The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

I was lucky enough to see The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey at the midnight premiere this morning in all its 3D 48fps glory. I have to say up front that I loved the film. Here are the reasons why:

• The acting in this film is superb, especially Richard Armitage as Thorin & Martin Freeman as Bilbo. The audience can see Bilbo's thought process on Martin's face, can see the courage he possesses, even as the character is discovering it, and it's absolutely wonderful. Armitage does an excellent job of balancing Thorin's inspiring leadership and Dwarvish pride. (Also, his rumbling, melodious singing voice might have been the highlight of the score for me.) Of course, returning cast members Sir Ian McKellan, Hugo Weaving, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Lee, Ian Holm, and Elijah Wood deliver stellar performances as well. Lee Pace and Benedict Cumberbatch also make brief appearances in this film and I, personally, can't wait to see more from them in the next two installments.
• Speaking of the score, Howard Shore knocks it out of the park. Again. I downloaded it from iTunes as soon as I got home from the theatre, after 3am this morning. It was worth it.
• There was less included in this film than I thought there would be, yet at that same time, there was more, if that makes sense. In other words, the end of this film is earlier in the story than I expected, but there is more back story. I think it's a pretty perfect combination actually. If there's one thing Peter Jackson (& his writing partners) does well, it's end a film.
• Now, in regard to the visual effects: There's a heated debate over Jackson's decision to shoot in 48fps (frames per second), which is double the fps of most films. Those against it say that the extra frames per second give the film a feeling similar to HD television and declare that this feeling takes away from the mystical quality of a fantasy film. I was wary going into the theatre. I'm not a big fan of 3D, in any case, as it tends to be used mostly for cheap thrills (and it gives me a headache). While this film does have a couple of obvious 3D gags to throw at the audience, for the most part, I thought the 3D was more like that of Hugo (the gold standard in 3D technology, in my opinion), in that it was mostly environmental and aesthetic, used to bring the audience into the story instead of taking them out of it. As to the 48 fps, I found that the hyper-reality it lends was completely appropriate for telling this story. The Hobbit is a much lighter tale than The Lord of the Rings and the high visual quality and clarity afforded by the extra fps delineates this film from those in a very visceral way. It is, after all, a children's fantasy adventure. 
• The only criticism I have to offer is this: With thirteen dwarves running around, it becomes difficult to tell them all apart at times, even for those of us who are already familiar with their names and characters. Thorin, Balin, Dwalin, Fili, Kili, and Bombur are all easily identifiable, but not enough time is spent introducing the others to the audience and therefore they tend to get lost in the shuffle a bit.

With an awards season as densely packed with quality as this one is, it's doubtful that The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will come away with many big awards, but it is definitely worth seeing. There is battle violence, so bring younger children at your discretion, but I think The Hobbit is an excellent movie for children of all ages.