Thursday, December 19, 2013

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Last Saturday, I went to go see the second installment of Peter Jackson's new trilogy. And guess what? TOTALLY worth the price of admission. Three hours of some of Jackson's best work yet.

The movie begins with the journey to the house of Beorn, a skin-changer, who takes on the form of a bear. Then the story continues into the forest of Mirkwood, where giant spiders live. Before leaving, Gandalf tells Thorin Oakenshield, the leader of the dwarf company, "Don't enter that mountain without me."

You would think they would've heeded his saying, but, as per usual, the protagonists ignore the wise wizard's advice and instruction. The company enters Mirkwood, and are captured by the Wood Elves, Legolas' Realm (for those old time LOTR fans) after almost being eaten by the spiders. Bilbo was actually the one who saves them! He slips on the ring and sneaks around in the trees. With the power of the ring, he can actually understand what the spiders are saying in the "Common Speech"(English).

So Bilbo fights off 4 or 5 and saves his friends. After leaving the Wood Realm of the Wood Elves, (saved from jail by, again, Bilbo with his trusty ring) in a bunch of barrels, and some totally awesome fighting action from Legolas, his "sidekick" Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly [Real Steel]), the dwarves arrive to Laketown, with the help of Bard.

Bard is one of Laketown's residents, and he is also the ancestor of the soldier who failed to strike down Smaug when he first arrived and destroyed Dale. He smuggles them in the barrels they arrive in. Kili, one of the dwarves and also brother of Fili, is poisoned right now, with the SAME poison that almost turned Frodo into one of the wraiths.

Legolas and Tauriel follow the dwarf company and find them in Laketown. With Kili sick, Tauriel heals him, and saves him from entering the Wraith world. After a whole skirmish with the pale orc, Azog, Laketown finds out about their dwarf friends. They welcome them, and properly decorate Thorin as King Under the Mountain.

While all this is going on, Gandalf has summoned a meeting with Radaghast( what a boss) and tells him that the Necromancer (aka Sauron) has awoken his Ring Wraiths... and they are on their way now to reclaim Mordor, which is now inhabited. But not for long. For a WHOLE separate story on this, buy the new videogame coming out in 2014 called, "Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor." It's gonna be totally sick. Now, back to our movie review.

Radaghast doesn't believe that the Necromancer is real; he believes that he is some amateur sorcerer trying to inflict fear on the world. And that the Ring Wraiths are just some of his cronies. But Gandalf makes a good point, there has never been word of Sauron for over 2,000 years... why would someone want to randomly bring back an old legend? And how could he have Azog be serving him and trying to start another war in Middle-Earth? No teenage fool would do that. But Radaghast isn't buying it.

Gandalf decides to go into Dol Guldur, where the Necromancer first awoke in "An Unexpected Journey." Radaghast asks Gandalf, "What if it's a trap?!"

"LEAVE Radaghast, and don't look back!" Radaghast obeys and Gandalf pulls out his sword.

"It is undoubtedly... a trap." SHING! (Sword being unsheathed[F.Y.I.])

Gandalf enters and encounters the Necromancer and there is a giant face-off of good and evil.
When Gandalf is held against the wall, he turns his eyes to meet his attacker and says, barely audible, "Sauron."

Now, I won't spoil the rest of the movie, but I will tell you the dwarves enter the mountain, encounter Smaug, have a big fight, Smaug leaves the mountain, and starts flying towards Laketown to add to his vast Desolation.

Bilbo, looking out to Laketown, watching Smaug close in on his target, says to himself,


                                                            "What have we done?"


                                        THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG

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