The Hobbit - An Unexpected Journey

I had meant to write this last weekend but I had too much on my mind to even write anything decent. I was fortunate enough to be one of the first to watch "The Hobbit - An Unexpected Journey" on its official release date last Thursday, and also fortunate enough to get a good seat in the cinema right in the centre, second row from the back. And boy was it a really long movie running for almost 3 hours! Straight after work at 6pm, I dashed downstairs for a quick early dinner and then sped off to the cinema at the other end of the mall to catch the 7pm show. I later regretted being early as the movie started 15 minutes late. Oh, confusticate and bebother the cinema's management!

In my opinion, the beginning scenes showing the plight of the dwarves and how Bilbo came to write his story were a bit too draggy, but once it got into the story proper, the pace hastened to a relatively comfortable speed and before you realised it, you get to see the Lonely Mountain from afar and it's the end of episode 1. I found the motley crew of dwarves amusing, but my favourite has got to be the scenes with the elves in it. The first was Thranduil riding an elk, looking so out-of-this-world with his queer body language and gestures. Next was Rivendell and the cavalry. Elrond still looks the same, but we get to see him riding a horse in battle gear this time. However, my most favourite scene of all time is that of the meeting of the White Council. I could just gaze at Galadriel and be enchanted by her ethereal beauty all day long. Another scene worth mentioning is that of Radagast exploring Dol Guldur and confronting a wraith summoned from the dead by the Necromancer. That scene gives me the chills.

However, in line with the movie adaptation of The Lord of the Rings, there are several aspects of the movie which did not follow the book, perhaps due to time constraints and for cinematic purposes. For example, no where in the book is it mentioned that the White Council meets, or that Radagast enters Dol Guldur before Gandalf, but it can be implied from The Silmarillion. Music wise, I felt that there were too many repetitive themes from The Lord of the Rings, such as The Shire, The Finding of the Ring and Rivendell, but perhaps it was to serve as a memory refresher after all these long years. Criticisms aside, I felt it was a great start to the trilogy with excellent portrayal of the characters, and stunning cinematography and special effects. I honestly can hardly wait for the next instalment of "The Hobbit - The Desolation of Smaug" due on 13 December 2013, if I survive Doomsday 2012.