Well, we all know about the passion with which Peter Jackson has made 5 movies so far on the 4 books of the same name by J.R.R Tolkien. His interpretation of the books have been considered the best book to movie adaptation ever. Being true to the novels and in some ways making the already brilliant novel even better by modifying certain portions of it has earned Jackson the love of all the novel fans all over the world.
Having said that, I would add that though Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug is a great movie to watch mainly due to its direction, acting, cinematography, background score and action sequences (CGI) but I would also say that on the Hobbit Project, Peter Jackson has been very selfish, the Hobbit which is hardly 200-250 Pages long was made into 3 movies just to give the production house 3 money spinners instead of 2 .This Decision of churning out 3 movies dilutes the experience of the 2nd Movie and leaves the viewer’s thirsty at the end of 2 hour and 45 minutes. Now we have to wait for another year to quench our thirst and that is totally uncool.
Story
Desolation of Smaug begins where the last movie left , Bilbo Baggins and the 13 dwarves are on the journey to reclaim Erebor, from the clutches of Evil Dragon Smaug, which is in desolation. On their journey they should travel through the forest of Mirik, fight evil man eating spiders and Elves who turned a blind eye on them years before when the orcs attacked the dwarves. Gandalf on the other hand separates out as he suspects something darker than the Dragon is getting stronger every day, so he embarks on a separate journey to find out the truth.
The Dwarves have to travel unsuspected into the lake town of Esgaroth from where they have to find the hidden door in the castle of Erebor where the dragon sleeps since ages and awakening him would bring only destruction and death. So Bilbo Baggins is given the task of stealing a precious stone from under the belly of the dragon which Thorin Oakenshield values above all the riches in the Kingdom.
Do the dwarves reach Erebor Safely? Does Bilbo manage to steal the precious stone for Thorin,if Yes, why does Thorin value is so much? Does the great dragon awaken from his sleep and if he does what happens, as the only weapon to kill him is out of Ammo? What does Gandalf finds out after his journey?
For all these answers you need to catch the movie in your nearest theatres.
Direction, Script and Screenplay
Peter Jackson is the only person apart from Tolkien himself who understands the universe of middle earth with great precision. His passion for the story is evident in every frame which is beautifully shot. His eye for detail is spot on and he craftily uses the beautiful cinematography as a mask to cover the lack of any story here. There is no story here as there is no beginning and no end, its just a middle which leaves you teased in the end, longing to see the final instalment.
The Screenplay is good and keeps you hooked even if the story doesn’t progress by an inch here. Few new characters are introduced here including the Elves, Legolas(Orlando Bloom),Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly) who are great whenever they appear on screen. There is also the Bargeman Bard (Luke Evans) who is introduced here is good, he will have a crucial role to play in the final instalment.
Final Word
Desolation of Smaug is full of adventure, thrills, breathtaking sequences but the absence of a story weighs down this journey and makes is dull in some portions and the abrupt ,selfish ending makes you totally hate Peter Jackson for making us wait for another year. But Fans will cherish this movie as this truly captures the flow of the story onscreen and has an ensemble cast of very able actors who on their first appearance itself tell you who they are.
If this was the last movie in the series it would have been a totally exceptional journey but sadly it isn’t and much of the important parts of the book are left for the last instalment which I can feel will be truly epic.
A Must watch for fans, others who haven’t seen or read any of the LOTR books, stay away, you won’t understand anything anyway.
Overall Rating :3 /5
Well, we all know about the passion with which Peter Jackson has made 5 movies so far on the 4 books of the same name by J.R.R Tolkien. His interpretation of the books have been considered the best book to movie adaptation ever. Being true to the novels and in some ways making the already brilliant novel even better by modifying certain portions of it has earned Jackson the love of all the novel fans all over the world.
Having said that, I would add that though Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug is a great movie to watch mainly due to its direction, acting, cinematography, background score and action sequences (CGI) but I would also say that on the Hobbit Project, Peter Jackson has been very selfish, the Hobbit which is hardly 200-250 Pages long was made into 3 movies just to give the production house 3 money spinners instead of 2 .This Decision of churning out 3 movies dilutes the experience of the 2nd Movie and leaves the viewer’s thirsty at the end of 2 hour and 45 minutes. Now we have to wait for another year to quench our thirst and that is totally uncool.
Story
Desolation of Smaug begins where the last movie left , Bilbo Baggins and the 13 dwarves are on the journey to reclaim Erebor, from the clutches of Evil Dragon Smaug, which is in desolation. On their journey they should travel through the forest of Mirik, fight evil man eating spiders and Elves who turned a blind eye on them years before when the orcs attacked the dwarves. Gandalf on the other hand separates out as he suspects something darker than the Dragon is getting stronger every day, so he embarks on a separate journey to find out the truth.
The Dwarves have to travel unsuspected into the lake town of Esgaroth from where they have to find the hidden door in the castle of Erebor where the dragon sleeps since ages and awakening him would bring only destruction and death. So Bilbo Baggins is given the task of stealing a precious stone from under the belly of the dragon which Thorin Oakenshield values above all the riches in the Kingdom.
Do the dwarves reach Erebor Safely? Does Bilbo manage to steal the precious stone for Thorin,if Yes, why does Thorin value is so much? Does the great dragon awaken from his sleep and if he does what happens, as the only weapon to kill him is out of Ammo? What does Gandalf finds out after his journey?
For all these answers you need to catch the movie in your nearest theatres.
Direction, Script and Screenplay
Peter Jackson is the only person apart from Tolkien himself who understands the universe of middle earth with great precision. His passion for the story is evident in every frame which is beautifully shot. His eye for detail is spot on and he craftily uses the beautiful cinematography as a mask to cover the lack of any story here. There is no story here as there is no beginning and no end, its just a middle which leaves you teased in the end, longing to see the final instalment.
The Screenplay is good and keeps you hooked even if the story doesn’t progress by an inch here. Few new characters are introduced here including the Elves, Legolas(Orlando Bloom),Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly) who are great whenever they appear on screen. There is also the Bargeman Bard (Luke Evans) who is introduced here is good, he will have a crucial role to play in the final instalment.
Final Word
Desolation of Smaug is full of adventure, thrills, breathtaking sequences but the absence of a story weighs down this journey and makes is dull in some portions and the abrupt ,selfish ending makes you totally hate Peter Jackson for making us wait for another year. But Fans will cherish this movie as this truly captures the flow of the story onscreen and has an ensemble cast of very able actors who on their first appearance itself tell you who they are.
If this was the last movie in the series it would have been a totally exceptional journey but sadly it isn’t and much of the important parts of the book are left for the last instalment which I can feel will be truly epic.
A Must watch for fans, others who haven’t seen or read any of the LOTR books, stay away, you won’t understand anything anyway.
Overall Rating :3 /5