Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

[RubySlippers]

Okay saw it I will not try to spoil things. It was a fine transition movie but the last movie will be a MUST SEE for all the cool stuff. Still Smaug was AMAZING I mean perfectly done AMAZING a must see on the big screen wrath that vomits flame power and arrogance to boot.

Other things were true to the book but tied into the LotR Trilogy some were not, but the movie was there to connect the first and third film I would say it was good excluding Smaug near the last hour of the film.

[Beorning]

Waitaminnit. There are going to be *three* Hobbit movies?  :o

[HairyHeretic]

Apparently so, yes.

[Beorning]

How about *four* movies, Peter Jackson? Or maybe five? After all, Hobbit is such a long book...  ::)

[RubySlippers]

Yes my guess is that one will have the: Spoiler Alert

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

1. Death of Smaug
2. Death of Sauron's Incarnation (expect an epic fight with several magical power houses, Gandalf maybe not he is in a cage right now minus destroyed staff)
3. Battle of the Five Armies

[Lux12]

Waitaminnit. There are going to be *three* Hobbit movies?  :o

I had the same reaction. Though after seeing the first some of my concerns were abated. Though it still seems a little awkward that they're stretching it out. They have done adaptations of novels noticeably longer than the Hobbit's 310 pages in one film after all.

[RubySlippers]

They also wanted LotR tie ins and they did not follow the book exactly.

[Oniya]

I had the same reaction. Though after seeing the first some of my concerns were abated. Though it still seems a little awkward that they're stretching it out. They have done adaptations of novels noticeably longer than the Hobbit's 310 pages in one film after all.

Tolkein's work tends to be a bit dense, even with something written ostensibly for children.  Even with three movies, I'm betting they left out certain parts.

[Lux12]

They also wanted LotR tie ins and they did not follow the book exactly.

Now it makes sense. That also explains why they focused on scenes I wasn't rightly certain were in the book or not. They seemed to handle it fairly well though.

[Stella]

I love that it's 3 movies. There's a lot of stuff that happens behind the scenes in the Hobbit that we'll get to see now, such as the White Council at Dol Guldur etc. And I love all the extra stuff PJ includes in the films, too - imo, these aren't books that directly translate well to screen.

*Counts down the days til Boxing Day*

[RubySlippers]

Anyone else here think the hippy Green Wizard is cool?

(shrooms baby)

I'm glad they got Smaug right on the money with nods to The Hobbit animated film that had me worried as a fan of the book.

[Chris Brady]

Tolkein's work tends to be a bit dense, even with something written ostensibly for children.  Even with three movies, I'm betting they left out certain parts.

Actually, Mr. Jackson is using Simillarion to fill the holes between LoTR and The Hobbit.

[The Golden Touch]

I'm about to watch it!

[Stella]

Actually, Mr. Jackson is using Simillarion to fill the holes between LoTR and The Hobbit.

Not quite. He doesn't have the rights to the Silmarillion. He's not allowed to mention anything from Tolkien's works outside of the Hobbit, Lotr and the Appendices in that volume (hence the comment about forgetting the names of the two other wizards, he could not legally mention them by name.) So extra canon material is coming only from the Appendices at the back of Lotr.

Besides, there is very little in the Silmarillion covering the years between the end of the Hobbit and the events in Lotr anyway. The bulk of the book covers the dawn of the ages up until that point. XD

[Null]

I watched the trilogy and it was amazing. Haven't watched the new hobbit movie. Should I watch that one before this one or am I good? ( sorry >_< Don't know my hobbit history as well as I should )

[The Golden Touch]

There are some free sites you can watch the first one on. I only say watch it because I'm OCD that way and prefer to watch them in order.

In Conclusion... Just got out of the movie. Damn them and the trilogy. I get why they did it but damn it. Also... Crushing hard on Orlando bloom again- thanks for that Peter Jackson. Similarly... Thorin is hot in a dwarfish sort of way. Other than that, I give them props for a lot of this movie. Definitely more impressed with part two than I was of one.

