The Lord of The Rings series by J.R.R. Tolkien is probably one of the most, if not the most,  influential written masterpieces of our era. It has sold thousands of copies and inspired one of the most beloved film franchises of our time.

On Dec. 14, 2012, this franchise expanded with the release of Peter Jackson’s “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey”. The book of the same name, with which this film has been based, was the first book Tolkien wrote with the setting placed in Middle Earth, an expansive fantasy world.

The film follows a young Hobbit named Bilbo Baggins as he accompanies 13 dwarves in their quest to liberate the great fortress of the Lonely Mountain from a notorious dragon, Smaug.

Martin Freeman provides a masterful performance, as young Bilbo; his expressions and reactions are almost spot on to the character.

The settings in the movie are fantastic as they provide very diverse landscapes and show beautiful locations of New Zealand.

Richard Armitage plays a very convincing Thorin Oakenshield; his expressions and how he holds himself in the film is very much how one would picture the leader of a band of dwarves. Ian Mckellen, who played Gandalf for all three of the original trilogy, provides the same masterful act as he always has when acting.

The screenplay was written by the collaboration of Fran Walsh, Peter Jackson, Philippa Boyens, and Guillermo del Toro. They do not disappoint with their masterful Integration of Tolkien’s original notes for the book with a regular movie script.

The Hobbit is a film made within roughly 3 years. The cast is one of the best of the year. The characters are some of the most beloved of all literature. The story is the beginning of something magical. The Hobbit gets nine hobbit holes out of ten.