(Extended Edition)

“…true courage is about knowing not when to take a life, but when to spare one.”

An Unexpected Journey is the first film in The Hobbit trilogy, a prequel trilogy set sixty years before the events of the original live-action Lord of the Rings films. It tells the story of Bilbo Baggins, a man called a hobbit, a species of people who are smaller than average humans and are much more simplistic. They don’t tend to like to leave their homes, and appreciate having their lives to themselves with all of their books, and, of course, food. However, a wizard named Gandalf shows up one day and offers him an adventure that includes thirteen dwarves, the leader named Thorin Oakenshield, who are going on a quest to take back a mountain that is currently claimed by the legendary dragon, Smaug. Bilbo is extremely reluctant at first, but eventually leaves and goes with them.

What I think I like most about An Unexpected Journey is how simplistic it is overall. The first Lord of the Rings film, The Fellowship of the Ring, was quite simplistic, but had huge stakes, while this film doesn’t for the vast majority of it. Really, seventy-five percent or so of the runtime is just the characters traveling with each other, with occasional fights with other creatures, and I really appreciate that we were able to have a Middle-earth film that really is mainly about spending time in this world, without all the bigger and grander stakes in the background (for the most part). Now, it does definitely have greater implications as we get further into the story, making it obvious that the two sequels will be much bigger in scale and stakes, but the overall tone and feel of the film remains the same, I would say.

Speaking of the bigger implications that are set up for the sequels, that is perhaps the most controversial element of the entire trilogy. The Lord of the Rings was a trilogy of books, so it obviously made sense to turn it into a trilogy of movies, but The Hobbit was a singular novel, and a novel that was shorter than any of The Lord of the Rings books, so it was definitely an interesting creative choice. I do have my problems with this decision, mainly with the third film, but overall, I think it was executed pretty well. I like all of the expanded material, at least in this movie, and think it added to the story by making it more compelling as a film, and was honestly quite necessary in that way. It also ties much more nicely into The Lord of the Rings movies.

When it comes to our main protagonist, I think Bilbo Baggins is excellently played by Martin Freeman, and a perfect casting choice. His character is very compelling as well, maybe not as much as Frodo and Sam, but still compelling nonetheless. He even gets his own character arc in just this movie, instead of it being spread throughout the trilogy, making this feel even more like a complete film, rather than just part of a bigger story. I like his little quirks, as well as how he is constantly tested by both Gandalf and the group to push himself a little more, rather than going back to his Hobbit tendencies.

To be honest, though, I think Thoren Oakenshield is the most compelling character in the entire film, as well as the rest of the trilogy, and is the biggest positive that came out of making this a trilogy. I didn’t read The Lord of the Rings books, but I did read The Hobbit, and to be honest, I didn’t really care about him at all in the book as I did here. The way his whole backstory is done makes his wanting to take back the mountain a lot more understandable. I think his not believing in Bilbo is also something that is just something that comes out better in film than it does on a page.

Adding onto Thoren Oakenshield, everything that has to do with his past with the Orcs, and how they impact this story, was absolutely a story addition I’m a big fan of. I think they're being in the background adds a sense of tension and urgency that the story would have severely lacked if the films had more directly adapted the book. It’s also another addition that connects The Hobbit to The Lord of the Rings really well, I would say. I like how they continue that storyline in the rest of this trilogy as well.

Gandalf is just as great as he was before, and a standout just as usual. He’s such a fun side mentor, and what makes him such a great character is that he never takes away from the main characters in any way, and only impacts the story when “a wizard is needed.” I can’t forget to mention the dwarves, either; they aren’t the most compelling characters in the world, just like they weren’t in the book, but it’s pretty much an impossible task to make them that way, considering how many of them there are. However, they are fun and make the story a lot more fun as well, and a few of them do get a moment or two to stand out.

Another thing that The Hobbit movies get a lot of flak for is the CGI and visual effects, mainly that they were overused. To be honest, though, at least with this first movie, with the exception of one shot early on, I find the visuals here to be pretty stellar. I think this is a very good-looking movie, even though I would have preferred the use of more practical stuff, like in the original movies. Additionally, the CGI makes for a lot of really cool and unique action sequences that weren’t in the book, especially in the second half. My favorites include the one right after the Hobbits leave Rivendell, and literally everything “underground” in the last forty or so minutes.

The third act, which is basically an hour long, is definitely the best part of the entire movie. It’s such a blast, pulling stuff straight from the book that also happens to tie into The Lord of the Rings, as well as also, again, expanding material that makes things more exciting and fun for a movie. It is definitely the least “grounded” section, and the section that feels the least like the rest of the film, but it’s awesome nonetheless, and everything with Thorin feels earned because of him having more of a central character arc than he did in the book. The film does end on a bit of a cliffhanger, but surprisingly, it resolves this part of the story quite well, so it’s not unsatisfying.

The only thing I would say this film struggles with every once in a while is the pacing. It’s not necessarily bad, but also noticeably slower than any of The Lord of the Rings movies, which I think just comes with turning this one story into a trilogy. However, I didn’t even know whether or not to put this into my review, because it doesn’t really impact my feelings on the movie. Whenever it does even somewhat start to drag, something exciting happens, and it gets you right back into what’s happening. It’s just barely a negative to me.

Overall, I think The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is a great start to a trilogy, and I’m really looking forward to seeing how the other two hold up, especially since I liked this more than the last time I saw it.