The Hobbit Trilogy

Like the Star Wars Prequels, the Hobbit movies were highly polarising. Personally I love them, although I prefer the 2nd and 3rd ones to unexpected journey. They have their flaws, a thin plot and a lot of goofy cgi action and implausability. They didn't have the same meticulous verisimilitude as the LOTR movies. The plots were a little padded out, and I believe a tightly paced duo of movies would have been much better received by fans, perhaps even matching the original trilogy for quality. The hobbit movies succeed because the characters are compelling, and therefor their journeys are compelling, with the humble Bilbo trying to protect his friend Thorin from his own folly, and the unforgiving Thorin seemingly doing everything in his power to bring about his own ruin. Bard is great too, a hero who tries to reason with Thorin, but failing to sway the stubborn and vengeful dwarf. I liked how Bard only cared about protecting his family, it really grounded the movies stakes. The romance was a little flawed, many called it overwrought and melodramatic, but despite that flaw I still love these movies. The setting is gorgeous, from laketown to Eriabor, and the dragon Smaug is awesome, his conversation with Bilbo being my favorite part in the whole trilogy. Shores music is beautiful, highlighting the emotion and grandeur of each scene superbly. While some of the action is a bit goofy, the vast majority is really great, the set pieces against the dragon being the standouts. Philipa Boyens did a brilliant job with what she was given, and although she didn't catch lightning in a bottle again, she still did a great job. The hobbit trilogy's greatest sin is that it doesn't measure up to the LOTR trilogy, but that doesn't stop me from enjoying these movies.