"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" follows title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor, which was long ago conquered by the dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior Thorin Oakenshield. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers. Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain, first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever... Gollum. Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths of guile and courage that surprise even him, he also gains possession of Gollum's "precious" ring that holds unexpected and useful qualities... A simple, gold ring that is tied to the fate of all Middle-earth in ways Bilbo cannot begin to know.
This is a tough one to review. Do I do it as a stand alone movie or part of the Lord Of The Rings world? I was very entertained and loved the movie very much. It was too long and I'm still trying to wrap my head around how The Hobbit (one book) is going to be three movies with a running time of almost 3 hours each? But it is a very entertaining fantasy world story done by Peter Jackson. You really can't go wrong with that. Is it Lord Of The Rings level? HELL NO!!! Not even close. This movie might crack my top ten of the year . . . . . barely. The Lord Of The Rings trilogy was a top 3 (if not number one overall) every year.
I would definitely recommend people checking it out. It's great story/character development - although a little slower than needed. It is a great movie. It's just not Lord Of The Rings worthy.
