Peter Jackson is nothing short of a genius, everyone knows that due to The Lord of the Rings Trilogy which has been such a stupendous success and fan favorites for the past decade. Millions of fans were interested to see what this new trilogy was going to be like, could Jackson stay at the high level of production or would we be disappointed. The box office has proved that it is most definitely the former. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was a huge hit, a great first entry to what was setting up to be another classic trilogy.
The Desolation of Smaug is jam packed full of the most stunning set pieces, some full of humor like the barrel sequence and some full of tension like the escape from Smaug in the halls of Erabor and then there are those which are just plain scary; the appearance of the Mirkwood spiders (too much for this viewer who hid behind her hands for the entire scene) and the introduction of the dragon itself. And speaking of the dragon, it is without a doubt the most impressive piece of CGI I have ever seen, it is top of the list over Godzilla and the Harry Potter dragon. Benedict Cumberbatch is thrilling and genuinely scary lending his voice to the creature. This film is full of memorable roles another is Luke Evans as Bard the Bowman, he is no Aragorn but he has the looks and the acting ability and is sure to take on an even more important role in the final installment. Stephen Fry pops up as the Master of Laketown, not entirely unrecognizable but almost. Martin Freeman proves again that he was the perfect person to take on the role of Bilbo Baggins, with his performance and the help of the hair, make-up and hairy feet he has created a likable, strong character that is very relate-able to audiences. My only complaint is that we didn't get to see more of Gandalf, who is by far one of the greatest characters to come out of Tolkien's books and Ian McKellan plays him to perfection, nobody else could do it better.
One of the most comforting things about sitting comfortably in the cinema and seeing the title emerge is the familiar score that accompanies it, it puts a real smile on your face. The score for the entire film is full of the adventurous spirit of the story. I've always said that the music in a film is so vital and it is no different here. Something else extremely familiar and a delight to see is the return of Legolas, Orlando Bloom is back in the blonde wig for his fourth Tolkien experience, he's looking a bit older round the eyes but he hasn't forgotten how to play the audience favorite who made him famous. Legolas is more serious in The Desolation of Smaug than in The Lord of the Rings, he obviously finds some humor in his old age.
The film itself is definitely not lacking in humor, with so many fine performers on hand playing dwarfs it would be difficult to make a serious film. There is also surprisingly something I'm sure many would not expect; a possible blooming romance. Tauriel was created by Jackson and his team to add some more estrogen to the male heavy cast. She is the captain of the guards, favored by Legolas, she is a fierce she-elf who helps capture the dwarfs and en-prison them under the orders of King Thranduil. It is here that she strikes up a conversation with Kili (undoubtedly the best looking dwarf in the company) I won't give away any more but its pretty clear that Evangeline Lilly and Aidan Turner may be our new Aragorn and Arwen. Who doesn't like a love triangle between two elves and a dwarf.
For that alone I'd see this movie, if you haven't already - I mean where have you been really?
Peter Jackson's middle chapter is everything you would wish it to be and at 2 and a half hours long, just long enough that nothing goes numb whilst sat in the dark. Check it out. Let me know what you think in the comments below.
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