vilakins | The Hobbit review

I know I said I was going to post a review the next day, but I've been either busy or tired (though not the next day) what with the time of year, the heat, Greg's company's end-of-year party (not bad, and air-conditioned quite effectively by having a whole side open to the sea) and a lot of stuff I have to do for work before I finish next Friday for two weeks. Our office incidentally, being small and in a converted house, has no aircon. I shall have to take a fan in, and a refill for the automatic insect squirty thing.

First up, I will tell you that the film doesn't feel like three hours; I was left wanting more and wishing I didn't have to wait for a whole year, but it did end at a very satisfying point. I can't tell you about 3D as Greg only has one eye so I've never seen it but there are scenes that it would be pretty damned spectacular in.

Martin Freeman is of course adorable as Bilbo, often looking very Vila-like (see icon). The beginning is a flash-forward and ties in beautifully with LOTR, and once the action gets going it hardly lets up. I'll be going to see it again to catch all the stuff I probably missed. As well as excitement and excellent acting from all, there's a lot of laugh-out-loud humour, and I loved how the dwarves were shown to be very individual.

There ya go: no spoilers (though surely everyone knows the story by now) but an unreserved recommendation. Go see it and be hugely entertained!

Oh and there's a hedgehog called Sebastian. I don't know why.

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Have now been, and am hoping that Sebastian gets to lead a battalion of hedgehogs rolling themselves like caltrops under the paws of the wargs in the Battle of the Five Armies. Or that they hurl themselves into the faces of the forces defending Dol Guldur.

Yes!

BTW I meant I didn't know why he had a Latin name, not why he was there. Not that I minded at all!

Definitely going to see it (Sis may not, but she HATED The Hobbit, so I'll go alone...)

Every review on my flist has said how good Martin Freeman is... :)

If she liked LOTR, she might enjoy it. It has much the same feel, but with added humour.

I won't ever see Martin Freeman play Vila again, but he would be perfect; he has that appealing vulnerability. I've loved all the characters he's played from Tim in The Office on.

Thanks for the review! I'm trying to avoid them, since I won't see it until (maybe) tomorrow, but you did a great job. I am much encouraged.

And Sebastion: because HEDGEHOGS!!!! Can't WAIT to see Sebastion!

He only has a bit part, but we have a special feeling for the name. :-)

I love the name, too. And hedgehogs. We don't have wild ones here in the US. I had a pet one once. He was adorable. I could move to the UK JUST so I could maybe have a hedgehog in my garden. it'd totally be worth it.

We rescued a baby hedgehog from our garden whose bristles had all fallen out due to mange and took him to the vet. We had to bathe him regularly in a solution which I think had iodine in it till he was cured, and fed him on cat food which they love. For the vet records we had to name him, so he was Edgy, described as "species: exotic", and we used to get worming and de-fleaing reminders for him. We're pretty sure it was him we saw a few months later with a mate. :-)

I have to say though that we don't see them often but we know they're around. This little guy was ill and hanging around for food which was why we starting leaving it out for him and eventually caught him.

I've always liked the name Sebastian and it was the only one I suggested that Greg liked when we were naming our furry guy. It suits him well too. :-)

Oh, that's so sweet! You gave him back his life! And he got a girlfriend! Awwwwww! *tears up* They are SO sweet. So they are native to New Zealand? I wonder how many different species there are and how they're distributed. Gosh, IF ONLY there was some way to quickly and easily look that kind of stuff up...

;^>

They're not native to here, hence the "exotic" the vet gave him. I don't think there were mammals at all till the Maori and Europeans arrived and brought them, so cats and dogs are exotic too. :-)

You'll love little Sebastian in the film, then!

I was hoping to get to see it next week, but at the rate things are going, I might not have time until after Christmas. Sigh. I shall attempt to be patient. :)

Thank you very much for your lovely review and recommendation! We are still waiting for the premiere. It will be on Prague and we " outsiders" will have to wait even longer.
I can´t wait! And a hedgehog there! My totem animal! Ah, Sebastian, haha, what would your Sebastian think of that?:-)
Also I haven´t realised that fact about imported animals to NZ - yes, dogs and cats too...
I think there is a hedgehog hibernating inside of our new compost:-)

Yay, I'm gald to hear you liked it! I'm really looking forward to seeing it myself, although I've been a little skeptical since it's hard to imagine the Hobbit in 3 films! Plus it was never my fav Tolkien book. But I can't wait to see more of my beloved Middle Earth, and reading that you recommend it gives me a little more optimism about it ;D

The Hobbit review

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