"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" has won the Christmas weekend and the last weekend of the year beating out new releases "Into the Woods" and "Unbroken."
The holiday has started and this weekend Hollywood will offer three mega blockbusters in theaters to infuse the waning box office, including 'The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies,' 'Annie' and more.
Unlike the other trilogy ender "The Return of the King," this film does not feature a million epilogues that so clearly reveal a reluctance to leave the world and its characters. "The Battle of Five Armies" almost runs away rather quickly. And in many ways it is fitting. The trilogy as a whole has its moments that resemble the grandeur of the original film while never really reaching that level. That it ends on a nostalgic note seems to grasp for what could have been with these films. It was a fun ride, if somewhat of a disappointing one.
Next to "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1," "The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies" will be the most anticipated film of the winter season. The latest Middle Earth picture comes on the heels of two box office success and has a tremendous amount to live up to.
Director Peter Jackson opted for expanding the original source material for the new trilogy and that has created a series of new plot threads and storylines to keep track of. Here are the answers to the five major questions that the last installment in the trilogy has to take on.
"The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" is a massive improvement over its predecessor but it is still apparent that Jackson and company (or should we just say Warner Bros) has imposed more material than their original source could handle. The tonal instability that permeated the first film is less apparent in this installment and has allowed for a more visceral overall experience. The quick pace should make this an overall entertaining experience, but those expecting a return to the form of the original trilogy may be somewhat disappointed.
