re: Official Hobbit The Desolation of Smaug Review Thread (spoilers)

Man this is a tough crowd.

I thought it was entertaining as hell.

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I thought it was entertaining as hell

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I never read the book but I thought it was great.

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Even the other elves in DoS were getting their asses handed to them by the orcs at that water gate until Legolas and Freckles showed up. Think of Legolas as SG1 and the other elves as SGU.

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Yeah, I know some people mentioned earlier that these Orcs seemed Uruk Kaiesque because of how big they were and the fact that were running out in the sun, but I actually felt like the Orcs seemed more dangerous in The Hobbit than in the LOTR and seemed more like a real threat than they did in LOTR which I actually liked.

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Got to wonder why the Elves got their asses handed to them at Helm's Deep

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If I'm not mistaken they technically weren't at Helms Deep in the book, but they were fighting in the war and Jackson wanted to show their contribution, but yes I think they've made it clear Legolas is a God among Men even in comparison to his own Elves. I can't wait to see his dad fight in the final battle, they've made him seem pretty epic as well.

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then why was he all surprised by the ring Bilbo had?

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Someone help me out here but I can't remember if Bilbo ever tells Gandalf about finding the ring or not. If he didn't then I suppose Gandalf was just as surprised that it was that ring Bilbo had all along in the first LOTR. Though Gandalf did mention that he know was a ring of power in the first film, perhaps he didn't know it that THE ring of power.

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I enjoyed the movie but I think there is no denying it is a big step below LOTR.

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I understand people are going to judge it this way, but really shouldn't. LOTR is a much bigger story and there was just no way this was going to be as grand and good as those films even if the Hobbit was only broken into two movies. This is not to mention that LOTR is the probably the greatest trilogy ever made so nothing matches up to it.

I was entertained, and really didn't notice the time much as I was interested in the story same as the other films. It drags a bit and does contain a lot of filler to drag this thing out, but I think overall it's been well done. Perhaps there aren't as many characters that really connect with the audience but some certainly do (I quite enjoy Bilbo and find him the most intelligent and entertaining of all the hobbits in the series.)

Lastly, I think Smaug was phenomenally done. He hasn't killed anyone yet but that's coming and they managed to get across what an incredible force he is, rivaling any single entity in the LOTR series imo.

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When Gandalf realized the evil was Sauron, I started thinking about the first LotR movie. If Gandalf was aware, way back in the time of the Hobbit, that Sauron was making a comeback, then why was he all surprised by the ring Bilbo had? He had to run back to the citadel, read some books and shite to realize that the ring was tied to Sauron. It seems to me that he would have known thatright away. Maybe I'm looking too much into it?

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The obvious answer is that while he knew of the connection and was unsettled by it,

He also may not have known the details of Ring lore.

Keep in mind, Sauron was linked to all of the rings of power to a degree.

It's hard to imagine that the One Ring, after being lost for thousands of years and assumed long since washed to the bottom of the ocean, would suddenly be right there in the Shire of all places.

Another question to ponder: if Sauron is building up his army for "the war" now, then by the time of The Fellowship of the Ring - it should be at full 100% strength. It looked to me like he was well on his way already. Yet it's still building at that time, almost as if there was a major setback that occurred. I didn't read the books, so maybe that will be tied up in the 3rd.

I'm like a lot of those in this thead. I love the whole series, but this one was the weakest of the bunch until the badass scenes with Gandalf/Sauron and Smaug.

They could have done without the cheesy line at the end cutting to black.

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if Sauron is building up his army for "the war" now, then by the time of The Fellowship of the Ring - it should be at full 100% strength. It looked to me like he was well on his way already.

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Just curious, but do you know how long its supposed to take exactly, down to the exact year?


Just curious.

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Yet it's still building at that time, almost as if there was a major setback that occurred. I didn't read the books, so maybe that will be tied up in the 3rd.

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The major setback is his defeat by the White Council that drives him out of Dol Guldur. And his current army suffers major defeat at the Battle of Five Armies. He then retreats to Barad-dûr in Mordor where he has to regroup.

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I was very disappointed. I didn't like the cliffhanger. It just didn't feel the same as any other film in the series. It dragged greatly and so much could have been cut. The hobbit could easily have been fit into two flicks. Way, way too much filler. Smaug was great, though. And I am a huge LOTR fan. This one was the weakest of all five. By far. Hoping the final is better. I don't see how it can't be.

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This. Just saw it on Saturday.