Since 1997 Peter Jackson has been developing, honing, and filming what will soon be The Epic of Middle Earth. A series of movies based on the beloved books from J.R.R. Tolkien about a certain ring... and a Hobbit. This is the second to last movie in this series...but is it the best?The film picks up about where the first one left off (bar a flashback scene to The Prancing Pony) with Bilbo and Co. trying to stay ahead of the pack of nasty orcs and wargs while navigating the craggy mountains of New Zealand err...Middle Earth. Bilbo, the thirteen oddly named dwarves, and Gandalf the Grey continue their journey to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from the dragon Smaug and reestablish the kingdom of the Dwarves. Along the way they meet many a nasty creatures, sketchy elves, and is abandoned by Gandalf right before a very difficult task. Anyone feel like they've seen this before?
Okay, so that sounded a bit rough but seriously think back through all the movies and it does seem that Gandalf has a habit of abandoning quests he started or what? In the second chapter of the Hobbit and the fifth movie some of the Desolation of Smaug can feel a bit familiar, over long, and stuffy. For me, Smaug himself made up for all of that and some. His on screen presence is dominating, sinister, and creepy. The creation of Tauriel and addition of Legolas may seem unnecessary but it actually adds a sense of familiarity and relevancy to the journey. The Desolation of Smaug is a far better thing then was Journey, but still a far, far cry from the magic of Lord of the Rings.
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