The Hobbit--Desolation of Smaug

Last year around this time, I reviewed the first of the three Hobbit movies, and while I enjoyed it, my review had a bit of negativity about it due to the majesty of the Lord of the Rings series and the inability of this movie to stand up.

So yesterday I drove my Mom and two youthful nephews to the theater in Garner NC (that's GAR-NER, not GARD-NER) to see the second of the three movies.  My verdict?  Better than the first, and nudging its way up into the greatness of the LOTR movies--maybe even better than "The Fellowship of the Ring".  Here's why:

Bard

Tauriel

1.  The Dwarves are less focused on than in the first movie.  I don't like dwarfs as much as some, and I like them less than others.  I find Elves fetching, and the return of Legolas to this movie is a great innovation.  Best of all though, is the introduction of the ravishing Evangeline Lilly as "Tauriel" to the mix.  She kicks ass like Legolas and looks better than Arwyn.  Additionally, the character "Bard" is sympathetic, brave and human...all of which play to the favor of this movie. 

2.  Gandalf.  Gandalf is featured more here (again, to the detriment of the dwarfs)  and he remains one of the most interesting characters of the series.

3.  The Necromancer/Sauron.  We're beginning to see more of him in this movie, which is another strong tie to the LOTR series.

4.  Smaug.  The dragon is a pretty damn good character, and his back and forth with Bilbo is good stuff.

I still find it hard to think that the book "The Hobbit" can occupy three feature length movies, but this one did a great job of convincing me that it might pull it off.  There is a lot of action left for the third movie, and if it continues this trend, it will be a great one.