The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies [M]

Though Thorin’s company angered and unleashed Smaug, it’s the people of Lake Town who feel his wrath. Armed with a single black arrow Bard is the one to rid the skies of Smaug’s terror, but doing so gives rise to another problem. News of Smaug’s death spreads like fire and before long legions of races are drawn to seek the wealth of the Lonely Mountain. Dragon sickness lies upon the gold in the mountain’s caverns, corrupting Thorin and turning him mad and blind. Blind the promises he breaks, the loyalty of his own kin, and the war that draws nearer to his doorstep. 

I’ve given up comparing these movies to the book because really, there is no point. In retrospect, they’re trying to cater to two audiences: those who are fans of the book and those who are fans of the Lord of the Rings film trilogy. 

It was about halfway through Desolation of Smaug that I realised that Bilbo’s little journey was going on at the same time that Sauron would be regaining strength and so it made sense for Jackson, the producers, writers, and indeed everyone to depict two stories and thus flesh it out into a trilogy. I actually have no problem with that. My fascination in this trilogy was more obligatory then anything else because right from the start there was so much hype and pressure surrounding them after the success of The Lord of the Rings that I couldn’t possibly believe that Jackson could show us anything new or amazing like he did before. I still stand firm in that opinion and I am at peace with that. 

So I’m not going to look at this movie in terms of book comparisons because the 250 page bedtime story that is The Hobbit has been butchered and reassembled in a sort of amazing Frankenstein’s monster epic fashion that that sort of review would serve no purpose. As it is, I can only look at this movie and talk about it as a film, a piece of cinema. 

Though Thorin’s company angered and unleashed Smaug, it’s the people of Lake Town who feel his wrath. Armed with a single black arrow Bard is the one to rid the skies of Smaug’s terror, but doing so gives rise to another problem. News of Smaug’s death spreads like fire and before long legions of races are drawn to seek the wealth of the Lonely Mountain. Dragon sickness lies upon the gold in the mountain’s caverns, corrupting Thorin and turning him mad and blind. Blind the promises he breaks, the loyalty of his own kin, and the war that draws nearer to his doorstep. 

I said before that I was of the opinion that, after LOTR Jackson couldn’t show us anything as beautiful or breathtaking. I will admit that I still hold that opinion, but have had to suck some of the flavour out of it. There is a scene, a fight sequence featuring Galadriel, Elrond, and Saruman where we get our first glimpses of the Nazgul. It was unlike anything I have seen. The Nazgul were mere drawings, white stencils of men that were completely transparent, but when they were struck they recoiled as though they had really been hit. The computer effects of this sequence were breathtaking because you seriously expect blade to just slice through the air that is these creatures and to see them react from the force was a real manipulation of the sense, a very pleasant and captivating one. 

As the title suggests, there is a lot of fighting in this film. Right from the first shot, the computer wizards are at the helm creating oceans of fire, swarms of mad scrambling people, titanic dragon defeats, and then chaotic battle sequences of elves, men, dwarves, orcs, goblins, trolls, Eagles, and bats. It’s all absolutely captivating without a doubt, don’t get me wrong but, as with any battle, it gets to the point of ‘oh come now’. Oh, especially all of Legolas’ moves which are totally kick-arse but which you can totally see coming five seconds before it actually happens. For an elf, he was pretty predictable in this flick. 

I don’t want to say it, but I feel I should, poor Bilbo gets pushed a bit into the background of this movie. Considering that the trilogy is called The Hobbit, the final instalment is actually more about Thorin’s battle with Dragon sickness, the Shadow growing in the East, and the war that comes to the Lonely Mountain. To be fair, at this point the trilogy is much bigger than Bilbo, even Gandalf makes mention of this in the end, but you would have thought that the writers would find some way to keep Bilbo in the forefront of the story. 

I do want to give praise where praise is due and congratulate the film on its ending. This was a very nice little stroke of brilliance, and I will tell it because it doesn’t give anything away. Young Bilbo back in his hobbit hole looking at the Ring. Next scene it’s eleventy-one year old Bilbo looking at the Ring: 

“No thankyou, we don’t want any more visitors, well-wishers, or distant relations!” 

“And what about very old friends?” 

Recognise it? It’s from the beginning of Fellowship of the Ring! I thought it was a really good idea and it very beautifully and smoothly ties two trilogies together into a Middle Earth saga. I was quite impressed with that move. 

Starring Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Ken Stott, Graham McTavish, William Kircher, James Nesbitt, Stephen Hunter, Dean O’Gorman, Aidan Turner, John Callen, Peter Hambleton, Jed Brophy, Mark Hadlow, Adam Brown, Evangeline Lilly, Orlando Bloom, Lee Pace, Sylvester McCoy, Luke Evans, Stephen Fry, Ryan Gage, John Bell, Manu Bennett, John Tui, Hugo Weaving, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Lee, Billy Connolly, and Ian Holm, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is a climactic and highly-charged ending to an epic trilogy filled with action, adventure, romance, drama, betrayal, magic, loss, change, life, death, and even a smattering of comedy. You cannot appreciate it as an adaptation of a book because it is not like the book. But you can appreciate as a film: a piece of stunning cinematic skill that depicts the evolution of movie magic. And it should be appreciated as such.