[Null]

Well great! Thanks for the tip. You saved me a few hours of my life I wouldn't be getting back ^_^

[Lux12]

Not quite. He doesn't have the rights to the Silmarillion. He's not allowed to mention anything from Tolkien's works outside of the Hobbit, Lotr and the Appendices in that volume (hence the comment about forgetting the names of the two other wizards, he could not legally mention them by name.) So extra canon material is coming only from the Appendices at the back of Lotr.

Besides, there is very little in the Silmarillion covering the years between the end of the Hobbit and the events in Lotr anyway. The bulk of the book covers the dawn of the ages up until that point. XD

That seems really odd and arbitrary that they can't mention something in the same canon unless they have the rights to individual works. Maybe it's just me but that kind of bothers me.

[Chris Brady]

That seems really odd and arbitrary that they can't mention something in the same canon unless they have the rights to individual works. Maybe it's just me but that kind of bothers me.

Welcome to the wild wooly world of licensing.

And the reason the Tolkien Estate won't EVER license out anything from the similiron (or however it's spelt) is because it's unfinished and people could 'extrapolate' thus 'polluting' the 'sacred ' canon of Middle Earth.  Which apparently goes counter to J.R.R. Tolkien's wishes because there was a rumour that he wanted ME to be a 'shared' setting at one point.

[IrishWolf]

Just got back from seeing The Desolation of Smaug myself and it was awesome, just fucking awesome.

[Stella]

His son Christopher who now owns the rights to the Tolkien Estate finished the Silmarillion from Tolkien's own drafts, pulling together enough to make a publishable work. I'm not sure of the details exactly, but I believe that has a great deal to do with why the Silmarillion will never (at least within the period of copyright) find its way into any other media. Christopher Tolkien's never watched the films, and the Tolkien Estate's never been actively supportive of them.  They're very much "this is the book, those are the films, they are completely different and we're not endorsing them." < not actual quote. :P

So I'm not actually sure how permission was secured in the end to make the films - though I do know that it was in developmental hell with other filmmakers as far back as the sixties (when the Beatles were considering making it into a film, with John as Gollum. >>)

[Deamonbane]

I just have to...

[Stella]

I just have to...

Omfg this is brilliant. <3

[Lux12]

I just have to...

The dwarves could have solved this entire problem before they had to go on this grand quest if they had only given the dragon a snickers...That makes the whole story sort of tragic, albeit in a comedic way.... How many? How many people must die before the dragon is given a snickers? :p

[Deamonbane]

He would have turned into Sherlock Holmes... more people would have died from his Detective skillz, and Grammar Nazism...

[Oniya]

Actually, Mr. Jackson is using Simillarion to fill the holes between LoTR and The Hobbit.

Have Beorn and his fabulous animal servants been mentioned?

[HeavenAbove]

I thought the movie was great! I enjoyed the Stephen Colbert brief cameo appearance as well.

[Null]

I can definitely see a snickers solving if not more problems people have on that world xD

[The Golden Touch]

Have Beorn and his fabulous animal servants been mentioned?

The skin-changer? Si! However, the animals aren't really mentioned as servants so much.

[Oniya]

There was quite a lot of detail in the book about how the dogs and sheep laid out the table and meals for the Party.  That whole scene is usually completely overlooked (along with Tom Bombadil in the Lord of the Rings) when the story is adapted to other media.

[TheGlyphstone]

I thought the movie was great! I enjoyed the Stephen Colbert brief cameo appearance as well.

Stephen Colbert got a cameo?

[HeavenAbove]

Stephen Colbert got a cameo?

He did :) He was one of the spies in Laketown. It was a brief appearance (probably 2 or 3 seconds at most) he had an eye patch (from what I remember).

If you look at the IMDB page it credits him as a Laketown spy.

