The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
I'm usually a stickler for movies to hold true to the story in the books. However, in The Hobbit: The desolation of Smaug, I feel Director Peter Jackson did a spectacular job. Personally I feel The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was dull and a bit repetitive compared to The Desolation of Smaug. The Hobbit was too long with far fewer action scenes. Something we don't have to worry about in The Desolation of Smaug. We pick up where we left off, with Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage) leading the dwarves and Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman) to the Kingdom of Erebor. The pace is set as they continuously dodge Azog, the brutal orc Chieftain of Moria among other enemies on their journey. Is it possible Peter Jackson doesn't like dwarves? They seem to get themselves in situations they can't escape from on a regular basis.
English: Orlando Bloom at the 2005 Venice Film Fes...
Beyonce and Evangeline Lilly, Golden Globes, 2007.
Evangeline Lilly at the 2008 Toronto International...This is where Peter Jackson throws in filler, and strays away from the book, adding Legolas (Orlando Bloom) and the elven warrior Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly) into the fray. The Elves are my favorite, so maybe I'm a tad biased but I feel this was an amazing addition to the crew (especially Evangeline Lilly).
This movie has everything you would expect in a Peter Jackson film. There are tons of action sequences that are well choreographed. A great cast; Ian Mckellen, Martin Freeman and Orlando Bloom, to name a few. Then there is Smaug! Smaug (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch) is by far the best dragon we've seen to date. Visually stunning and has a voice to match. Smaug could very well give your children nightmares and leave you gitty. Martin Freeman's acting is great again, but doesn't seem to get a lot of screen time. The screen time he does...