“The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug” is a great improvement from the first Hobbit film, but it is hard not to notice the obvious qualities of a film that is in the middle of a trilogy. There is a lot of development with payoffs that will not be seen until the last film, but the film still stands as a great action adventure film.

“Desolation of Smaug” picks up where the last film left off with Bilbo (again played by Martin Freeman) and the Dwarves of Erebor nearing their destination at the Lonely Mountain. Throughout the film they deal with giant spiders, shapeshifting bear people, and countless orc attackers until reaching the den of Smaug (Benedict Cumberbatch) to take back the dwarves lost kingdom. At the same time, Gandalf (Ian McKellen) finds signs of a great evil finds of a great evil returning to Middle Earth that causes him to split up with the Dwarves for most of the film to explore if the stories are true.

This film looks amazing. I am one of the few people who seem to enjoy 3D films, and “Desolation of Smaug” did not disappoint. The film is vibrant and colorful, and there were a lot of effects that embraced the 3D effect without being too gimmicky. The showing I went to ran the film in 48 frames per second rather than the traditional 24, and they really seemed to have improved the technology. High pace action scenes flow smoothly and looks great, but there were a few scenes that almost looked like a documentary because of the higher frame rate. It did not ruin the film by any means, but it was distracting at times.

Clocking in at just under 3 hours, “Desolation of Smaug” is a long film, but it uses every minute wisely. Even though I have read the book, I was still engrossed by the added side story of the White Orc and the return of The Necromancer. The film is packed with great action scenes, and I was especially impressed by Bilbo and the dwarves’ escape from Murkwood. It was like watching a ballet performance but with Orcs and axes thrown in the mix, and I mean that in the best way possible.

Across the board, everyone plays their parts really well. Martin Freeman is still much more charming than any character previously seen in the LOTR franchise and he and the actors who play the dwarves still have good chemistry. Benedict Cumberbatch does not at all disappoint with his performance as Smaug, using the perfect amount of gentleman king mixed with supervillain to portray Smaug, and it turned out great.

“The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug” is a great movie. Even though I already knew the story, and with it being a book adaptation a lot is already set in stone story-wise, I was still surprised a few times while watching the movie. The film looks great, sounds even better and is well worth the price of admission.

 4/5