Badmovies.org Forum

Movies => Good Movies => Topic started by: Kooshmeister on December 14, 2013, 10:50:47 PM



Title: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
Post by: Kooshmeister on December 14, 2013, 10:50:47 PM
Just got back from seeing this. I loved it! It was a bit of a mishmash initially and took a little while to find its feet, but the third act, once Smaug shows up, was worth it. He'll definitely go down in history as one of my favorite movie dragons. His entrance into the film was simply awesome to behold. Great voice acting, too.

Bolg was pretty badass, too.


Title: Re: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
Post by: indianasmith on December 15, 2013, 12:07:19 AM
As a devoted fan of the book for over 30 years, the gross departures from Tolkien's narrative structure bothered me a great deal.
And some of the sequences didn't even really make a lot of sense, to be honest.

That being said, as a movie, it was very enjoyable and I am anxious to see how they wind it up.


Title: Re: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
Post by: Kooshmeister on December 15, 2013, 03:48:34 AM
Some random thoughts:

WARNING!!! (Minor) SPOILERS!

-I thought Beorn was underused and the scenes involving him felt rushed, like Jackson wanted to get to Mirkwood as quickly as possible.
-Mirkwood was nothing like the nearly completely pitch black forest described in the book. It was just a generic haunted forest here in the movie. The enchantment which causes hallucinations (which didn't exist in the book) added nothing and seemed weird just for the sake of weird.
-What was up with the Elvenking's face when he is talking to Thorin? That was weird.
-I felt that the scenes in the elf palace were rushed and the river battle was too long, even if it was entertaining.
-I didn't like how the Elvenking was handled. From a firm but fair ruler who shows mercy to prisoners, even if they're his most hated enemies, to a guy who murders unarmed prisoners in fits of pique. Classy.
-Ditto the Master. In the book, he's a petty and greedy jerk but sensible enough. Here, instead of a shrewd but cowardly politician, he's just a one-dimensional villain.
-Could they have tried any harder to make the Master's assistant any more like Grima Wormtongue?
-Why did Bolg run away during his battle with Legolas? He was winning!
-I hated how Bard was done. Far from the champion archer and captain of the Master's bowmen who is well-liked by everyone in Lake Town (apart from some gentle ribbing from his men that he is a bit of a doomsayer), he is a mercenary-minded boatman whom nobody likes and whose archery skills are beside the point.

All this griping aside, I did enjoy it. It just felt rushed and clunky in some places, and didn't seem to find its footing until the third act, and I didn't like the drastically different characterizations of Bard, the Master and the Elvenking.


Title: Re: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
Post by: Neville on December 15, 2013, 01:31:18 PM
I wasn't exactly mesmerized by the first "Hobbit" film, but I found this one an overall improvement, almost on par to the LOTRR films. Most of the feeling Jackson was improvising without a plot is gone here, and the final act with Smaug is nothing short of great. Now it only needs a proper third film to wrap things up.




Title: Re: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
Post by: zelmo73 on December 15, 2013, 05:42:36 PM
That Tauriel gal wasn't in the book. Neither was Legolas, come to think of it. I don't recall a love story being in The Hobbit book either.