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| Bilbo being awesome! |
If you're reading this review it probably means that you have at least a passing interest in Hobbits, Goblins, Wizards and Elves. Not to mention Dwarves! However, it could also mean that you've read everything by Tolkien from The Silmarillion to The Return of the King and consider yourself experts or even purists concerning the material. I for one never read the Hobbit and this review of Five Armies wont be a comparison against it's own source material but a review of a movie. A movie that I rather enjoyed.
The title of the final Hobbit movie is a very honest yet incomplete title. With a run time of 2 hours and 30 minutes, the large majority of this film is a film of conflict and battle. There are battles amongst Dwarves and Elves. There are battles between the dark forces of Sauron and the kingdoms of middle earth. Simply put, the movie rarely has a moment of content that isn't framed or set within the scrum of battle. Outside of Saving Private Ryan, few movies have found success amongst such a flurry. And prior to watching the movie tonight, some of the reviews and statements on the internet had me concerned that the movie was empty with nothing but flying orc and goblin heads to entertain. What the title doesn't convey is how much of a battle occurs within the "human" condition.
I often find that movies are at their best when they're truthful to emotion and lack cliche moments that break the barrier between movie and viewer. The best movies wrap you in a warm blanket of fantasy all the while keeping your focus with emotional truth. In this day and age, any major motion picture with a budget of 100 million dollars can produce marauding armies, battles and explosions. Not coincidentally, some of these movies had their trailer attached to the Hobbit. Where those movies have already failed, Five Armies has succeeded.
I often find that movies are at their best when they're truthful to emotion and lack cliche moments that break the barrier between movie and viewer. The best movies wrap you in a warm blanket of fantasy all the while keeping your focus with emotional truth. In this day and age, any major motion picture with a budget of 100 million dollars can produce marauding armies, battles and explosions. Not coincidentally, some of these movies had their trailer attached to the Hobbit. Where those movies have already failed, Five Armies has succeeded.
As a viewer, I found myself pained by the slowly emerging but sudden greed that poisoned Thorins' mind and stripped him of his word and loyalty to his own people. The Wood Elf King, Thanduil, filled me with a feeling of disappointment in his cold, opportunistic greed. A tangible greed but not one that would have him sell out his people. Still, seeing Elves in film acting counter to the ideal portrait of an elf was discomforting. Five Armies certainly focuses on many of the frailties of man but the frailty of greed is front and center.
As a person in the audience, I found myself deeply invested in the fate and struggle of most of the main characters. None of the characters, other than the evil dark forces of Saron, were one dimensional and shallow. Afterall, how "dimensional" or deep can characters that just want darkness and absolute power actually be. Peter Jackson, in my humble opinion, found a perfect blend between spectacle, social narrative, and genuine emotion. The love story was pure and hurtful. Bilbo's own struggle to do what's right versus his loyalty to Thorin was deep. The exhibit of Gandalfs' fallibility was awakening. All in all, Five Armies isn't perfect but it's a very complete, visually stunning and emotionally fulfilling movie. - B+
As a person in the audience, I found myself deeply invested in the fate and struggle of most of the main characters. None of the characters, other than the evil dark forces of Saron, were one dimensional and shallow. Afterall, how "dimensional" or deep can characters that just want darkness and absolute power actually be. Peter Jackson, in my humble opinion, found a perfect blend between spectacle, social narrative, and genuine emotion. The love story was pure and hurtful. Bilbo's own struggle to do what's right versus his loyalty to Thorin was deep. The exhibit of Gandalfs' fallibility was awakening. All in all, Five Armies isn't perfect but it's a very complete, visually stunning and emotionally fulfilling movie. - B+
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