[The Golden Touch]

There was quite a lot of detail in the book about how the dogs and sheep laid out the table and meals for the Party.  That whole scene is usually completely overlooked (along with Tom Bombadil in the Lord of the Rings) when the story is adapted to other media.

They did include him this time around. His bear from was pretty fantastic. However, his house was more like a stable for the animals than them doing much outside eating. >>;;

[Crimson Caine]

I feel like such a poor fantasy fan when I say this with anticipation of being dragged to this movie tonight.  I didn't like the book.  I don't know why maybe because I came to it late in life, I'd long ago discovered modern fantasy and sci fi.  But, I just didn't like the Hobbit.  I never read the Lord of the Ring Trilogy before the movies, which I really did love the extended cut movies.  Every time the Hobbit comes up, I feel like I can't call myself a fan of fantasy because I just didn't like it.  And the first movie left me kinda Meh.  So, I don't have high hopes for seeing this tonight.  It just sucks there's so little other fantasy still in the movies.

[Oniya]

Not every fantasy fan has the same tastes.  Tolkien's writing style is almost a thing-in-itself that people like or dislike.  (Although, if you care to share, there's a 'What are you reading' thread where you might find fellow fans of your favorite authors.)

[Deamonbane]

Okay so...

Was I the only one that didn't like this movie?

[bubby]

I thought the movie was great! I enjoyed the Stephen Colbert brief cameo appearance as well.

Stephen Colbert is like the God of Tolkien. You can ask him anything on the subject, and he'll know. It's awesome.

[Crimson Caine]

Okay so...

Was I the only one that didn't like this movie?

No.  I just saw it last night and it was the Looooonnnnnggggeeeesssstttt night of my life.  Even my GF who wanted to see it and loved the first one couldn't stand this one.  Way too much extra crap that wasn't needed and just left the feeling that when they must have been freaking idiots come Lord of the Rings Trilogy.  And OMG the whole elf thing... *sigh*  I really wanted to like it being a fantasy fan and LOVING Lord of the Rings trilogy but I have to say props to Viggo for turning down a spot unlike Orlando because that character wasn't in the freaking book.

Sorry, vented.  But it's all fresh in my mind.  Of course my opinion may not be worthy since I actually liked Krull.  Giving me spinning Glaive any day.

[Deamonbane]

There was quite a bit wrong with this film, but the last straw, in my mind anyway, was the forced Dwarf-Elf romance...

[Crimson Caine]

There was quite a bit wrong with this film, but the last straw, in my mind anyway, was the forced Dwarf-Elf romance...

I would have been ok with the Dwarf-Elf Romance if Evangeline Lilly didn't seem to be phoning in her performance.  I mean, she was over acting at some points and others just seemed like she didn't care, there was no feeling in her performance.  And I like her but was sadly disappointed with her in this one.

[bubby]

No.  I just saw it last night and it was the Looooonnnnnggggeeeesssstttt night of my life.  Even my GF who wanted to see it and loved the first one couldn't stand this one.  Way too much extra crap that wasn't needed and just left the feeling that when they must have been freaking idiots come Lord of the Rings Trilogy.  And OMG the whole elf thing... *sigh*  I really wanted to like it being a fantasy fan and LOVING Lord of the Rings trilogy but I have to say props to Viggo for turning down a spot unlike Orlando because that character wasn't in the freaking book.

Sorry, vented.  But it's all fresh in my mind.  Of course my opinion may not be worthy since I actually liked Krull.  Giving me spinning Glaive any day.

Krull FTW!!!

[Kuroneko]

I can usually enjoy a movie for all kinds of reasons even if the plot is bad or it doesn't follow the books or what have you as long as the design work is good. I'm a costume designer and makeup artist, so I can get lost in the visuals. I enjoyed the experience of watching the movie, and in particular, not choking over the horrendously bad costumes for the elves in LOTR, (though I was still pulled out of the moment by close ups on machine buttonholes in a medieval level tech world, but I digress), and was easily distracted by some of the bad editing and compositing between the CGI and practical effects.

