Title: The Hobbit
Directed by: Peter Jackson
Distributed by: Warner Bros.
Release Date: December 12, 2012
Rated: PG-13
Synopsis: A younger and more reluctant Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, sets out on a “unexpected journey” to the Lonely Mountain with a spirited group of Dwarves to reclaim a their stolen mountain home from a dragon named Smaug. (Via IMDB)
Shaunta’s Review: The Hobbit is the kind of fantasy film that I really, really adore. The kind that leaves me feeling good and wanting an adventure. In fact, one of my favorite scenes of the whole movie is the one where Bilbo Baggins makes the decision to leave his comfortable Hobbit hole and runs out of Bag End, yelling that he’s off to have an adventure. I wanted to go along with him, and I was really glad that I could.
The Hobbit is considerably lighter and more fun than the (fabulous) Lord of the Rings trilogy. It’s fun. It’s perfectly cast. Especially Martin Freeman as Bilbo. It was nice to see old friends, like Ian McKellen as Gandalf, Hugo Weaving as Elrond, Cate Blanchett as Galadriel, and Elijah Wood as Frodo.
The settings were magical. Bilbo’s home, the shire, Bag End, all of it. Gorgeous. The kind of movie you want to crawl into and live in for a while. I was almost sorry I didn’t see it in 3D, but I get motion sick quite easily and I’m pretty sure I would have had to cover my eyes for most of this action-packed film if I had tried.
I watched this movie with my 8-year-old daughter Ruby and her best friend Samantha. They were both enthralled right through the entire three hour film. As I said, this is a much lighter-hearted movie than LOTR. I don’t think they would have enjoyed any of the first three Tolkien films as much. Watching this one with them was great. It added a whole new dimension to me, to share it with my little girl.
I’ve heard some grumblings about turning a book that’s less than 300 pages into three three-hour movies. I found this film very true to the book, which I had read just a few weeks earlier. It didn’t feel drawn out or like it should have been faster paced, and I didn’t find myself wishing that they’d gotten the whole story into this one film. I appreciated that the film’s makers could take their time with scenes like the one between Bilbo and Gollum (one of my favorites) and the adventure embarked on by Bilbo and company.
My daughter and I had this conversation on the way home from the theater:
Ruby: Mom, do you have the book of The Hobbit.
Me: Yes.
Ruby: Have you read it already?
Me: Yes.
Ruby: What happens next? Does the dragon get Bilbo?
Me: I’m not telling! You’ll have to wait to find out.
Ruby: (after a long moment of contemplation) Well–can I read the book and find out?
So, maybe that’s the best endorsement I can come up with for this movie. It made my second grader want to read classic fantasy literature. And if it made her want to read, you can bet that there are a bunch of kids out there who will pick up the book instead of waiting a year to find out if the dragon gets Bilbo.
I had a lot of fun with this movie, and I think you will, too. It’s definitely worth seeing on the big screen if you can.
