Customer Ratings & Reviews

3D makes the movie better. Not as great as the other movies in the series.

A great sequel to the first movie. The breathtaking scenery of New Zealand, where this filmed, is just amazing. The characters are great, and it's nice to see the appearance of Legolas in this movie. There are also some little hints to a connection from one of the dwarves to Gimli, and I enjoyed that. The dragon Smaug rules over the last third of the movie, and if was afraid that it was going to be lame and cheesy; but Peter Jackson showed that he has taste and I think they did a marvelous job with Smaug. Both his voice and his appearance are great, and it was a joy to watch that part of the movie. Lake-town was greatly done, and so is the part of the movie that plays there. I can only imagine how many takeovers they had to do to shoot all that footage. Overall I gave it four out of five, and that's only because the digital copy is not iTunes but Flixster, and the first one is nicer and more user friendly. Can't wait for the third, and last, movie,... and I will definitely go on opening weekend. Worth the money, for 2 hours and 45 minutes of pure enjoyment. :-)

Can hardly wait for the last installment. The only criticism I have is that they introduce too much foreshadowing of the coming war of the rings, which detracts from the original story. They didn't need to delve into all of the political intrigue; perhaps they could have showed the awakening of the necromancer when Bilbo initially puts on the ring, and leave it at that. Also--and this is true of all Hollywood films these days--I don't understand why these directors feel the need to change elements of the story. For example, why did Jackson change the scene where our adventurers meet the 3 trolls. I liked Tolkien's original treatment much better.

As with all the middle earth movies the extended edition never disappoints. If you enjoy these movies than this extended edition will be no exception. When I saw the theatrical release I had three big complaints: there was no beginning, there was no character development, and there was no ending. The extended edition fixes two of these issues although it does still have a choppy mid-scene ending. I purchased the edition with the Key replica. This will go great with my map of middle earth I keep in my house. it is not a cheap replica but an actual prop replica from the Noble collection with a COA. This edition is worth the purchase.

This extended edition beats the first hobbit with 25 extra mins with extended scenes and new ones. It's more for the huge lord of the rings/ hobbit fans but regardless I think it's worth it if you haven't bought the first version. During lord of the rings extended editions each disc had appendices explaining everything in the world of Middle Earth, this continues after the first hobbit with appendices 9 and 10. Also if you like those collectibles in sky mall then this has a large real metal key in it. Hope this helps. It's really worth it if you want to know more but even more worth it if you get all the other extended editions.

I got this mostly for the 3D to be honest. The movie was OK, not great.

Desolation of Smaug's new and extended scenes add extra character and small touches of humor, improving on the theatrical's almost too brisk runtime. Beorn alone goes from a strange mountain man with a plot-related grudge to an intelligent (though gruff) man with a full range of emotions.Picture and sound are reference quality as one would expect from these releases. The appendices are probably the best to date. From the honest "Oh, darn!" moments of making three films up to going overtime on the film's soundmix the extras shine a light on every part of the filmmaking experience. Definitely getting my dad this for Christmas.

It may be cartoonish at times and spread out but the second film of the Hobbit trilogy still offers some great action such as a wild river chase. The story may be filler in places but Smaug himself is wonderfully brought to life for a terrifying attack and makes you admire Jackson's passion for the project. The additional material fills in some blanks and gives a bit more weight than the original version to enjoy. The extras are terrific, over 10 hours of behind the scenes footage from production to making a new beginning/ending for a trilogy and the FX. For any fan of the LOTR movies, a must have to enhance the experience.

So far, The Hobbit films have strayed even further from the source material than The Lord of the Rings. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. This is a very enjoyable movie with a grand, sweeping score and (mostly) great visuals. I say "mostly" (i.e. 99.99‰) because there were a couple of glaring moments where the CGI appeared either unfinished or lacking that final polish. This certainly doesn't detract from the overall enjoyment of the film. If you enjoyed The Lord of the Rings trilogy or especially the first Hobbit film (otherwise why are you watching this one?) then you know what to expect and this should be a very comfy ride.

I loved the Lord of the Rings trilogy and was so happy to hear Peter Jackson decided to make a trilogy of the Hobbit. Its a classic "Good vs Evil' story with great characters, outstanding scenery, the dragon is so real. Total entertainment. I especially enjoy watching it at home in 3D, the 3D tv's these days are great and very affordable. I have a 42" LC 3D TV and use passive glasses and the result is as good as any movie theater, to me, watching it in 3D just makes it more fun. I gave the Hobbit part 2 "5 stars" and can't wait for the final part to come out. My heartfelt thanks to Peter Jackson for making such a fine fine movie.

