The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)

Bilbo and company are forced to engage in a war against an array of combatants and keep the Lonely Mountain from falling into the hands of a rising darkness.

Director:

Peter Jackson

Writers:

Fran Walsh (screenplay), Philippa Boyens (screenplay)

Stars:

Ian McKellen, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 7 wins & 53 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ian McKellen	...	Gandalf
Martin Freeman	...	Bilbo
Richard Armitage	...	Thorin
Ken Stott	...	Balin
Graham McTavish	...	Dwalin
William Kircher	...	Bifur
James Nesbitt	...	Bofur
Stephen Hunter	...	Bombur
Dean O'Gorman	...	Fili
Aidan Turner	...	Kili
John Callen	...	Oin
Peter Hambleton	...	Gloin
Jed Brophy	...	Nori
Mark Hadlow	...	Dori
Adam Brown	...	Ori

Storyline

After the Dragon leaves the Lonely Mountain, the people of Lake-town see a threat coming. Orcs, dwarves, elves and people prepare for war. Bilbo sees Thorin going mad and tries to help. Meanwhile, Gandalf is rescued from the Necromancer's prison and his rescuers realize who the Necromancer is.

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Plot Keywords:

middle earth | orc | hobbit | elf | army | 

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Taglines:

The epic conclusion to 'The Hobbit' trilogy.

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Genres:

Adventure | Fantasy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for extended sequences of intense fantasy action violence, and frightening images

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

New Zealand USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 December 2014 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Hobbit: There and Back Again

Filming Locations:

Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$250,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$54,724,334, 21 December 2014

Gross USA:

$255,119,788

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$956,019,788

Company Credits

Production Co:

New Line Cinema, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), WingNut Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

144 min 164 min (Extended Edition)

Sound Mix:

Datasat Dolby SR Dolby Digital Dolby Atmos

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

James Nesbitt, who plays the Dwarf Bofur in all three movies, has two daughters who played Bard's daughters in the second and third movies.

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Goofs

Bain is holding the black arrow in his left hand when Smaug first smashes the bell tower. When Bard goes to haul him back while he's hanging off the ledge, Bain is holding on to the tower by that left hand and the arrow is in his right. When lying on the floor of the tower, the arrow is back in his left hand.

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Quotes

[last lines]
[Bilbo hears a knocking at his door]
Old Bilbo: No, thank you! We don't want any more visitors, well-wishers, or distant relations!
Gandalf: What about very old friends?
[a pleased Bilbo goes to greet Gandalf]

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Crazy Credits

The closing credits are accompanied by sketches of people/locations from across the Hobbit trilogy.

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Alternate Versions

2015 Extended Edition Blu-ray contains twenty minutes additional footage, including more graphic violence, increasing the run-time to 164 minutes. Due to the extra amount of violence, this version has been rated R by the MPAA.

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Connections

Referenced in Atop the Fourth Wall: The Hobbit #2 (2014)

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Soundtracks

The Last Goodbye
Written by Billy Boyd, Philippa Boyens and Fran Walsh
Performed by Billy Boyd

User Reviews

That's what happens when you expand a single book into three movies

Well, I have to say that I'm glad that's over. The final movie was well worth the price of admission, which in my case was a free ticket to a preview screening.

I found this movie to be a stretch and as the final movie in a trilogy that was getting less interesting the further you went into the series, I left feeling extremely disappointed, and glad I didn't pay for the premium experience (3D, Imax, etc).

There was a little too much CG this time around, and it wasn't even all that great. Case in point two close scenes with a rider approaching and leaving were clearly CG...they couldn't even afford to use a real horse and rider? Come on...

The battle scenes went on way too long and in parts were even more ridiculous than the "riding the broken wooden bridges all the way down to the bottom of the cavern..." scene in the earlier edition of this series, and since the battle scenes were pretty much all that carried this movie, well...

Yes, this movie does have to be seen and it should be viewed on a big screen. However, in the opinion of this reviewer, waiting until it appears in a second run theatre will provide better value for money.

It's a movie that wraps up a series, but when compared to Peter Jackson's original LOTR work it pales and is as pale as an orc who has been working in the basement of Orthanc. At night. With the lights out.