The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Brian in Mesa

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Hits theaters on 12-13-2013.

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crisper57

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I expect this to be the strongest entry in the new trilogy. The Battle of Five Armies just doesn't get me as excited as seeing Smaug come to life.
 

UncleChris

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I expect this to be the strongest entry in the new trilogy. The Battle of Five Armies just doesn't get me as excited as seeing Smaug come to life.

Sure hope you are right. I was a bit underwhelmed by the 1st one.
 

Stout

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OMFG, Legolas, who is not anywhere at all in the book, was supposed to just have a stinking cameo in this series. Now it looks like he'll be a feature character. EFF YOU, Jackson!
 

AzStevenCal

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I wonder how much it will cost to not see this movie. Hope I can afford it.

Steve
 

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Well I love them all so I am sure I will love this too.
 

AzStevenCal

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Well I love them all so I am sure I will love this too.

I loved the idea of them and I was even okay with the idea of stretching it into 3 movies. But the first movie in this series cured me of my love of the idea. I hated it. My wife was also very disappointed but still liked it despite the flaws so I suspect I'll end up watching this one also.

Steve
 

UncleChris

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I loved the idea of them and I was even okay with the idea of stretching it into 3 movies. But the first movie in this series cured me of my love of the idea. I hated it. My wife was also very disappointed but still liked it despite the flaws so I suspect I'll end up watching this one also.

Steve

As a Tolkien worshiper, I'll be seeing it as well.... sigh :shrug:
 
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Brian in Mesa

Brian in Mesa

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The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Release Date: December 12, 2013 (3D/2D theaters and IMAX, p.m. screenings)
Studio: New Line Cinema (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Director: Peter Jackson
Screenwriter: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (for extended sequences of intense fantasy action violence, and frightening images)
Website: TheHobbit.com | Facebook | Twitter | Google+

Starring: Ian McKellen, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Cate Blanchett, Orlando Bloom, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving, Evangeline Lilly, John Bell, Jed Brophy, Adam Brown, John Callen, Benedict Cumberbatch, Luke Evans, Stephen Fry, Ryan Gage, Mark Hadlow, Peter Hambleton, Stephen Hunter, William Kircher, Sylvester McCoy, Graham McTavish, Michael Mizrahi, James Nesbitt, Dean O'Gorman, Lee Pace, Mikael Persbrandt, Ken Stott, Aidan Turner

Plot Summary: "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" continues the adventure of the title character Bilbo Baggins as he journeys with the Wizard Gandalf and thirteen Dwarves, led by Thorin Oakenshield, on an epic quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain and the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor.

Having survived the beginning of their unexpected journey, the Company continues East, encountering along the way the skin-changer Beorn and a swarm of giant Spiders in the treacherous forest of Mirkwood. After escaping capture by the dangerous Wood-elves, the Dwarves journey to Lake-town, and finally to the Lonely Mountain itself, where they must face the greatest danger of all — a creature more terrifying than any other; one which will test not only the depth of their courage but the limits of their friendship and the wisdom of the journey itself — the Dragon Smaug.

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Bert

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Saw it last night at the premier in the HFR 3D

First off, about the HFR, lol

I had read a lot about this in the first go round of the Hobbit and I meant to see the first one in HFR just to experience it. I had read a lot of mixed reviews and opinions of it (some on this site). Its one of those things that seems polarizing in that people either love it or hate it. The only way I can describe it is that it was totally BIZARRE. Didn't love or hate it. On one hand some of the scenes were the most spectacular HD 3D I have ever seen, but on the other hand it was just odd the way it looks. People just dont move right for some reason. Even scenes that are not CGI look very fake and it sometimes gives that effect of people moving too fast or something? Like when you're watching a video online and it laggs and then speeds through a scene till it catches up. It was cool, but it was very distracting at times. I would recommend watching it this way once just to experience it, but not as your first time seeing the movie.

The movie was cool. Still felt like the first one in that there was just way too many chase scenes. Some of them just drag on and on for my taste. All in all though I liked it. Smaug scenes were amazing. I found myself just saying "cmon get to the dang dragon already!" The addition of some characters that weren't in the book were good additions I thought. I'm sure Tolkien purists will hate them but there were gonna have to be some additions to make 3 movies out of this short book. For example without really spoiling anything, people have seen in the previews that Legolas is in this movie, he is not in the book, nor is the girl elf. But they were fun additions that didn't affect plot and really acted as a fun bridge between the LOTR and this trilogy. Oh and Evangeline Lilly is super hot (as always) as an elf. Didn't know that was something I was into but she pulls it off! lol
 
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Stout

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Absolutely sucked balls. It's about the HOBBIT, and yet what did we get very little real focus on? BILBO'S really great stuff. Urgh. Some cool stuff sprinkled in with Jackson's sheer stupidity, but really, his awful decisions ruined it completely. I mean, there are many, many grave sins he committed in this movie, but this one takes the cake:

A dwarf/elf love story. Really. Ye are, to quote the Romans, Douchebagius Maximus, Peter Jackson. Even worse, the elf in said romance never existed as a character. Blargh!

