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| Lake Town as depicted in the movie, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug |
Directed by: Peter Jackson (and Andy Serkus)
For those who have already seen the movie, stick around! I'm going to discuss some controversial opinions on the accuracy of the movie,
Questionable content: One thing I love about this movie is the clean language. I haven't spotted any swearing in this movie whatsoever. The violence in this movie, however, is extensive, though not graphic. One other part of the movie under question is the scene where Beorn changes form from bear to man without any clothing. However, the angle and the lighting are not revealing, and it is in no way an innuendo. And of course, there is the love "triangle", where both Legolas and Kili (or was it Fili? Well, whatever) love Tauriel, and she is torn between her love for both of them. There also is also a fair amount of black magic in this movie, though it is always depicted as evil. Other than this, the movie is clean and very enjoyable.
Summary: The Desolation of Smaug is the second part of a trilogy based on the book, The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. It begins right before the company meets Beorn, and ends (*****SPOILER ALERT*****)
right before Smaug goes into Lake Town to wreak havoc. Along the way, Bilbo gains more of a reputation among the dwarves, Kili is perhaps mortally wounded, and Thorin's true character seems to be revealed. Gandalf, by the way, was not with them while these things happened. He was off discovering things about the feared Necromancer, and he, well, we'll see when There and Back Again comes out. And just so you know, assuming you've watched the first movie, the ending in the second one is way more suspenseful (if that were possible).
Now for the part you don't need to read unless you've seen the movie already:
Was the movie a bit off?
Well, let's examine the parts of the movie in question:
1. Shortened visit with Beorn and the little time spent in Mirkwood
To be honest, the first time I saw the movie, I myself was disappointed in the length of these scenes, and wondered why anyone would take out such content, especially when trying to elongate a third of a small book. But then I realized that this content would not well fit into the movie format, especially the walking and walking and walking and walking and... you get the picture.
2. The barrel scene and the orcs following the dwarves into Lake Town
The answer for this one is nearly the same. Imagine a movie where barrels are floating down a river, with lids, for a long time. Now imagine that movie being good. Pretty hard, isn't it? Of course, Taking this scene completely out would have been a major mistake. That is where the orcs come in.They make the barrel scene exciting as well as slightly humorous, and they are in and out of Lake Town without affecting the main plot. I think this idea was definitely a plus for the movie.
3. Why were four dwarves left behind, and why the big fight scene with Smaug?
Well, once again, neither of these additions affect the main plot in any way. And the fight scene is just awesome. I think that the book did not have anything like this because Tolkien wanted to provide some irony: the dwarves dreaming of glory and not even being the ones to fight Smaug (this is just my guess). However, dwarves were warriors, and since the movie is less light-hearted than the book (because it shows what was going on with the Necromancer), the fight portrays how they would have acted had they gotten a chance.
So, though the movie both added and took away, it did so in a way that respected the integrity of the book, as well as the consistency of the entire world of Middle-Earth.
Overall, I'd give this movie a 4.6731 out of 5.0000
-- Bob Schoch --
Great review!
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