After the succes of the Lord of the Rings movies, everyone couldn’t wait for Peter Jackson to also bring Tolkien’s The Hobbit to the big screen. Because of several lawsuits it was uncertain if that would ever happen but finally in 2011 the production could start. When the first trailer for the film appeared online, the fans couldn’t wait to see it. Personally I have really enjoyed the three Lord of the Rings movies Jackson did, so I was interested in also seeing this movie. Not only for its story, but also for experiencing High Frame Rate (HFR) 3D. 20 Minutes of the 48 frames-per-second version were previewed at CinemaCon at the beginning of the year and not everyone was convinced by it, saying it made everything look too real. I couldn’t wait to experience it myself and see if it is the “next big thing” which we’ll see more of in the future.
For those not familiar with the story (like I was), it’s about Bilbo (Martin Freeman) who is approached by the wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellen) to join him on an adventure. He politely declines, but when a group of dwarves appear at his home who all expect him to join him on their mission he hesitantly accepts. Their goal is to take back their kingdom and their gold, which was taken by a dragon, before others might do the same.
After seeing the movie I had a strong feeling I had seen this before and their are quite some similarities between this and the Fellowship of the Ring, where in this case Bilbo has to find his place among the group while they start their journey. There are moments which could have been out of Lord of the Rings, one involving the ring. Gollum also makes his return and he is as entertaining as ever. Compared to the Fellowship though this feels like a movie that isn’t as strong because most of the dwarfs don’t stand out. There isn’t much backstory to them and the characters which stand out are the ones you already know from the previous movies. I strongly felt that I would need to see the other two movies of this trilogy to really form a good opinion about it, the movie just didn’t feel as epic as I was expecting.
So with my thoughts about the movie out of the way it’s important to also look at this new device in the director’s toolbox, HFR. First of all it’s hard to describe the experience, how do you explain color to someone who has never seen it? The idea behind the technique is that because more frames have been shot and are projected, it decreases the strobing and blurring effects which comes with 24 fps (frames per second). Just like the increase in resolution from DVD to Bluray, you notice the change immediately. In an interview with Variety Peter Jackson called it hyper-real, meant to pull you into the world. Now you could argue that any good movie can do that without visual enhancements, but I could see what Jackson meant with it.
During the first ten to fifteen minutes it felt very weird to watch it and everything seemed more real, with some movements feeling too quick and it took me about 30 to 40 minutes to finally adjust to it. During some scenes it felt like something you would see in a videogame, but that was only occasionally. In general I felt it really added something to experience and I was already thinking about other movie genres using this technique. Documentaries for example would be a perfect fit in my opinion, because the “hyper-reality” would fit with the idea of a documentary. But “normal” feature films could be enhanced by it as well. In this movie I loved the fluent movement during action scenes, making it easier to follow. If you are planning to see the movie try to watch it in HFR to form your own opinion about it, but I see it as having potential.
Bear in mind that it feels familar because there are elements ere that were in LOTR. However this came first so really elements of this are in LOTR. I am still very much anticipating this film.
Of course there are elements in there which isn’t a bad thing, but if you compare this to the Fellowship it’s clear that that movie is better than this one. Still there is enough to be enjoyed, but it’s not the epic movie I was expecting.
Cool review man. Especially enjoyed your thoughts on the 48 FPS
Thanks a lot, wrote this review in the middle of the night (wanted to write it up as soon as possible), happy it makes sense 🙂
Nice review. I’m off to see this tonight in normal 24 fps. I may well go back and see it again in 48 fps though to see what it’s like.
As for the film itself, my expectations have been lowered somewhat by reviews; it doesn’t seem to be the masterpiece many were expecting.
Yeah, that is a good way of approaching it. You do need some adjustment time, so if you’ve already seen it a 24FPS you already know the story and won’t miss out on it because your mind is focussing on what you are seeing.
I thought the movie was a bit too long, but it is enjoyable.
