The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies – Movie Review

At last, the journey to Middle Earth has finally come to an end. What started with the original “Lord of the Rings” trilogy and continued on with “The Hobbit” prequel trilogy, director Peter Jackson has given film lovers two massive stories that will be watched over and over again by fans of the J.R.R. Tolkien books. Admittedly, one trip was enough for me as I could not sit through any of those films again. I will say that “The Battle of the Five Armies” is by far the best and most exciting chapter in the entire franchise.

I will not deny that the “Rings/Hobbit” films are skillfully made and absolutely stunning to look at, but I have just never been a fan of either series. As I sat down to watch “The Battle of the Five Armies” my initial feeling was that I was glad that I would never have to watch another one of these again. That is why I was taken by surprised by just how much I enjoyed the closing chapter of this drawn-out epic. Stretching one book into about seven hours worth of film was not something that needed to be done, and the first Hobbit film felt like so much was thrown in there just to fill up a movie. The latest installment never feels like that. This is action packed and quite fun.

I do not need to get into the story because those who plan to go see it already have a pretty good idea of what is coming their way. I will say this, if you are thinking about whether or not you want to shell out the extra cash for IMAX 3D, I would say go for it. This is some of the best use of 3D in years and the higher frame-rate makes you feel like the action is happening right in front of you. That alone is definitely worth the added surcharge. Although I am happy that the series has come to a close, fans should be more than satisfied that unlike the “Rings” trilogy, “The Hobbit” only has one actual ending and there is nobody having a Middle-Earth pillow fight in it.

By: Marc Ferman