The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

After the menacing dragon Smaug (voice of Benedict Cumberbatch) is slain by Bard the Bowman (Luke Evans), a displaced company of dwarves is finally free to reclaim its former home in the Lonely Mountain. Having a vast treasure at his disposal, however, turns dwarf king Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage) greedy and paranoid. When his refusal to compensate his human and elven allies puts their forces at the brink of war, hobbit thief Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman) must take drastic action. Meanwhile, an orc army seeks to capitalize by launching a massive invasion.

The third and final film in Peter Jackson’s Hobbit trilogy, The Battle of the Five Armies is less a standalone work and more a reward to fans for their exceptional patience. After shamelessly padding the previous two installments, the finale clocks in at a relatively lean 144 minutes, and much of that running time is filled with action. The thinness and predictability of the plot would ordinarily be a major demerit, but in context, it makes for a satisfying conclusion to a sprawling saga.

Like all of Jackson’s Tolkien adaptations, The Battle of the Five Armies is well-shot and visually immersive. There are some places where the CGI is a bit too conspicuous (witness a puff of smoke frozen perfectly in place), but for the most part, the film successfully brings Middle Earth to life. The action sequences are similarly well-crafted. Though nothing here quite matches the previous film’s barrel scene, a late battle lets Legolas (Orlando Bloom) demonstrate some innovative swashbuckling. It’s also quite satisfying to watch Ian McKellen (Gandalf the Grey) and Christopher Lee (Saruman the White) beat down foes with wizard staffs at 75 and 92 years old, respectively.

As mentioned previously, the plotting here fails to inspire. Everything that transpires reads as a mere prelude to the inevitable battle, but the lulls in the action do allow for some character development: namely, Thorin loses and regains his honor, and elf warrior Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly) learns that pain comes with love. Her ill-fated romance with dwarf Kili (Aidan Turner) remains improbable and divisive, but it does fulfill the function of giving the film a “B” story.

For all its ridiculous moments - Thorin’s declaration that he won’t part with a single coin is inexplicably delivered in slow motion, and the film’s fauna are something else (a dwarf chieftain rides a boar while elf king Thranduil favors a war elk as his mount) – The Battle of the Five Armies entertains more often than it frustrates. It is by no means Jackson’s finest work, but it succeeds ably at bridging the gap from one trilogy to another and should satisfy fans of both.

8/10