Being weaned on Peter Jackson's Middle Earth makes this little TV movie seem to pale in comparison, especially when comparing the budgets. After the initial trilogy Jackson went for another by spacing out the children's novel into 3 feature length stories and therefore suffered for it. But of course you cannot back away after making the excellent LOTR and do a condensed version like this. This takes the whimsical and childlike wonder in the original novel and creates a charming Hobbit, perhaps a little lean in some parts.
Still, the Hobbit trilogy had Howard Shore, and the biggest misstep seems to be the soundtrack which jumps genres and never really establishes itself. Glenn Yarbrough's songs are pleasant enough but you want mystical and ethereal cues for elves, not something that is reminiscent of a country road song, or a folk ballad. At times the orchestration is rather thin, overusing fanfares and percussion for little substance. And the Misty Mountains song cannot compare to the 2012 rendition, turning it into a short and lacklustre chant with no real melody.
The animation is nice for its time. This was animated by Topcraft, which later became the bare bones of Studio Ghibli, just right before producing Nausicaa. The watercolour backgrounds are impressive and immersive, never clashing with the figures. The character designs cannot reach the details of a live action big budget attempt, but they are unique in their own cartoonish ways. Smaug is especially menacing with the floodlight beams that emit from his eyes and the hurricanes that his wings conjure. The wide eyed Bilbo Baggins with his overly large pupils seem to say with every look: "Oh how I wish I was at home in my nice hole by the fire, with the kettle just beginning to sing!" But he is brave when he needs to sneak into a treasure trove, witty when confronting Gollum in a battle of riddles, and reasonable when talking of war. Speaking of Gollum, he is slimy as he can be; it is not quite Andy Serkis, but he makes you shiver in disgust the same way.
This version is perhaps a little short at 77 minutes, and the Hobbit trilogy at a combined 474 minutes, much too long. Here some details are cut; Beorn and his nightime stroll is missing, which is disappointing. Climatic battles are also barely featured: the escape from the giant spiders is over with a dizzying spin, and Bilbo is knocked out just before the Battle of the Five Armies. It all ends a little suddenly, but it does set up the Lord of the Rings and that 1978 animation which is a little more mature and in- depth. But for an accompaniment to a fantasy novel that should be one every child's reading list, this is quite good.
Still, the Hobbit trilogy had Howard Shore, and the biggest misstep seems to be the soundtrack which jumps genres and never really establishes itself. Glenn Yarbrough's songs are pleasant enough but you want mystical and ethereal cues for elves, not something that is reminiscent of a country road song, or a folk ballad. At times the orchestration is rather thin, overusing fanfares and percussion for little substance. And the Misty Mountains song cannot compare to the 2012 rendition, turning it into a short and lacklustre chant with no real melody.
The animation is nice for its time. This was animated by Topcraft, which later became the bare bones of Studio Ghibli, just right before producing Nausicaa. The watercolour backgrounds are impressive and immersive, never clashing with the figures. The character designs cannot reach the details of a live action big budget attempt, but they are unique in their own cartoonish ways. Smaug is especially menacing with the floodlight beams that emit from his eyes and the hurricanes that his wings conjure. The wide eyed Bilbo Baggins with his overly large pupils seem to say with every look: "Oh how I wish I was at home in my nice hole by the fire, with the kettle just beginning to sing!" But he is brave when he needs to sneak into a treasure trove, witty when confronting Gollum in a battle of riddles, and reasonable when talking of war. Speaking of Gollum, he is slimy as he can be; it is not quite Andy Serkis, but he makes you shiver in disgust the same way.
This version is perhaps a little short at 77 minutes, and the Hobbit trilogy at a combined 474 minutes, much too long. Here some details are cut; Beorn and his nightime stroll is missing, which is disappointing. Climatic battles are also barely featured: the escape from the giant spiders is over with a dizzying spin, and Bilbo is knocked out just before the Battle of the Five Armies. It all ends a little suddenly, but it does set up the Lord of the Rings and that 1978 animation which is a little more mature and in- depth. But for an accompaniment to a fantasy novel that should be one every child's reading list, this is quite good.