It’s difficult to review middle films of trilogies, but the second film in The Hobbit trilogy particularly so.

The first two thirds of the movie, which are discursive and too long. Still, it’s not exactly boring. There are exciting, well choreographed fight scenes where Peter Jackson’s penchant for excess and trying to top himself is put to good use.

Then we have the last third of the movie: the promised confrontation with Smaug.

Holy crap.

Now this is the sort of stuff I go to the movies for. Smaug (voice of Benedict Cumberbatch) is an amazing, spectacular creation. I love dragons, and Smaug is one of the best ever put on screen. And the party’s confrontation with Smaug is thrilling and something you just could not experience in real life.

I am hoping that the third film can be as exciting as the third part of the second film. It ends with a cliffhanger that promises more a lot more Smaug, and that is an exciting prospect.

P.S.—I saw this in the “high frame rate” version. I was surprised at how different it looked. It didn’t look bad, but it looked like video and not film. I think any push to higher frame rates will rekindle a “digital versus vinyl” debate, with one side arguing, “The quality is objectively better,” and the other saying, “It just looks warmer.”

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