[Hammock Parties]

moar!!!

http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment...pected-Journey

Compared to LOTR, which tells of an epic fight of good and evil, The Hobbit is more light-hearted with many laugh-out-loud moments, but still delivers gory and glorious battle-scenes.

And what a difference almost 10 years makes for special effects: The Hobbit shows a depth in details that maybe only computer games on the small screen have ever captured.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey has enough similarities to LOTR that it will appeal to fans of the trilogy, but at the same time it carries its own feel and aesthetic - to be a beautiful beast in its own right.

It is also close enough to Tolkien's original work to feel like a true adaption, but takes some freedom and delivers a few surprises.

In it's core, the first part of The Hobbit trilogy is a story of growth; Bilbo's journey from homebody to hero (well, sort of) and Thorin Oakenshield's from Hobbit spurner to Hobbit believer.

And the Government certainly got its money's worth in wide and epic shoots of the country's sceneries. These should help to keep drawing tourists to New Zealand and firm its reputation as Middle-earth.

At times, the story could maybe have been told a tad faster, but we're talking Peter Jackson here.

When the credits start to roll to Neil Finn's Song of the Lonely Mountain, after nearly three hours, the theatre burst into applause and nobody I talked to complained of sickness or drowsiness after the 48fps experience, but felt perfectly emerged into Middle-earth.

Will the 48fps be loved by everybody? Certainly not. Will it be the future of filming? Probably.

Great cast, great special effects and great entertainment. Yes, Peter Jackson is back at his game, and I can't wait to see if he keeps it up in what's to come.

Reviewer's rating: Four and a half stars