A Rather Unexpected Journey [The Hobbit spoilers]

*SPOILERS* The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey *SPOILERS*



So I've watched this film twice now, and both times I've thoroughly enjoyed it. I'm what most would consider the traditional tabletop/dungeons and dragons nerd, my obsession with Lord of The Rings has gripped me for countless years, it's my all time favourite trilogy, so I leapt at the chance of seeing Middle Earth again. I thought it would be buried with Return of The King, but when I heard The Hobbit was announced, and put together by almost exactly the same team of people, it was, ironically for the tagline of the movie, totally unexpected. With two movies in production, and one ring to rule them all, how does the first hold up to me? Better than I thought to be honest. Yes I had high excitement, and high hopes, but with Star Wars and it's prequels going downhill the way they did, amongst other un-needed sequels, I couldn't get rid of the thought that it was all for the money. Which it is at the end of the day, but you should be given at least your money's worth. So let's take a look at, The
Hobbit.


Having been an avid reader of J.R.R. Tolkien from a young age, I know all the ins and outs of Middle Earth. From the Adventures of Tom Bombadil, to the birth of Shelob, to The Hobbit, Middle Earth has a very detailed and intricate description which has constantly grown. The Hobbit, or as the book is actually called, There and Back Again, is about Bilbo Baggins, the same one from Lord of The Rings yes, and uncle to Frodo Baggins. Don't be expecting me to name characters like Frodo in here though, Legolas, Aragorn and Gimli so forth were still hunting rats at this time period. It does however see the return of old favourite Gandalf the Grey, who's just as smarmier in this one than ever before. And of course, they go on an adventure with 13 dwarves to help reclaim their home, The Lonely Mountain and the city of Erabor, which has been occupied by a dragon called Smaug.

As stories go, you may be thinking, where will the big battles be then? Who's the big baddie? Where's the ring in this? Well that's the good part about the film, there's no vast battles like Lord of The Rings (with the exception of a short throwback to Moria and possibly the introduction of Smaug), which in a way is a good thing. Know why? Because it's sticking to the books, and I think a lot of people forgot that when they went to watch this from what they've said about LotR being bigger and thus more epic. The source material is more about the journey, like Fellowship of the Ring, so there's no head honcho bad guy as such either, there's several, which is good, because it's like taking on a whole series of quests and challenges instead of just one. Yes, CGI is heavily involved for the big battles, such as the impressive goblin hideaway in the Misty Mountains and Erabor itself, but it looks very impressive, Rivendell looks more beautiful than ever, and the best part? It all looks real and part of the world. I didn't watch the 3-D version, but CGI has definitely gone places. I loved the Goblin King, his look, his voice, and his attitude were hilarious yet crazy.

Part 2​