The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

            Peter Jackson directed the new addition to the “Lord of the Rings” series. The screenplay for “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” was written by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro. This film stars Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen and Richard Armitage. The movie is the first of three and is based off the book “The Hobbit” by J.R.R. Tolkien.

I didn’t like reading the book. It was very long and slow moving. Since the pace was slow, it was hard for me to get into it and stay interested. I wanted to see the movie though because I really liked the “Lord of the Rings” movies. Rotten Tomatoes has “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” at a 65% fresh rating right now. I also thought it was pretty good.

In the film, Gandolf (McKellen) convinces Bilbo Baggins (Freeman) to accompany a group of dwarves led by Thorin (Armitage). The goal of the journey is to win back the dwarves’ home, which was taken by a dragon, Smaug. The group faces many challenges along the way. This is where Bilbo first meets Gollum and finds “the ring.”

The plot was good, but because the book is being split into three movies, the storyline was a little slow and stretched out. There were a lot of scenes showing the characters traveling through the wilderness. They are beautiful shots, but it gets a little old. The movie did seem more interesting to me than the book did though because it focused on the challenges and less on the little things.

“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” is a beautiful film. All the scenes look amazing, which helps take away some of the mundane from the movie. The 3D used was very effective to create the world. I think it really added to the experience and made the big moments even better. Another good thing about this 3D is that it didn’t give me a headache.

The acting in the film is pretty good. I really like McKellen’s Gandolf. Of course he had more time with this character from three earlier movies. He really seems to grasp the wise and sly man. Bilbo had some time in the other “Lord of the Rings” movies, but he didn’t play a very large part of them. Bilbo plays a much bigger part of this movie, and I thought Freeman’s acting in this role was believable.

One of my favorite things about this movie was the music. The song the dwarves sing in the beginning is so great. It really sets the mood for the rest of the film, and it does a lot to get the audience emotionally involved in what’s happening on the screen. The music fits the fantasy world and the adventures involved.

I’ve seen other things Jackson has been involved in such as “The Adventures of Tintin,” “The Lovely Bones,” “District 9” and the “Lord of the Rings” movies. Walsh and Boyens worked on “The Lovely Bones” and the “Lord of the Rings” movies with Jackson, along with several other movies. Other movies I’ve seen that del Toro worked on are “Puss in Boots,” “Kung Fu Panda 2” and “Pan’s Labyrinth.” I’ve seen McKellen in the “Lord of the Rings” movies, the “X-Men” movies and “The Da Vinci Code.” Other movies I’ve seen Freeman in are “What’s Your Number,” “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” and “Love Actually.” I’ve also seen Armitage in “Captain America: The First Avenger.”