But, the whole The Hobbit: The Desolation of Luke I am Your Father aspect of the film just makes me go 'meh,' no matter how much fun I had watching it. That kind of cliffhanger is bad storytelling. You keep people engaged and wanting to come back to see your next film by making a kick ass film that advances the story that can stand by itself, not a 3 hour trailer for your next movie.

Smaug was indeed awesome.

[Chris Brady]

My only complaint with Smaug (as I stated elsewhere) is this current fascination with quadrupedal dragons, as opposed to the traditional hexapeds.  Other than that, he MADE the movie for me.

[Oniya]

Krull FTW!!!

Movie and video game!

[TheGlyphstone]

My only complaint with Smaug (as I stated elsewhere) is this current fascination with quadrupedal dragons, as opposed to the traditional hexapeds.  Other than that, he MADE the movie for me.

This came up in discussion on another forum, and I remember what I said there - the decision to make him a wyvern-like design was probably done for the sake of the animators. Drawing a hexapedal dragon is easy. Animating one to move, on the other hand, requires a vastly larger amount of work, because the animators are working from scratch. The design they used means they can pattern his movements after bats or birds, since they share a vaguely similar skeletal structure...but no non-insect creature on Earth has six functional limbs. I'm mainly familiar with this issue because of an in-progress movie for a sci-fi franchise I'm a fan of, where one of the primary characters is hexapedal; in a presentation by the film studio, one of the things they talked about was how difficult it was just to figure out how a six-legged mammal/reptile would even be built skeletally and muscularly, let alone making it move remotely believably. The same issues probably came up for Smaug, which is why the early promotional artwork had a six-legged creature but the movie itself featured a four-limbed beast.

[Crimson Caine]

Movie and video game!

Wait?!?  There was a video game?!?  How did I miss this?

[Chris Brady]

Wait?!?  There was a video game?!?  How did I miss this?

It was, if I remember correctly, for the Atari 2600.

[Oniya]

Yep.

[Crimson Caine]

Huh.... I don't think I ever had that one.  Sadly I did have the ET game on the Atari as a kid.  *sigh*

[Oniya]

Huh.... I don't think I ever had that one.  Sadly I did have the ET game on the Atari as a kid.  *sigh*

So did I - never took it off of 'Easy' mode.

[Chris Brady]

A friend of mine owned a 2600, and he LOVED the Krull game.  I never got to actually play it, just watched.  Was pretty good for it's time.

[Deamonbane]

My only complaint with Smaug (as I stated elsewhere) is this current fascination with quadrupedal dragons, as opposed to the traditional hexapeds.  Other than that, he MADE the movie for me.

Honestly, I have never seen a six-legged dragon... all of the traditional European ones are depicted as flying lizards, with four legs, bat-like wings and breathing fire, or no legs, like a serpent, the kind of which are also included in Tolkein fantasy as the original wyrms, ancestors of the 'modern' flying dragons.

[Oniya]

The six limbs are the four legs and the two wings, as wings are analogous to forelegs on flying creatures.

(Although, notably, the Gap Dragon from Piers Anthony's Xanth series had six legs and a pair of wings.)

[Chris Brady]

Honestly, I have never seen a six-legged dragon... all of the traditional European ones are depicted as flying lizards, with four legs, bat-like wings and breathing fire, or no legs, like a serpent, the kind of which are also included in Tolkein fantasy as the original wyrms, ancestors of the 'modern' flying dragons.

Six LIMBED dragons.  Hexapeds have six limbs.  Two Arms, Two Legs and Two Wings.  Wings are limbs.

As someone who has played MMOs with traditional Dragons in them, I can't understand how movie makers can't do six limbs.  Not blaming them, not accusing them of anything, just not sure how difficult it really is.

[Deamonbane]

Smaug does have 4 legs and two wings, at least as far as I could see...

[RubySlippers]

Six LIMBED dragons.  Hexapeds have six limbs.  Two Arms, Two Legs and Two Wings.  Wings are limbs.