Movie is awesome! Story comes to life better than what my imagination could do when reading the books. Good for all family members, may even entice the kids to read a book. Acting is very good, can see how Bilbo became the way he was in Lord of the Rings and also how Gandalf was already putting things together for LOTR. Shows Legolas dislike for dwarves and where it came from. Lots of history to the Middle Earth movies. The computer graphics are wonderful sharp and detailed. Hard to imagine that in a few years it will look old with the technologies that are being developed now. A must see and have for your movie collection

My wife is a big Hobbit/LOTR fan so she had to buy this DVD to add to her vast (and I mean vast!) DVD collection. She buys DVDs like this the day they come out and gets them at a much better price. We have Samsung video electronics so the Blu-ray player and TV play together flawlessly. 3D looks good, I (the 3D cynic) am actually impressed with the current 3D technology. I don't like movies that use 3D as a gimmick (like Gravity) but this one uses it sparingly and it adds to the visual experience. If you like Tolkien, you might want to pick up this one (you'll need the first one also). Then there's Part 3 next year...

Peter Jackson has done it again. Another masterpiece! I have to admit, when I first heard that Peter Jackson was making a trilogy of J.R. Tolkien's classic novel "The Hobbit," I was skeptical. I mean, I read the novel as a child, and I couldn't see an entire trilogy being made from it. But boy was I ever wrong! This second installment continues where the first film left off in spectacular fashion. A few new, and even famliar array of characters find their way into the mix. Jackson even manages to do a cameo himself. The cinematography, acting, special effects and story are nothing short oftop notch. Simply put, amazing.

Whether you are a die hard fan or not, the extended versions of any of the LOTR installments are a must have in your collection. If you have the extra half hour on top of the almost three hour original version, then your time will usually be worth it. While the extra footage in the newest Hobbit release is great and adds to the story, it wasn't as culminating as some of the others. However, it's stil a must have. I also really like the way they kept the packaging in the same style as the Unexpected Journey Extended Edition, so the two look nice together on a shelf. ..just hope they do the same for the third!

If you are a Tolkien fan you will continue to enjoy the way Peter Jackson had adapted The Hobbit. I was skeptical at first but The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was well done and beautifully filmed. The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug continues that adventure. The second film skips back to the beginning from Thorin Oakenshields start of the quest and jumps ahead to the middle of the journey to continue where the first film ended. His capturing of the vast Dwarven Kingdom Under the Mountian, its incredible treasure and very deadly dragon, Smaug, truly gave depth to this masterpiece. Another 5 star movie in my collection.

For me, the Hobbit, the Desolation of Smaug was the strongest of the new trilogy. I'm sure by now you have seen the film, and I won't spend too much time on it. This review is for the extended edition, including the Weta studios replica "Thorin's Key". The quality of the replica is first rate, and doesn't add much additional cost to the movie. I have it proudly displayed in my office. If you were already thinking of purchasing the Hobbit, the Desolation of Smaug, I would recommend getting this version if you even remotely interested in movie based replicas. As for the extended edition, I don't think the extended footage really adds that much to the film. Gandalf does find Thrain (Thorin's father) in Dol Guldur, which was cut from the original movie for some reason. But his inclusion doesn't really change the narrative much. All in all however, the movie is excellent in Blu-ray and the collectible that normally retails at wetashop for $30 is a welcome inclusion.

I own the whole Lord Of The Rings Trillogy on Blu Ray, as Well as The Hobbits an Unexpected Journey, Let me tell you that you can't have the whole collection without owning this movie right here, it was way, way, WAY better than The Hobbit part 1, Cgi was Terrificl Amazing, the story line/plot, was well crafted written, this movie wasn't to long nor was it boring. This movie really completes this movie collection genre. Well directed, actors really did an amazing job, cgi was really really good/cool, this movie was really good they made something special for you guys check it out you won't regret it.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug [3 Discs] [Includes Digital Copy] [UltraViolet] [Blu-ray] [2013] Just when you thought they were done with the Lord of the Rings they come out with the Hobbit these movies are worth purchasing and having and actually buying two sets so that way you will have two sets one opened one unopened so that way 50 years from now they be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars so if you're prudent you just might be investing in a hundreds of thousands of dollars

Don't get me wrong, I loved this movie. The effects and cinematography are just as impressive as the first. The scene with the spiders, elves fighting orcs, lots of great action. But the movie did seem to drag on a bit, and it really seems like it's more of a transition to get you from the first movie to the third movie. Also, some purists may not have liked the addition of Legolas to the movie - he was not in the book. But he provided a lot of great action scenes and interactions with Tauriel. Smaug was impressive. They did a great job with the voice. Can't wait to see the third one.

The first Hobbit film was ok but was too disjointed to flow well. The second film doesn't suffer so much from that. Our characters have direction that keep them moving forward. The extended scenes are nice additions and add a few sub plots that really have nothing to do with the overall narrative but do fill in a gaps of the story. Regardless they are nice to have. The dragon is fierce and his scenes are absolutely breath taking. It may all be CGI but you can tell a lot of care and attention was put into those CGI moments. Pick up this film. You won't be disappointed.