Of course, this was bad too:

So, Bilbo goes in to do his bit with Smaug. He should have been invisible the whole time, but no big deal. They nailed that scene pretty well. Um, but then suddenly all the dwarves are in there with Smaug too, and we get a half an hour of stuff that was so stupid that it played to Yakety Sax in my head. Blargh!

Long story short? If it was just a movie and had nothing to do with any book, sure, it'd be fine. Taking a fantastic book and not just changing it but utterly destroying just about everything about it in an epic cash grab is simply unforgivable.
 

MadCardDisease

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I enjoyed it. Sure there were some silly scenes that were over the top and didn't need to be in there but I don't believe they took away from the overall feel of the movie.

Stout, why did you think it would follow the book after seeing the first movie in the series? How does that saying go "Watch 'The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey' expecting 'The Hobbit', shame on Jackson. Watch 'The Hobbit Desolation of Smaug' still expecting The Hobbit, shame on me." If they wanted to only make "The Hobbit" then it would have been one movie.
 

Stout

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I enjoyed it. Sure there were some silly scenes that were over the top and didn't need to be in there but I don't believe they took away from the overall feel of the movie.

Stout, why did you think it would follow the book after seeing the first movie in the series? How does that saying go "Watch 'The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey' expecting 'The Hobbit', shame on Jackson. Watch 'The Hobbit Desolation of Smaug' still expecting The Hobbit, shame on me." If they wanted to only make "The Hobbit" then it would have been one movie.

Oh, I wanted to see Smaug, just like I'll want to see the battle of the five armies in the last one. I'll seriously consider paying for a different movie to see it, though. See, some people blast away and say you can never make an honest representation of a book into a movie. He's done it, though, quite well, with the same damn author. And silly is fine--silly is what the Hobbit was. When you barely get the title character doing anything at all in the movie, though, taking away almost all of his cool stuff to substitute wildly stupid inventions of your own, you're going to get blasted. Sure, I knew it would suck heavily going in, as it should to anyone who has read the book, but it pretty much doubled the suck from the first movie, which surprised me. It's like he purposefully read the book and tried to do everything in his power to make the movie the polar opposite.
 

Cardinals.Ken

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It's about the HOBBIT.

I feel your pain, but what can be done about it? I came into this trilogy wanting to see:

1. Gollum and Hobbit play Jeopardy (check)
2. Smaug and Bilbo battle of wits (check)
3. Battle of the Five Armies (check, but in the third film)

I was thinking about this today...if you take all the Hobbit book happenings from the two movies you end up with about an hour and 15 minutes of film time.

This could have easily been a single feature, two if Jackson really wanted to go in depth with material from the book.

Three? I'd say it was too much, but it's not really about the Hobbit now is it? It's about being as big of a trilogy as Lord of the Rings was. With that in mind, I enjoy the movie for what it's worth.

The movie didn't feel like "The Hobbit" for me until they reached Mirkwood.

One thing I do worry about:
When the Eagles show up during the battle of the five armies, that whole Deus Ex Machina will be played out already. A shame really IMHO.
 

Stout

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I feel your pain, but what can be done about it? I came into this trilogy wanting to see:

1. Gollum and Hobbit play Jeopardy (check)
2. Smaug and Bilbo battle of wits (check)
3. Battle of the Five Armies (check, but in the third film)

I was thinking about this today...if you take all the Hobbit book happenings from the two movies you end up with about an hour and 15 minutes of film time.

This could have easily been a single feature, two if Jackson really wanted to go in depth with material from the book.

Three? I'd say it was too much, but it's not really about the Hobbit now is it? It's about being as big of a trilogy as Lord of the Rings was. With that in mind, I enjoy the movie for what it's worth.

The movie didn't feel like "The Hobbit" for me until they reached Mirkwood.

One thing I do worry about:
When the Eagles show up during the battle of the five armies, that whole Deus Ex Machina will be played out already. A shame really IMHO.

Very well said, my friend. The only difference is I sure can't enjoy it for what it's worth. It's the Hobbit to me, and when you make a movie (series of movies) that clearly doesn't feature the Hobbit, I'm not going to like it. I even liked the silly rabbit sled and silly old Radagast. Not in the book, but it fit the theme and tone of the book. This is not an epic trilogy book--it's a children's book, and would have played perfectly in the movies like that. But no, Jackson screwed it up completely and utterly.
 

Shane

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The second one bored me just slightly less than the first. I'll probably pass altogether on the 3rd.
 

UncleChris

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The second one bored me just slightly less than the first. I'll probably pass altogether on the 3rd.

Based on your observation, my friend, I'll make sure I catch it at the $5 matinee.
 

AzStevenCal

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I like the second Hobbit movie much more than the first one. I haven't seen the second Hobbit movie.

Steve
 

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