The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies Movie Review

Since 2001 the adaptations of Tolkien’s Middle Earth have captivated audiences everywhere and after thirteen long years the saga finally comes to a close with The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies; a film which has effectively carried the momentum generated by last year’s “The Desolation of Smaug”.

Picking up immediately after last year’s film, Battle of the Five Armies concludes the journey of Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman) and the company of dwarves; having inadvertently unleashed the villainous dragon Smaug (Benedict Cumberbatch) on the nearby settlement of Lake-town, the group soon realises that they must not only tangle with the dragon but the marching Orc army led by Azog as well, leading to a clash between multiple races who all have their claims to the Lonely Mountain. At 144 minutes long, BOTFA is the shortest of the trilogy and yet it’s also the most balanced in terms of narrative, providing plenty of screen time divided amongst the main characters. There’s hardly a moment where the character focus becomes unbalanced as they all have their own roles to play in the battle. Peter Jackson has constantly defended his decision to extend The Hobbit into a trilogy and BOTFA possesses the best example of that; a great scene featuring the wizards Gandalf (Ian Mckellen) and Saruman (Christopher Lee) along with elves Galadriel (Cate Blanchet), and Elrond (Hugo Weaving) is not only an incredibly tense moment but it also gives a strong link to the Lord of the Rings where the original novel could not. The film also has a great build-up; negotiations between dwarves, elves and humans placed against the ever looming threat of Azog and his army of Orcs give a constant reminder of the battle to come. Unfortunately once the battle comes and goes, the ending does leave a lot to be desired; some of the conclusions feel really rushed, especially the characters who were added in just for the films who don’t really receive a great deal of closure. Perhaps the production crew were trying to avoid prolonging the ending which was irritating for some in 2003’s Return of the King but it still sticks out nonetheless.

Despite its title, Battle of the Five Armies does feature a fair amount of character development in the lead up to the big fight, focusing mainly on Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage); a combination of both his lust for the Arkenstone and disdain for those who would take the Lonely Mountain’s gold away threatens to corrupt and destroy his character and from this we see his character come full circle from his original cause to ultimate redemption. This is contrasted against Bilbo who must not only survive the battle but also finds himself tasked with keeping Thorin’s mind in the right place, even if it means going against his wishes. Bard’s (Luke Evans) tale is lesser in scope but we see him rise from simple bowman to a noble leader over the course of the film. The other characters maintain their performances from the previous films and as such remain likeable and interesting. The lone exception to this is Ryan Gage as Alfrid; he tries his best to add some comic relief to the plot but all he ends up doing is serving a huge distraction from the film’s more action based proceedings.

With a gargantuan battle promised, Battle of the Five Armies is more than capable of putting across the same grand scale that makes the saga as a whole so memorable. The Lonely Mountain feels vast and expansive both inside and out, providing an area ripe for the species of Middle Earth to clash upon. Special mention should also go to the appropriately frightful fire effects when Smaug lays waste to the surrounding areas at the start of the film. The action itself is all well framed, giving a consistently clear view of the heavy action that take place. There’s also quite a few new creature designs this time around from burrowing worms to giant trolls with catapults on their backs which fit into Tolkien’s fantasy setting very well. With that said, some audiences may enjoy the conflict more than others. You get the sense that the final battle was trying so hard to be the ultimate finale of a story which has taken thirteen years to tell on screen and whilst it is suitably large and expansive, it unavoidably falls below the likes of Helms Deep and Minas Tirith as some aspects of the battle receive more attention than others. The clash between the dwarf army and the Orcs in particular can never really reach its ultimate climax as the film focuses more on the main characters and their struggles instead of the overall picture. Regardless of these gripes, Battle of the Five Armies offers just as great a spectacle as all the other films set in Middle Earth have done over the years.

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is a fond, if imperfect farewell to one of the greatest fantasy adventures of all time. There’s no denying that The Hobbit trilogy will forever sit in the shadow of its superior predecessors but Battle of the Five Armies still does enough to make a reasonable impression.

Rating: 4/5 Stars