DESOLATION OF SMAUG reviews thread

Status
Not open for further replies.
OT will be up in a little bit. I'll still have to add some of the smaller sections dealing with release dates and trailers and such, but the bulk of it will be there.
 
IGN : 8.5/10

First things first: The Desolation of Smaug is much better and more entertaining than its predecessor, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. This film clips along at a fast rate, upping the action and the suspense in a way the walking-and-talking first film often failed to. Everything just works better this time out: the battles, the character interplay, the visual effects, the tone, and the energy. If you were wary of returning to Middle-earth after An Unexpected Journey, fear not; The Desolation of Smaug is a superior Hobbit movie in every way.

The Verdict

If you were disappointed with The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey then The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is the film you've been waiting for. It's a breathlessly told, action-packed crowd-pleaser that restores the luster of the saga for those underwhelmed by its predecessor and leaves you excited for the final chapter in the trilogy.
Click to expand...

www.ign.com/articles/2013/12/07/the-hobbit-the-desolation-of-smaug-review?:+ign/all+(IGN+All
 
maquiladora said:
IGN : 8.5/10

Very postive (video) review, with some spoilers.

http://ign.com/videos/2013/12/06/the-hobbit-the-desolation-of-smaug-video-review
Click to expand...

These lines kinda made me laugh: "When the end credits finally roll, you truly are left wanting more (and, no, I won't tell you what scene it ends on even if you have read the book)."

And then:
"Evans certainly looks like a 1940s swashbuckler, but we don't really get to see Bard in action much here."

Gee I wonder at what point it ends then...
 
Chichikov said:
While that can be true for some books, it's hardly the case for The Hobbit, it's a small and pretty short story that was stretched to hell and back in order to milk the franchise (and to keep the New Zealand film industry afloat a while longer).
And to be clear, that doesn't mean that the movie is bad, some of the greatest movies in history (2001, Psycho, The Birds) were short stories that was stretched to fit a film running length, but there is no denying that this is happening in with The Hobbit.
Click to expand...

No, it's not. Plenty of things happened in The Hobbit that were only mentioned. We're getting a movie out of it so why not show those scenes? Like Gandalf venturing in Dol Guldur.
 
Kud Dukan said:
Here we go!!

8knRayb.gif
Click to expand...

what a foul tempered, funny, little man.
 
HitFix (Drew McWeeny) B+

The first film almost shook my faith in the overall story arc of "The Hobbit," but this second film connects this completely to the "Lord Of The Rings" tone that made that first trilogy work. Andrew Lesnie's photography and Howard Shore's score also make this explicitly feel like we're right back in the thick of things, and I suspect that even the people who were disappointed the first time around are going to be impressed by how much fun this one is. I still think that three films is too much for these stories and that this would have been well-served by making some tough choices about how to tell the story, but at least for this middle movie, "The Hobbit" seems to be firing on all cylinders, and if they keep this up, "There And Back Again" could be tremendous entertainment.
Click to expand...

http://www.hitfix.com/motion-captur...ry-way-with-the-thrilling-desolation-of-smaug
 
I was planning on sitting this one out. Reviews sound like they fixed the pacing issues. It still sounds like the characters are underdeveloped though.
 
sn00zer said:
Really? Cuz I fell asleep watching it
Click to expand...

One of my cousins put in an Academy screener last Christmas and over half of my extended family fell asleep. No hyperbole.
It was barely past 8PM when the movie finished, too.
 
TAJ said:
One of my cousins put in an Academy screener last Christmas and over half of my extended family fell asleep. No hyperbole.
It was barely past 8PM when the movie finished, too.
Click to expand...
Wut? You guys watched a low qual rip of the hobbit? :S
 
TAJ said:
One of my cousins put in an Academy screener last Christmas and over half of my extended family fell asleep. No hyperbole.
It was barely past 8PM when the movie finished, too.
Click to expand...

Those movies, man, I'm sure people make up their mind on what will win before they watch the movies. Most of them anyway.
 
do i really want massive spectacle in my hobbit film?

the problem with these movies is in their approach, not whether or not they're 'boring'

AUJ was boring, but the issues ran deeper than that

hobbit ain't epic or bombastic, it should've been a charming and light fantasy film. but i suppose we've had this conversation before.
 
