THE HOBBIT: BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES
DIRECTOR: Peter Jackson
CAST: Ian McKellan, Martin Freeman, Luke Evans, Richard Armitage, Lee Pace, Orlando Bloom, Evangeline Lilley, Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Aidan Turner, Billy Connolly
CLASSIFICATION: 10-12 PG VP
RUNNING TIME: 145 minutes
RATING: 3 stars (out of 5)
Theresa Smith
AND so we reach the end, with an epic battle, gorgeous set design and some impossible elf leaps in between. So, basically par for the course for director Peter Jackson and his Middle Earth movies.
Fans will love this third Hobbit film for finishing the cycle, while non-fans would not jump in at this point.
This is a ultimately a battle between light (good) and dark (bad) which presages Lord of the Rings (LoTR), especially in the set-up of Bilbo (Freeman) and the ring which he leaves to Frodo.
The exquisite technical detail is what makes this world come alive – Alan Lee and John Howe’s art designs for places and characters remain the strongest inspiration. From the different armour designs to 30 000 swarming orcs, the sheer detail is astounding.
There are some iconic moments for Ringers to watch out for – like that image of Gandalf striding off through the green shire which brings us back to the LoTR trilogy. Watching this film will make you want to rewatch LoTR all over again.
Billy Boyd – who played Pippin in LoTR – co-wrote and sang The Last Goodbye, the song that plays over the end credits, which neatly sums up this movie’s tone. The story’s scale is huge but it is all about endings – these are the events which will lead to the big trilogy and this is the last time you will see Middle Earth depicted anew on screen in this way.
This third Hobbit film starts with the destruction of Laketown by Smaug the dragon. Benedict Cumberbatch did such a fine job at the end of the second film as the scary dragon, it is disappointing that he doesn’t last long.
The remaining humans trek to the deserted town of Dale, but Dwarf Prince Thorin (Armitage) shuts the door to Erebor.
Elven king Thranduil (Pace) and his Woodland Realm elves also march on the Lonely Mountain to claim their share of the treasure and the orcs and wargs come a-knocking, too.
It turns into a five-way battle (humans, elves, dwarves plus orcs make four) when the eagles put in an appearance, but it is the individual, personal conflicts that Jackson concentrates on.
Obsessed with treasure and bereft of the focus of the quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain, Thorin has to fight for his very soul. His loyal dwarves, and one conflicted Bilbo, can only look on aghast as he refuses to honour his word to pay back Laketown for their help.
Small as he is, Bilbo is the one who stands up to Thorin, ultimately his friend when everyone else is too scared of him.
It falls to Bard (Evans) to step up and lead the people of Laketown and we see more of the fraught relationship between Legolas (Bloom) and his cold father, Thranduil. Legolas’s filial loyalty and love is set at odds with his feeling for Tauriel (Lily) – who looks elsewhere for love – and now we understand why he is the lone elf to join the Fellowship of the Ring.
At times the battle is grim and despite the amazing visuals it becomes tedious in the middle, while the eventual resolution comes very quickly with some corny dialogue.
A judicious edit could have turned the trilogy into two very strong movies.
Overall Hobbit 3 is very entertaining, if not quite the jaw-dropping thrill-ride that was the third LoTR film. Quibbling about that is just jealousy at this point though – by now we know exactly what to expect.
If you liked An Unexpected Journey or The Desolation of Smaug, you will like this.