The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition

Richard Armitage (Actor), Benedict Cumberbatch (Actor) Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested) Format: Blu-ray

Editor Review :

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is an excellent, fast paced, action packed film that was absolutely fabulous eye candy in IMAX 3D; and yet Peter Jackson still takes time to deliver excellent character development and back story, which was well appreciated by this viewer even if some of the story line is original to Jackson's movie. This installment is also more reminiscent of Jackson's LOTR trilogy with the welcome return of the elves as a major part of the story line. I can highly recommend the second film to anyone who appreciates Jackson's deferential approach to Tolkien. However after reading perhaps the hundredth review from fellow readers who still appear not to have noticed, I feel compelled also to point out that all movies based on books are highly abridged versions of the original literary work. The old adage "a picture is worth a thousand words" should be instantly apparent as the reason for this difference before the opening credits are finished rolling. As vastly different art forms books and movies are by necessity presented in a way that will best connect with their particular audience; so why incessantly complain that there are differences between them? In the Desolation of Smaug the art of effective movie making is once again aptly illustrated by Jackson and underscored by Philipa's skillful transformation of the book into a screen play that can still do J.R.R. Tolkien's vision justice. And when a few frames of a movie can chew through twenty or more pages of a book, deviations from the original source material are to be expected in order to maintain pacing and give certain characters enough dialogue to cast leading actors of the caliber required for such an epic film.