The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

[baumer]

Hahaha....you should have known it wou;dn't be lower than a 6 as that is what I gave THG and TDKR...two films I didn't hate but was very disappointed in.

[IndustriousAngel]

Would be boring if everyone gave the same grades to a film ... there's more different tastes then menandwomen alive, and a good thing too

[lilmac]

I thoroughly enjoyed Hobbit I. There were alot of ideas taken from LOTR (score and other scenes lifted from the previous trilogy) I didn't particularly care for but which I think will help three years from now when we can watch all 6 movies in 8K HD. I didn't at all think the story was drawn out unnecessarily or that it was bloated. The critics got it wrong IMO. Hobbit I isn't as good as the LOTR movies but it belongs in the same room. I hope the IMDB ranking, FWIW, stays in the top 100, it is very deserving.Judging by the reviews on the various discussion boards and talkbacks, I think WOM is better than the RT would indicate. I hope that translates into ROTK legs (one can hope) but at the very least $301 million +

Edited December 18, 2012 by lilmac

[IndustriousAngel]

Just came back from my 2nd viewing, undubbed this time, nearly sold out in a 500-seater (day 7 of release here) - WOM should be very good and I expect a healthy run once holidays start. Holds up well on 2nd viewing and I'll definietly see it a 3rd time - maybe in 2D just for comparison. The best seats for 3D HFR are sold out anyway a week in advance ...

Edited December 18, 2012 by IndustriousAngel

[Noctis]

You guys are out of your minds if you think this will remain in the IMDB Top 100.It's gone from 9.0 to 8.6 in a few days. It'll finish at 7.8-8.0.

[4815162342]

I didn't mind the musical cues from LOTR's score because they were used appropriately. The Shire/Hobbit theme in the beginning, the re-use of the Rivendell motif from FOTR when they enter it in this film, the brief cues of Galadriel and Saruman's themes when they reappear, the brief use of the Mordor theme when Radagast is attacked by the Ringwraith and when Gandalf shows the Morgul blade, plus the Ring theme at the obvious moment.

[BiffMan]

I didn't mind the musical cues from LOTR's score because they were used appropriately. The Shire/Hobbit theme in the beginning, the re-use of the Rivendell motif from FOTR when they enter it in this film, the brief cues of Galadriel and Saruman's themes when they reappear, the brief use of the Mordor theme when Radagast is attacked by the Ringwraith and when Gandalf shows the Morgul blade, plus the Ring theme at the obvious moment.

Agreed on being used appropriately and I thought the musical cues were one of the stronger aspects of the film. Very John Williams of them and I thought used to good effect. Gives an extra punch to seeing the ring for the first time for example. I also like that we have an excellent new theme with the Misty Mountain music that was used to great effect as the battle/travel music of the dwarves. If we'd had a complete re-hash of LOTR themes that would have been unfortunately, but introducing the new while giving a nod to the now classic themes is fine by me.

[4815162342]

The other new motifs I distinctly remember were for Radagast and Azog.

[Ozymandias]

Well, I finally saw this and I was pretty disappointed.My problems with comes down to 3 things. -The movie was just utterly bloated to hell in back in some parts which made it feel like it dragged on forever.-The inconsistent tone of the movie. It kept switching back in forth from a REALLY campy cartoony feel to a more serious tone.-Way, WAY too much CGI. Goddamn, this was one of things that made LotR so great was all the real makeup and costumes. Why was every single orc/goblin etc in the movie pure CGI? Fuck this Avatar crap. The Goblin King was just flat out insulting... he looked like something out of a cartoon.As much it pains me to say it, I probably won't watch this again until a few weeks before Part 2 hits theaters next Christmas.6.5/10

[Dementeleus]

I thought the Goblin King looked totally fantastic. He ended up being one of my favorite minor characters.

[Kvikk Lunsj]

The hobbit is enjoyable, I would give it an 8/10. The Hobbit is in my top 10 of the year.

[rockNrollaDIM]

Yep Shpongle, totally agree. Maybe that's what I've been meaning all this time when I said the CGI is better in LOTR. Maybe it's not actually BETTER but used better. LOTR looks and feels so much more authentic because they don't constantly rely on SFX.

Edited December 19, 2012 by Silver Linings aDIM

[Heretic]

Yep Shpongle, totally agree. Maybe that's what I've been meaning all this time when I said the CGI is better in LOTR. Maybe it's not actually BETTER but used better. LOTR looks and feels so much more authentic because they don't constantly rely on SFX.

I actually agree that LOTR is WAY more authentic. It's more raw, but the CGI in The Hobbit didn't take away from my enjoyment of the film

[Dementeleus]

I was really impressed with the creature design -- thought they did a great job with the Wars, the Orc scouts, and the goblins.

Edited December 19, 2012 by Telemachos

[IndustriousAngel]

I liked the designs too. The trolls were clumsy yet had mass, the wargs were very good (not realistic, but more of the fairy-tale-wolf type), the goblins a nice mix of horror/comedy creatures so they didn't look too menacing, the Moria orcs more fierce and evil. The Rhosgobel rabbits were, like the wargs, more of fairy-tale kind than realistic, nice touch (even a little Beatrix Potter thrown in? - maybe we'll see more in part2). The weakest design were maybe the eagles where they just went for "realistic" which is a bit unrealistic given the size of the critters. Can't say nothing about Smaug yet other than he got an eeevil eye.

[BiffMan]

The Rhosgobel rabbits were, like the wargs, more of fairy-tale kind than realistic, nice touch (even a little Beatrix Potter thrown in? - maybe we'll see more in part2).

My wife's favorite moment in the film. And I liked the touch of one of them doing the Thumper bit to rouse the others when it was time to flee Dol Guldur.

[IndustriousAngel]

Yep, that was one of the moments where everybody laughed. Some other highlights: The secretary goblin; Gollum putting his chin on a boulder eager for his 1st riddle; many bits of the Trolls scene (especially the bits about dwarf-seasoning and parasites). I really liked that they were able to keep the light, fun-adventure tone of the book instead of going all LotR (which they could have done easily). I guess that as we reach the climaxes, the tone will get much darker (as it does in the book) but there should be some room for humour too: Thranduils kingdom, barrel-riding, the machinations of the Master of Laketown. And having seen the Rhosgobel Rabbits, maybe we can expect something similarily fanciful from the Beorn encounter (keeping my fingers crossed).

[Ozymandias]

Now that I think about it some more, there were only a few moments in this movie I really, really liked and awe-struck by.-Sauron's apparition in Dol Guldur with the Witch King of Angmar.-The meeting between Gandalf, Saruman, Elrond, and Galadriel(they were all great, especially Galadriel, she was amazing)-The PrologueThe rest was very average.

Edited December 19, 2012 by Shpongle

[vc2002]

Of cause I havent seen the film, but did some of you really mean this had worse CGI than LOTR films?

[Rovex]

Not at all. It has more and even the best CGI is still clearly CGI. The clarity of HFR doesnt help and makes it look more obvious, but it looks like 'normal' high end CGI when viewed in 2D and 3D. The backgrounds and visual effects are very very good indeed, the creatures look like CGI creatures, like they do in every movie.LOTR is soft, even the Blu-rays are soft, the CGI is easier to hide.