As someone who has played MMOs with traditional Dragons in them, I can't understand how movie makers can't do six limbs.  Not blaming them, not accusing them of anything, just not sure how difficult it really is.

Dragonslayer had the only classic Western dragon with two legs the wings were leg/arms and it had a tail but it was freaking cool for a dragon in a movie.

But Smaug is a classic four legs, two wings and a tail dragon with even more bad ass than the Dragonslayer dragon.

[Deamonbane]

*nods* Smaug was awesome... his voice sent chills down my spine... The first time he roared it broke one of the speakers in the Movie theater... that is how badass he is....

[TheGlyphstone]

Six LIMBED dragons.  Hexapeds have six limbs.  Two Arms, Two Legs and Two Wings.  Wings are limbs.

As someone who has played MMOs with traditional Dragons in them, I can't understand how movie makers can't do six limbs.  Not blaming them, not accusing them of anything, just not sure how difficult it really is.

MMO art designers can take shortcuts, and often do. A big monster's legs might not move at the speed it's traveling horizontally. The typical MMO format means you will almost always be fighting said dragons on the ground, since you are likely to be on the ground, so the wings just become big floppy decorations - maybe a stock 'flap' animation to perform randomly, or as a wing-slap attack animation. In the exceptions, close attention to the animated flying model will probably show that the body has become the big lump decoration, towed around by the animated wings. In general, game models tend to be built on one 'stationary' animated model of the creature, then a variety of different 'action' animations - attacking, walking, roaring, flapping wings, dancing, whatever - and the game code then strings the action models together in sequence between the stationary model according to the needs of the AI script. In a movie, on the other hand, that's going to be effectively a separate 'action' animation for every single frame of the film, possibly more depending on frame rate, with very limited reusability because the creature's surroundings on screen are going to be constantly changing as well.

[Oniya]

Smaug does have 4 legs and two wings, at least as far as I could see...

Per the wiki:

http://lotr.wikia.com/wiki/Smaug

Also, in the prologue of the theatrical release of An Unexpected Journey, Smaug appeared to some as having six limbs (four legs and two wings). However, this may have been a misconception resulting from the fact that Smaug was not fully or clearly shown in the prologue of the first film. In The Desolation of Smaug the dragon is revealed as having two rear legs and two wing-bearing front legs.

[Chris Brady]

MMO art designers can take shortcuts, and often do. A big monster's legs might not move at the speed it's traveling horizontally. The typical MMO format means you will almost always be fighting said dragons on the ground, since you are likely to be on the ground, so the wings just become big floppy decorations - maybe a stock 'flap' animation to perform randomly, or as a wing-slap attack animation. In the exceptions, close attention to the animated flying model will probably show that the body has become the big lump decoration, towed around by the animated wings. In general, game models tend to be built on one 'stationary' animated model of the creature, then a variety of different 'action' animations - attacking, walking, roaring, flapping wings, dancing, whatever - and the game code then strings the action models together in sequence between the stationary model according to the needs of the AI script. In a movie, on the other hand, that's going to be effectively a separate 'action' animation for every single frame of the film, possibly more depending on frame rate, with very limited reusability because the creature's surroundings on screen are going to be constantly changing as well.

The two MMO's that I can recall off the top of my head that have fully functional six limbed dragons are:

World of Warcraft, ignoring the mounts, Onyxia, the first Raid Boss that came out has three stages, two ground, one aerial, all of which are animated.  Not to mention the other Dragons that have come since.

Mabinogi, the basic Dragon mounts have a cool running and flying animation set.

And I just remembered another one off the top of my head:  Vindictus, there's a raid boss with a massive (as in larger than Onyxia, which is impressive because WoW tends to oversize anything that's not a player model), white silver Dragon that alternates between a ground attack and swooping flight strike.  This guy is both beautifully animated and a team killer, if you're not prepared.

