The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Well, Peter Jackson's latest installment in the Hobbit trilogy is out, and it picks up right where the last movie left off (so re-watch it if you want, couldn't hurt before jumping into this one).  Bilbo Baggins and Thorin Oakenshield's group continue their quest to the Lonely Mountain to reclaim the lost Dwarven kingdom.  However, the story soon becomes more complex.  There is a darkness creeping across the land, and while Smaug the Terrible is a source of darkness sitting on a trove of gold and jewels, this is something even more terrible than one dragon.  What is this threat, and will the group still be able to succeed in their quest? Well if you read the book, then you already know, and just want to know if this is a solid adaptation, so let's dive right into it.

Thorin's quest continues, but even as the dangers outside the group grow, you start to see a danger rise from within.

The story is more of what we saw in the last film.  The core material is taken right from Tolkiens The Hobbit, and it also adds more material outside of the original work.  This time, however, Legolas makes an appearance.  This is something we already saw in the previews, but he really plays a significant role beyond a simple cameo appearance.  While he is a character I could hardly dislike from The Lord of the Rings, he really is a different type of character this time around.  Part of the reason is that he is part of the Wood Elves, who are less civil than the elves we have come to know.  But this really is a different Legolas: less aloof and more jealousy.  While there are some other, more clever references to Lord of the Rings, Legolas is part of another side plot introduced during this film.

Bard the Boatman provides a very compelling voice of reason along the way against the quest for the Lonely Mountain, but he'll be even more important in the next film.

Another big issue, as mentioned, is the rise of this new threat.  It was hinted at in the first movie, with the "Necromancer" subplot, but this time it is delved into in more detail, and it provides one of the major plot twists of the film that ties into the original movies.  While the Necromancer was in the original film, it was only mentioned as the reason for Gandalf's departure, so the detail were not in the original book.  This also ties into the Pale Orc subplot, helping bring these characters and story elements together.

Stephen Fry adds a great deal of comedy in his role as the Master of Laketown

Now to the main plot.  It tries to seamless meld the original story with the additions, but obviously if you have read the book, there's no overlooking what isn't supposed to be there, but that doesn't mean it's bad; on the contrary, it's very well-done, and if you haven't read the book, you really wouldn't be able to tell the difference, anyways.  However, some of it does feel like a desperate attempt to draw out the story, since they are making another film out of it.  And that does make for some disappointment as somebody who wants to simply see a movie adaptation of the book itself, which should have only taken up one or two films.

Nice to see some Tolkien vets return to do these films.  A cameo would have felt more appropriate, but Legolas is here to kick some orcish, and possibly dwarfish, ass.

As for the characters, Bilbo and Thorin are both very well portrayed, just like the previous film, and Gandalf is Gandalf, so there should really be no doubts there.  The new central characters, King Thranduil of the wood elves, Tauriel (another add-on), and Smaug himself.  Thranduil provides an interesting conflict with Thorin, who still recalls when Thranduil betrayed the dwarves in their time of need.  Tauriel has a little romance throughout the film with Kili, which adds some humor initially, but evolves into something more serious.  This pits Kili against Legolas, who has his own sights set on Tauriel, so there is some additional conflict there.  Bard, who is important in the 3rd act of the story, is introduced, and has a very level-headed presence in the film, just like in the book.  He fears the dwarves' quest will anger Smaug, which could lead to dire consequences for Laketown, despite everyone believing the dwarves will bring riches to share with the town, saving it from poverty.

Tauriel is an add-on to the story, but she has a lot to bring forward.

Now for Smaug. Anyone who has read the book knows just how big (pun intended) this character is in the climax of the film, and the short but sweet back-and-forth with Bilbo provides some of the greatest tension between this halfling and the towering monster that destroyed a kingdom.  Smaug (along with "The Necromancer") is voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch, who played Khan in the latest Star Trek film.  His voice acting is incredible, making Smaug into a dark, yet intelligent and charismatic character on-screen.  The detail that went into animating this dragon shows, and his every movement looks as life-like as a towering mythical beast can look.

Nice dragon...... NIIIIIICE dragon.

The only major detractor from the film is the ending, which I saw coming.  As I stated before, the book didn't really fit into a trilogy of films, and one of those reasons is there is no good place in the source material to break the story up at this point.  From the time that the group reaches the Lonely Mountain, it becomes a straight dash to the finish, so no matter how it ended, it didn't provide any sense of closure; and while cliffhangers aren't bad, this wasn't so much of a cliffhanger as it was a mandatory cut-off, which hurts the film as a whole. 

It's for visuals like this that we want to see epics like The Hobbit  and Lord of the Rings turned into film, and this film brilliantly executes the beauty and scale of the world, along with the depth and dimension of the story and characters.

Overall, this is a great film.  Despite the awkward timing of the ending, which honestly couldn't have been avoided (unless the greedy studio could just leave it be and only do one or two films).  The characters from the book are all there, and well-adapted.  The story-crashers, as I like to call all the additional characters, are very well implemented into the film, but there is no mistaking one when you have read the book.  The story is more of what you expect from the first film, and the CGI looks a lot better this time around, for the most part.  Smaug is an amazing presence on screen, feeling just as imposing as a dragon should.  Should you see this film? Hell yes.  Is it beyond fault? obviously, no.  But still, this is a very enjoyable film, and I can't wait for the final installment in the trilogy.

The Good:

-More of The Hobbit, 'nuff said.

-"Smaug the Terrible?" More like "Smaug the Awesome."  Benedict Cumberbatch plays the role well, giving that same charismatic, yet sinister feeling that you saw in Into Darkness.

-Some nice cameos to the original Lord of the Rings films for long-time fans of Tolkien's work or Jackson's films.

-New characters from the book are all very well portrayed, and give some dimension to the story by challenging the nobility of the quest, warning of the consequences and dangers outside of just the protagonists.

The Bad:

-Ending is a little awkward and sudden, with some filler bits along the way, which was unavoidable unless you cut down on the number of films, which is what should have been done in the first place.

Scully Rating: 9.7 out of 10