I wasn’t blown away by this new format. It felt too clear and bright to me and gave it a “TV-look” that doesn’t fit with the fantasy genre. However like you I liked the movie quite a bit.
There’s less at stakes than in LOTR which makes it a bit less exciting than those films, but here I’m afraid the source material is to blame.
I hear more people saying it has a TV-look, but I didn’t feel it was comparable to that…like I mention in my review it felt more like something I’d see in cutscenes in videogames. I did feel the look fit the fantasy genre and really felt I was in those places way more than in the previous LoTR movies. Yeah, the stakes are very different indeed and like you say this could be because of its source material. Having not read it I’m wondering if the movie would have worked better as one complete movie instead of 3.
I’m not surprised you felt it did not feel epic enough. Jackson & company took a book that is around the same length as “Fellowship” and stretched it to three films–something has to suffer. Also, “The Hobbit” was originally designed as a children’s book, whereas TLOR books are geared to adults.
Yeah, that really shows. I’m interested now to read the book though to see how it compares.
I not a fan of 3D though I do love my blu-ray for sharper image. I plan to see the Hobbit in 2D. Rewinding to the beginning should be good for us people that know the story but aren’t deeply knowledgeable if that makes sense. Good review and thanks for the techie impressions.
Thanks! I’m not a fan of 3D either, but in combination with HFR it is different and I quite liked it. Nothing wrong though with seeing it in 2D!
A pity to read the dwarfs don’t stand out, I’m still gonna watch it, though. Prequels mostly pale in comparison, so I’m going in with low expectations.
The thing is that I have not read the book, maybe if I had that would be different (I just don’t know). A movie should make sure though that even if you haven’t read the book that all the characters do have some backstory to them.
Interesting views on the 48FPS 😀
Not everyone seems to be convinced about it, but I really liked it.
I’m not a fan of 3D, but would like to see what HFR cinema is like. Maybe on a second viewing.
I enjoyed the film, but like you, don’t think it’s quite up there with Fellowship. It’s awesome to be back in Middle Earth though and I’m still looking forward to the rest of the Hobbit films. They just need more heart and emotion. LOTR films, all of them, made me want to cry my eyes out. Barely a flicker from me here!
I’m not a fan of 3D either, but really thought that in combination with HFR it does add something.
I’m looking forward to the other two as well and will be taking one of the kids to see this one again. This movie didn’t have as much emotion, agree with you on that. I never felt the group was in real danger…
Wow, sorry to hear you were unimpressed by the movie Nostra. I really loved it. Thought it was a triumphant return to Middle Earth, if you will.
I AM glad to see you enjoyed the High Frame Rate though! A lot of people are hating on it… but I for one was a big fan. I thought it was awesome. 😀
I still enjoyed it, but I just expected more of it I think. Nice to hear you also liked the HFR, we seem to be in the minority Fogs 🙂
“this feels like a movie that isn’t as strong because most of the dwarfs don’t stand out. There isn’t much back-story to them…”
I don’t think this movie is really about the dwarves so that didn’t bother me. If anything, I wanted less of the dwarves (particularly during that long drawn out opening hour) and more about Bilbo, Gandalf and Thorin. Those three characters really stand out. Most movies only have one good character so to have three actually seemed like a blessing.
Thanks for the really good discussion about 48 FPS. I’ve read a lot about this technology recently and your review explains it better than anything I’ve read thus far. 🙂
Well, since they are a big part of the movie I hoped I would get to know more about them, but you can’t give a backstory to all of them, which I can understand.
Thanks for the compliments on my explanation of HFR! 🙂
Now that I saw this movie in 24 Per frame seconds I actually find that this movie was more faithful to the book then the lord of the rings was which almost means this movie is better.
I hope the extended edition when comes out gives alittle better back story
Interesting take on it. I’ve now seen it in both 48 and 24 frames and the experience is completely different. Still not sure which one I’d prefer.
Is there going to be an extended version? Don’t know how much could be added really, this movie was already quite long.
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