Here we go again

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Director: Peter Jackson

Writers: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson, Guillermo del Toro, J. R. R. Tolkien (novel)

Starring: Ian McKellen, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Orlando Bloom, Evangeline Lilly, Lee Pace, Luke Evans, Benedict Cumberbatch, Sylvester McCoy

Runtime: 161 minutes

Certification: 12A

Dwarves are useless and can’t do anything, whilst Wood Elves and their fluid, slick gymnastic movements are awesome and humans haven’t yet had the chance to shine: that’s the message to take away from Desolation of Smaug, the second entry to Peter Jackson’s overblown Hobbit trilogy.

It’s a good thing we got all of the introduction out of the way in the first film. Remember how it took nearly forty minutes for Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman, still going strong and reliable as the protagonist) to make up his mind about the Dwarves’ quest to take back their home from an evil dragon? Now the Dwarf Fellowship and Bilbo are well on their way to the Lonely Mountain where the deadly Smaug (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch) awaits. During the journey, Gandalf, perhaps the only useful member, decides to leave them to fend for themselves whilst he ventures into a scary dark worn-down castle to hunt down some clues that may or may not have to do with a certain dark overlord who may or may not be rising. There is also the sinister underlying subplot of the infamous golden Ring and Bilbo’s growing attachment and reliance for the object, something that can lead to no good given how much the audience knows about the Ring and its dark powers.

Cue the spiders, Orcs and other ugly antagonists until the band of brothers whose names or faces you will certainly not remember from the first film (there are thirteen of them...I can barely remember the names of the Three Musketeers) are rescued by the Wood Elves. Enter Legolas (Orlando Bloom, looking very serious as though he means business throughout the movie), and Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly, who nails the posh English accent), both characters who don’t even feature in the original novel, plus a hint at a possible love triangle, as Tauriel is taken by , Kili (Aidan Turner) an eligible Dwarf who she claims is taller than most Dwarves she’s seen.

As if the trilogy wasn’t long enough, (this second installment alone lasts over two and a half hours) the lengthy diversion into the Wood Elves’ livelihood plus an extensive tour of their insanely decorated palace may seem unnecessary, but it’s with these mystical creatures the fantasy action starts. There’s something refreshing to be seen in individuals who know to take care of themselves, and between Legolas and Tauriel, with their quality archery skills and knife-wielding abilities, the two of them slay a vast number of antagonists in an extended sequence that comes mostly as relief: reassurance that the good guys aren’t so buggered after all.

Jackson’s vision of Middle Earth is still one to behold, as the many different settings come to life in the film’s many, many grand sweeping shots, most noticeably once Smaug enters the picture. The endless treasures that fill the Lonely Mountain is gold, more gold, then even more gold, as poor Bilbo is tossed into the ring to face off with the dragon in the film’s tense but equally funny exchange between a teeny Hobbit and the mighty dragon. It’s down to Freeman’s likablility as an unexpected hero and his desperate attempts to outsmart and distract the dragon that works to the film’s advantage.

Even if your concentration drifts in certain parts, even when Stephen Fry and Luke Evans turning up as human characters who will be put to more substantial use in the third and final film can’t hold your attention for long, Smaug will wake you back up and make the whole movie-going experience worthwhile. Designed with motion-capture and voiced by the nation’s favourite Sherlock Holmes, Smaug alone is the best use of CGI in the Hobbit franchise so far, and given how the film wraps up with an exciting cliffhanger with one major loose end relating to the fate of the dragon, we’ll certainly get to see him again and it will be a visual treat once more for sure.

Being the middle film, there are many hanging strands that need addressing. What is Gandalf so afraid of? What will become of the dwarves, the humans and the elves? And will Lee Pace, as Legolas’ father Thranduil, show up once more with his excessive wardrobe and head accessory that puts the fashion of Vatican to shame? We will all just have to wait until December 2014, when the Hobbit trilogy will come to a close, more than a decade after the Lord of the Rings took the world by storm.