Computer Animation wise, there was several that I can think of, from the mediocre Dragons: Fire and Ice (2004), to the slightly better Dragonheart (1996), to the phenomenal How to Train Your Dragon (2010).

I'm not seeing the excuse that it can't be done.

[TheGlyphstone]

The two MMO's that I can recall off the top of my head that have fully functional six limbed dragons are:

World of Warcraft, ignoring the mounts, Onyxia, the first Raid Boss that came out has three stages, two ground, one aerial, all of which are animated.  Not to mention the other Dragons that have come since.

Mabinogi, the basic Dragon mounts have a cool running and flying animation set.

And I just remembered another one off the top of my head:  Vindictus, there's a raid boss with a massive (as in larger than Onyxia, which is impressive because WoW tends to oversize anything that's not a player model), white silver Dragon that alternates between a ground attack and swooping flight strike.  This guy is both beautifully animated and a team killer, if you're not prepared.

Computer Animation wise, there was several that I can think of, from the mediocre Dragons: Fire and Ice (2004), to the slightly better Dragonheart (1996), to the phenomenal How to Train Your Dragon (2010).

I'm not seeing the excuse that it can't be done.

Onyxia is an excellent example, actually. On the ground, her wings just sort of hang there, flap back and forth a little in a stock repeating animation, except when she uses her wing buffet (which is another stock animation). The majority of her movement is in her neck and limbs, since those are the parts that are relevant to that stage of the fight. In her aerial phase, it's reversed; her wings propel a mostly static body as she flies around (and Deep Breathes more). Second ground phase,  same as the first. The quality of the animation is good, but that's because the animators only have to draw a pool of stock animated poses that can be looped in sequence as needed. All the other dragon bosses - Nefarian, Atramedes, Sindragosa (Deathwing doesn't count) - operate on similar lines. I've never played Mabinogi or Vindictus, but it's safe to assume they work along similar lines as well.

Dragonheart is awesome, and is an example of 'doing it right' for the most part...even the CGI hasn't aged that badly, but look carefully - the scenes where you have a full-body shot of a moving Draco aren't common. He's usually either standing in one place moving wings or legs, or flying at angles that obscure his entire body from view, or action close-ups of his face, claws, or wings.

No one has said it 'can't' be done. It's only been said that it is massively harder to work out and animate a consistently moving creature along a completely fantastic skeletal and muscular structure that is A) believable in its movements), B) visually attractive on a theater-scale screen, C) not stupendously over-budget to solve the above two. When you can switch to a bat/wyvern-model and the only cost is offending people who have deep investment in a four-legged Smaug (Tolkein purists and people who watched+loved the animated Hobbit, mostly), it's not a hard decision for the studio.

[Chris Brady]

For the record, the four legged Smaug isn't a big bone of contention.  It's a teeny tiny minor thing.  He was awesome nonetheless for it.

[TheGlyphstone]

For the record, the four legged Smaug isn't a big bone of contention.  It's a teeny tiny minor thing.  He was awesome nonetheless for it.

Yeah, I loved the wyvern design, I think it made him a lot more menacing to slither rather than walk. I just happened to be recently enlightened on the particular issues involved with drawing+animating hexapedal creatures, and it's stuck with me.

[Chris Brady]

Yeah, I loved the wyvern design, I think it made him a lot more menacing to slither rather than walk. I just happened to be recently enlightened on the particular issues involved with drawing+animating hexapedal creatures, and it's stuck with me.

Just to continue with that, Toothless of How to Train Your Dragon, moved more or less similarly (Although a lot less menacingly, admittedly) which is why for me, I'm not sure why they made Smaug four legged.  I'm sure there are complications, just not seeing how they could have been so difficult if at least one movie did it.  Is all.

But the film was fun.  And frankly, that's all I ever ask.

[TheGlyphstone]

Just to continue with that, Toothless of How to Train Your Dragon, moved more or less similarly (Although a lot less menacingly, admittedly) which is why for me, I'm not sure why they made Smaug four legged.  I'm sure there are complications, just not seeing how they could have been so difficult if at least one movie did it.  Is all.

