. The film probably didn't have any need for that - it would've been amazing enough without - but it added a certain dash of... realism? to the film. In fact, this is something I've noticed about many big films currently, Harry Potter too. Perhaps good humor is in fashion again - which is something I'm very happy about.Then there's the universal appeal of the film. You know, the multiplex in my town has been struggling for survival ever since I remember. But the evening shows of The Hobbit have been sold out for weeks. Book shops are filled with Hobbit merchandise and books thicker than the original book. The world of middle earth is growing and growing, I mean just think of the comparatively few pages that Tolkien wrote on this dream universe. The four books combined really don't take up much space in my drawers. And yet, they take up so much of our lives, don't they?
Seeing this one the big screen was something I'd never even dared to dream of
Like most other fans, I was horribly fearful of the outcome of Jackson's project, even before they decided to make three films. Lord of the Rings just raised the bars so high, it was hard to imagine anyone could ever top or reach them. But from what I've seen, the makers of The Hobbit could have succeeded.I don't think I want to ask myself why and how this could happen. Perhaps not even the makers are able to believe that they actually created this.I know I'm sounding almost religious here, but what can you expect? The Hobbit was just so perfect - there's not even another word I can find here, other than... perfect.
I still have some doubts about part two and three. But whenever that comes to my mind, I just remember the perfection of the first part. It's a film that has reminded me of the fact that anything is possible, and that often your worst fears turn into the best experiences of your life. Like Avatar - a bad example as many people don't like the movie, but whatever, nobody can deny its grand influence on cinema - I hated the trailer. Truly, genuinely hated it. And when I went out of the movie itself, I was in another world, far away... I had changed, I guess.It's always such a big thing to say that a movie changed you, but it can be small changes. Just small ideas or opinions that change.
As for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - it changed everything. (However tempting it may be, I'm not going to say "Again").
