Movie Review | The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Bilbo's baggage
What a long trip the big-screen debut of The Hobbit has taken.
Initially envisioned in 1995 as part of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, the film adaptation of the earliest J.R.R. Tolkien tale of Middle-earth has gone through years of development, the bankruptcy of a backing studio, a switch in directors because of shooting delays and a late change in its structure.
The plan was made public just a few months ago that, instead of the two movies once planned, The Hobbit would roll out as a trilogy.
Arriving at last under the direction of Rings master Peter Jackson, also a producer and co-writer, the first release — An Unexpected Journey — suggests that alterations made during the lengthy process didn’t turn out for the best.
The story, which takes place 60 years before The Fellowship of the Ring, presents hobbit Bilbo Baggins in his youth — as played by amiable British actor Martin Freeman (Love Actually).
In his quiet, tidy shire home, Bilbo — to his consternation — is beset by wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellen, reprising the role) and 13 loud, hungry dwarfs led by fallen royal Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage).
Gandalf has come to draft Bilbo for a quest to re-claim the dwarf clan’s castle and substantial treasure at Erebor, which was overtaken by fire-breathing, gold-digging dragon Smaug.
The first leg of the trip includes run-ins with elves, orcs and goblins as well as a pivotal meeting with Gollum (Andy Serkis).
Despite the passage of almost decade since the Rings trilogy was completed, Jackson still has a firm grasp of the Tolkien universe — along with his rock-solid technical expertise. In camerawork, creature effects and production design, An Unexpected Journey suggests a seamless extension of the earlier films.
The consistency, however, exacts a price: Excluding a few standout scenes, such as a game of wits between Bilbo and Gollum, the movie doesn’t convey a notable sense of identity, as it might with a fresh director.
A long-standing investment in the material also seems to have impaired the once-keen Jackson ability to show faith to the source without becoming its slave.
Tolkien lovers might eat up all 169 minutes. Yet, after two dwarf musical interludes and seemingly countless panoramic shots of the travelers walking single file up a snowy mountain pass, casual fans are likely to think that less could have been more.
An Unexpected Journey marks the first film released in high-frame-rate 3-D, a format available at select central Ohio theaters that promises sharper images and smoother movements than does standard 3-D. In some cases, though, the enhanced sharpness yields a strange flattening of the 3-D effect.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. Directed by Peter Jackson. Written by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Jackson, Guillermo del Toro and J.R.R. Tolkien.
?Two and ½ stars (out of four)
An unending journey.
MPAA rating: PG-13 (for intense fantasy violence, frightening images)
Running time: 2:46
Now showing at the Arena Grand, Crosswoods, Dublin Village 18, Easton 30, Gateway, Georgesville Square 16, Grandview, Grove City 14, Lennox 24, Movies 16 Gahanna, Movies 10 at Westpointe, Movie Tavern Mill Run, Pickerington, Polaris 18 and Studio 35 theaters
