** SPOILER FREE REVIEW **

Watched at: Cine Royal, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

I can honestly say that I was totally taken in by the events that unfolded from the start to finish (in the movie). The scene with Bilbo and Frodo did it for me. For fans of LOTR, it can't get any better than this. It plays and feels EXACTLY like The Lord of the Rings trilogy and thanks goodness for that! If you haven't seen the film (maybe because you read some of the negative reviews floating around), I say ditch them! I won't go about describing the scenes and spoil the movie for those who haven't seen it but few key points:

Pros:

- Martin Freeman is the new Bilbo and has played the role to perfection.

- Gandalf plays a much bigger role and has fair amount of screen presence.

- Dwarves, well, not all of them step in front but might get more screen time in upcoming sequels. That said, Thorin (Richard Armitage) takes the crown here and delivers amazing performance.

- Is full of amazing vistas and really gorgeous scenery.

- Loved the score and how it reminds us of LOTR.

- A lot of other things that don’t come to mind now!


Cons:

- I thought CGI effects at some places could have been more polished. Some animations kind of look fake.

-Because of the need to fill so much content into the movie (it literally doesn’t stop once the adventure begins), I think movie could have benefited from tighter editing.

- Having to wait for the sequels.

All in all, it’s one hell of a ride and just how I wanted it. I would say that if you are planning to watch it, then go forward expecting it to be a part of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. You won’t be disappointed. It really is a trip back to the same Middle Earth that we have come to love. Thank you Peter Jackson and co.

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