Review: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Review: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Director: Peter Jackson

Cast: Martin Freeman, Ian Mckellen, Richard Armitage, Luke Evans,

Running Time: 161 Mins

Mixed reviews, a bumb-numbingly off-putting running time and a particularly patience testing song concerning doing the dishes plagued Peter Jackson's first return to Middle Earth The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. A year later, we're thrown back into the fantasy world for part two in Bilbo Baggins' story, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, a sequel which is much more exciting and much less padded than its predecessor, yet is still bogged down by some of the same problems like the weight of the ring itself.

The main thing to understand before watching a Middle Earth movie, be it an entry in The Hobbit series or The Lord of the Rings, is that you've got to be committed for the long haul. Audiences were immediately put off by An Unexpected Journey's lengthy running time, and yet while fans of the source material defend Peter Jackson's padding (seriously, a trilogy of movies clocking in at almost 3 hours each for a book that's 300 pages long is a tad extensive) it's easy to see where the complaints are coming from. 

Unnecessary and tedious moments managed to send plenty of people to sleep - but for some, this is what they had been waiting for for years, perhaps even decades, and for the hardcore fans it was wonderful to see Tolkien's literature up there on the silver screen (in glorious 3D, no less).

With The Desolation of Smaug, Jackson has given us a more focused and entertaining entry in his saga which keeps the casual audience entertained with its raucous action sequences - the highlight being a hilarious and edge-of-your-seat elves vs. orcs vs. dwarves battle down vicious rapids - but manages to make more time to develop Bilbo's character, as well as keeping us up to date with Gandalf's investigation into Sauron's return to Middle Earth.

Picking up more or less exactly where An Unexpected Journey left off, Desolation sees Bilbo (as usual, a spot-on performance from Martin Freeman), Gandalf and the band of thirteen dwarves led by should-be king Thorin Oakenshield continue their quest to The Lonely Mountain. Their mission? Kill the dragon inside and reclaim their homeland. Standing in their way? A pack of orcs on their tale led by Azog the Defiler, a diseased forest full of giant spiders, a none-too-happy fortress of elves, an all-too-happy town of men...and of course, the dragon itself. 

For at least two hours of its journey, Desolation entertains and amuses, but it's when Smaug himself finally arrives in spectacular fashion that Jackson really earns our ticket price. Voiced by a sublime Benedict Cumberbatch (yes, The Hobbit is the world's most expensive advertisement for BBC's Sherlock), Smaug is simply one of the greatest pieces of motion capture and CGI work ever witnessed on screen and his confrontation with Bilbo is, as a highlight of the book, realised brilliantly on screen.

Every movement feels real, every beat of his wings has a huge impact, every  - and he's got a fearsome way with one-liners. "My wings are a hurricane, my teeth are swords, my claws are spears and my breath death...tell me, how would you like to die?"

Smaug isn't the only pleasing aesthetic here though - Jackson's vision seamlessly absorbs us into the world of Tolkien and its incredible landscape. Even if you don't particularly like or enjoy the story or the extensive padding of the movies, nobody could possibly deny that the Middle Earth saga - as it shall now be known - looks and feels authentic. The movies may be long, but you don't question for a second that this is Middle Earth, such is the amazing use of the New Zealand landscape mixed with Jackson's masterful utilization of green screen technology.

Jackson surely realises that the continuity of his Middle Earth saga (see?) is of utter importance, and as a fan himself he'll understand the excitement to watch all six movies in the saga back to back. As such, Desolation sees a lot of set-up for The Lord of the Rings trilogy which, depending on which side of the fan base you're on, will either excite or frustrate. Orlando Bloom's back again as elf-archer Legolas, stealing all the best action scenes, while Gandalf's prodding and poking around Sauron's return ties the entire saga together with a neat bow. 

That said, Bilbo himself seems to be a side player in his own movie thanks to this - except for one brutally affecting scene in which his addiction to the ring is born. 'Mine.' 

Still, one could argue that in the book Bilbo is more of an observer than a character in his own right. The Great Gatsby's Nick Carraway to The Hobbit's Bilbo Baggins...and yet, from a cinematic perspective, it's a little disappointing to see him shunned to the side in a movie called "The Hobbit." This is supposed to be all about his journey, but sometimes it does feel a little too much like Lord of the Rings: Chapter Zero.

But ultimately, this is Jackson at the top of his game. A visionary pioneer of motion capture technology, he completely blows his previous work out of the water with Smaug, and the climactic battle between the dragon and the dwarves - as well as the "I can't believe they just left it there"-style ending - should already have audiences counting down the days to the third and final instalment. 