Ceebs said:
This is up there with some of the Gaming Side hyperbole.
Click to expand...
I truly think it's a masterpiece and will be rewatching this movie till the day i die. It's in the same league with back to the future and pirates of the caribbean for me. And i can't imagine how anybody can not see it as such. World is a weird place.
 
We see 4 kinds of reviews

3 of 10 say its one of the best Tolkein movies
3 of 10 say its a very good movie
2 of 10 say its a good movie
2 of 10 say its a really bad movie
 
kazebyaka said:
I truly think it's a masterpiece and will be rewatching this movie till the day i die. It's in the same league with back to the future and pirates of the caribbean for me. And i can't imagine how anybody can not see it as such. World is a weird place.
Click to expand...

I am not sure you understand the meaning of the word masterpiece if you use it to describe Pirates of the Caribbean as a masterpiece. You make it sound like people would agree with you about that one.

Let me guess, you've never seen movies that tend to be widely accepted as masterpieces such as 2001: A Space Odyssey, Vertigo, Taxi Driver, Apocalypse Now, Psycho, Raging Bull, Pulp Fiction, Seven Samurai, Good the Bad and the Ugly, Jaws etc...
 
Cheebo said:
I am not sure you understand the meaning of the word masterpiece if you use it to describe Pirates of the Caribbean as a masterpiece. You make it sound like people would agree with you about that one.

Let me guess, you've never seen movies that tend to be widely accepted as masterpieces such as 2001: A Space Odyssey, Vertigo, Taxi Driver, Apocalypse Now, Psycho, Raging Bull, Pulp Fiction, Seven Samurai, Good the Bad and the Ugly, Jaws etc...
Click to expand...

I have watched Jaws - nice summer blockbuster type movie.

2001: A Space Odyssey - boring mess.

Pulp Fiction - great movie.

Psycho - good movie.

Overall, I don't care what movies are considered art - many of them are boring.
 
IncandescentPrecept said:
I have watched Jaws - nice summer blockbuster type movie.

2001: A Space Odyssey - boring mess.

Pulp Fiction - great movie.

Psycho - good movie.

Overall, I don't care what movies are considered art - many of them are boring.
Click to expand...

Yeah but he is not going around saying what movies he likes. But saying Pirates of the Caribbean and Hobbit TUJ are masterpieces. A term more associated with critical reception and historical impact. Not saying what movies he likes or finds boring.
 
Cheebo said:
Yeah but he is not going around saying what movies he likes. But saying Pirates of the Caribbean and Hobbit TUJ are masterpieces. A term more associated with critical reception and historical impact. Not saying what movies he likes or finds boring.
Click to expand...

Pirates doesn't fall in that category but I thought he was talking about fellowship of the ring.

Still, the masterpieces the other person was talking about are not all good. Some are just hyped by the movie critics themselves.
 
mjc said:
Translation: "There's cool stuff that happens, some boring stuff I won't even mention or expand on, and I don't know the names of those dwarf thingies so I'm just gonna say that they're dumb too. Only nerds will see this movie and enjoy it."

Shit ass review.
Click to expand...

Hoho woow. Please tell me this is a joke.
 
I didn't have a problem with the pacing of the first movie, more like the horribly embarrassing adaptation of the Radagast the Brown and the equally embarrassing crude/slapstick humor all over the place.
 
Helmholtz said:
Wut? You guys watched a low qual rip of the hobbit? :S
Click to expand...

It was the original disc, but yeah... they only give the Academy members DVDs. Doesn't make much sense when they're often judging cinematography and vfx based on them.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

Snow & White | Review Thread
Community  2
80
5K
GymWolf replied
Kraven the Hunter - Review Thread
News Cringe 
30
2K
AJUMP23 replied
2025 Super Bow Commercials Thread | The Return of Michael Bay
2
59
3K
ManaByte replied
  • Poll
AI Doomer thread
2
59
3K
Sophist replied
New School Music Thread
20
829
Audiophile replied
Top Bottom