But the film was fun.  And frankly, that's all I ever ask.

Remember C) on my list? I'd think it very likely that different animation studios protect their code/models/animators jealously from competing studios, so however Pixar accomplished Toothless, whoever animated Smaug wouldn't be able to use that expertise without paying a lot of money. HTTYD cost $165 million, ran 98 minutes of which Toothless is on screen a lot of the time, and thus a valid and likely use of a large chunk of their budget (admittedly not as much as some other studios because everything they do is animated). DoS cost $225 million ((27% more), ran for 161 minutes (60% longer), of which Smaug is on screen a much smaller fraction of the total time (maaaaaybe the last 20 minutes?). Difficulty is (Time + Money)/Results. I find it very, very easy to believe that the studio for Hobbit decided that they weren't going to pour extra time and money into working out said difficulties when they could Wyvern him much cheaper and quicker.

[Chris Brady]

Wasn't Pixar who did How To Train Your Dragon, it was Dreamworks Studios.

And the fact that Smaug got reduced to an oversized wyvern design is a minor disappointment at most. :)

[TheGlyphstone]

Wasn't Pixar who did How To Train Your Dragon, it was Dreamworks Studios.

And the fact that Smaug got reduced to an oversized wyvern design is a minor disappointment at most. :)

Right...I'm so used to Dreamworks being the losing end of that comparison that I forget they can occasionally make a good movie. ;D

[Chris Brady]

Off Topic:

Rise of The Guardians and How To Train Your Dragon (and the TV spin offs) turned out pretty damn good of late.  I'm hoping that they can rival Pixar, and both studios can challenge each other to do better.

[Stella]

Okay so...

Was I the only one that didn't like this movie?

Just saw it today.

I hated it.

I am absolutely baffled by this movie. It was terrible. So disappointed. :/

[The Dark Raven]

I loved it, though I don't have the hangup of having read the book.  I knew that certain things and characters were not canon going in, and went for the sheer interaction of Martin and Benedict, because that alone was hilarious...and watching Bilbo fight his demons.

[Loken]

I really enjoyed it. Although they haven't drawn me in quite like the original Lord of the Rings trilogy did i have still found the first two hobbit films a lot of fun. This one even more so than the first which was a little slow in places. I don't quite see the attraction of the whole Tauriel and Kili plot as such but the whole sequence between Smaug, Bilbo and the dwarfs was great fun.

[Jazra]

I really enjoyed it. Although they haven't drawn me in quite like the original Lord of the Rings trilogy did i have still found the first two hobbit films a lot of fun. This one even more so than the first which was a little slow in places. I don't quite see the attraction of the whole Tauriel and Kili plot as such but the whole sequence between Smaug, Bilbo and the dwarfs was great fun.

Loken captures my opinion perfectly. Really enjoyed the second movie.

[Aleph]

So I saw Hobbit 2: The Dragoning last week. I didn't have lofty hopes for it, it's the middle film, the connector between the opening and the closing. Nothing is supposed to get resolved, yada yada. Due to an odd quirk of cheap nights and availability, it was actually cheaper and easier to see it in 3d at my favorite arthouse cinema than it was to see in 2d at a chain cinema. Go figure, it didn't add anything in particular to the experience but that's my opinion of 3D in general.

I wasn't wowed by the film, but I did enjoy it. Benedict Cumberbatch's voice was lessened as a dragon IMNSHO but I'm a purist :P. Stephen Fry was fun to watch as Stephen Fry, lord of Laketown. The fight scenes were fun but...to be honest, it was around The Two Towers that I got a little tired of the Elves being so good at fighting that orcs just seemed to throw themselves on the elven swords. The Tauriel/Kili thing was kind of cute, I liked Tauriel. I thought Thorin is being set up well for the third act. I rather liked Beorn. He appeared to me as a quite believable shapeshifter. I liked his not-quite-human look.