Summary

A hundred Middle Earth leagues better than the first, but still carrying some of its imperfections, the second part of Peter Jackson's stunning Hobbit trilogy is much more likely to please the casual cinema audience thanks to its snappier pacing, more essential content rather than boring padding and - of course - the most impressive piece of CGI (perhaps ever) in the form of Smaug himself. The Desolation of Smaug still feels like a mere stepping stone to something greater due to its lack of a self contained story-within-a-story, but ultimately this is still an essential piece of storytelling both for the Middle Earth saga and for cinematic history in general. Middle Earth's got its mojo back.

9/10 - Brilliant

See it if you liked: The Lord of the Rings (2001 - 2003), The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012), Thor: The Dark World (2013)

Review: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Review: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Director: Francis Lawrence

Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson, Donald Sutherland

Running Time: 146 Minutes

Sequel is as sequel does, whether it be a novel or a cinematic adaptation of said novel. 2012's The Hunger Games made a star out of Jennifer Lawrence and also made a star of female-led action films in general. For most, it was a surprise hit; many cinema fans shrugged their shoulders and expected yet another Twilight-esque love story, for which they couldn't be blamed (I mean, have you seen the three leads?). 

However, it shocked and surprised with its brutal and violent depiction of a sickly and dystopian future in which incredibly poor families are forced to submit their children for a fight-to-the-death reality TV show as punishment for a once failed uprising against their cruel government.

Where the Harry Potter series failed to meet its novelised expectations, the team behind The Hunger Games seemed to have a determined outlook on what they wanted to achieve and how they wanted to achieve it, be it through horrific murdering witnessed via shaky-cam or the incredibly powerful themes of intimidation versus encouragement. Not even two years later, we're being treated to a sequel courtesy of new director Francis Lawrence, yet with the return of (now Oscar-winning) Jennifer Lawrence as lead heroin Katniss Everdeen.

Catching Fire gives us the usual sequel treatment though - following the unwritten rule of movie franchises, the second film in the series is moodier, darker and much, much better than its predecessor. Following their unexpected triumph in the 74th Annual Hunger Games, Katniss and Peeta are in the midst of an obligatory victory tour around each of the districts. Yet Katniss can sense a rebellion brewing - and she is the icon on which a new revolution could be based

Needless to say, she's pretty annoyed because she doesn't want to be a celebrity; Peeta is pretty annoyed because he thought Katniss really was in love with him; President Snow is pretty annoyed because he really can't be bothered dealing with a rebellion; and all the poor low-lifes in Panem are pretty annoyed having to spend their entire lives mining and digging only to send their kids off to die in an arena for the entertainment of the wealthy.

So with everyone peeved to an entertaining extent, President Snow announces that for the 75th Hunger Games, previous winners of the tournament, including Katniss and Peeta, will be thrust back into the arena for another go. Because why the hell not? Faced with poisoned fog, hidden forcefields and actual adults (some of which are battle-hardened warriors) this time around, Katniss is severely out of her depth.

Jennifer Lawrence though, is not. Taking her Oscar win completely in her stride, Lawrence injects Katniss with a consistent sense of urgency for the people around her. There's no doubt she'll soon be overtaking the likes of Ripley and Hermione Granger as one of the most popular science fiction heroines of all time, whether it be for her emotional goodbyes to her family outside the battlefield or her action-packed stint within it.

Unfortunately the same can't be said for most of the supporting cast; Lenny Kravitz barely gets a look in this time around, while Woody Harrelson, Stanley Tucci and Elizabeth Banks lose their performances behind ten tons of pantomime clothing and fakery. 

Surprisingly, it's the scenes outside the arena that pack the most punch. Not often in a teen movie will you see a man executed in front of his entire village via a bullet to the head; nor will you usually see Liam Hemsworth violently whipped to the point of unconsciousness purely for saving the life of a small child. Catching Fire is never repulsive or brutal to the eye, but it leaves the worst moments to the imagination of the viewer - and sometimes that can be much worse.

Francis Lawrence's direction does make for some truly tense edge-of-your-seat moments though, like a frantic chase through the woods of the arena to escape poisonous fog or a stand off with frankly psychotic apes; for a while it seems like the action never lets up, and you'd be forgiven for checking your heart rate.

In the end though, this does feel like a simple stepping stone to something much greater and grander; the "Half-Blood Prince" to Mockingjay's "Deathly Hallows." Still, if the electric climax of Catching Fire is anything to go by, Mockingjay is going to absolutely bring the house down.

Summary

Proving that she's worthy of her Oscar glory, Jennifer Lawrence gives another incredible performance as cinema's most compelling female protagonist, while Francis Lawrence's frantic and energetic direction makes for some truly engrossing moments within what could have been an all-too-familiar story. Not every character hits the right buttons, but at the end of the day you'll be surprised at just how much you've come to care about the world in which Katniss is surviving. If this is a mere indicator of things to come, the odds are definitely in Mockingjay's favour.

9/10 - Brilliant

See it if you liked: Gamer (2009), The Hunger Games (2012), Thor: The Dark World (2013)