Dragons have long been the fire-breathing beasts of cinematic legend, taking orders from no one and destroying everything in their path (a prime example: Dreamworks’ well-loved How to Drain Your Dragon, which is spawning its own sequel next year). JRR Tolkien’s (and of course, Peter Jackson’s) Smaug is one of the originals, and so much more. Smaug is a rather well spoken dragon, you see (he’s voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch), and it’s his devilish smile that becomes spooky and frightening as opposed to his fiery breath (but that’s pretty freaky too). The last hour of this second installment to the characteristically longwinded The Hobbit prequel series rests entirely on its scaly, snarly centerpiece, and that’s not at all a bad thing.

At the tale’s beginning, in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Bilbo Baggins sets out from the Shire and starts his journey, which will take another film to conclude over the holidays in a year from now. Bilbo may have thought he was in for a fun sunny adventure, but now, in the midst of the chaos, he must deal with huge spiders, Elves and icy swamp waters, all the while facing the consequence of holding onto an extremely powerful ring, not to mention the looming prospect of meeting Smaug.

From the Dwarves and the elves to the wizards and the Dragon, Desolation of Smaug has the power to keep its audience at a rapt standstill for at least most of its 161 minutes. JRR Tolkien’s fantasy comes to life in director Peter Jackson’s amazing and imaginative magical world, and the only issue is of course that wallop of a cliffhanger at the end; this is that difficult middle chapter in a trilogy, with more than enough ground to cover.

– ML