Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit trilogy, first released in 2012, is not a faithful adaptation of John R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, or There and Back Again, published in 1937. Although the director tried to match the text in many ways, his style is traceable in additional episodes, revealing minor characters and a deeper and more accurate interpretation of the theme and idea of the work. Like most children’s literature, the theme of goodness and the hall is touched upon in Tolkien’s The Hobbit. On the other hand, Jackson gives the story a more mature interpretation, focusing on the pursuit of freedom and justice.
“Any good story deserves to be embellished,” says Gandalf (Ian McKellen) to the hobbit Bilbo (Martin Freeman) before he has to climb out of his cozy leather chair in Bag End and set off on his Unexpected Journey. The Jackson Hobbit is considered a good adaptation of the book, but embellishments and exaggerations, whether one likes it or not, are an integral part of the director’s work. That is evident in the structure of the narrative: the events that took place in sunny Middle-earth were filmed at a frame rate twice as high as required by the film based on Tolkien’s story. It means that the film adaptation covered those moments that were not presented in the book or were only mentioned in passing. For example, the main enemy Azog (Manu Bennett), an albino and the leader of the orcs, is introduced into the plot.
It is not just a treasure hunt, this is a desperate attempt to return the homeland to a people who have been living in exile for a generation. There is a unique charm in the fact that Tolkien’s book at the beginning tells about small and even trivial things. Bilbo, this reluctant burglar, reluctantly embarks on a journey full of dangers. The book’s main question is why Bilbo agreed to expose himself to such dangers.
The same question is raised in the film; moreover, it is the story of how Bilbo considers this adventure his mission. The answer that Jackson’s team gives is simple: a hobbit who wants only to find himself at home again, suddenly realizes that his duty is to help the dwarves return to their homes. Despite the common basis, the main motives of the story are different because when reading the work, one understands that the central theme is the confrontation between good and evil. The idea of The Hobbit is that the victory of interest over evil is a foregone conclusion, although it comes at a high price in a hard struggle.
Even the focus on building relationships between the characters, Bilbo and the dwarves, differs between the book and the movie. The characters are revealed in the text in such a way that, despite all the hostility of the gnomes, they recognize Bilbo as equal to themselves, that is, strong but somehow different. When the hobbit could return unnoticed, he was immediately introduced to the rank of a dodger and craftsman. As for the film, Bilbo was recognized not because he went unnoticed but because of his words, which are often more important than principles in life. With his words and deeds, the hero earned the respect of the gnomes.
In general, it is impossible to deny the inconsistencies between the author’s text and the director’s vision. The characters of the heroes of the text and the film may not coincide, as well as the storyline, its development and accents. In the movie, some additional fragments can be inserted that reveal the story from a new side, while in the book, only one side is visible until a certain point. The director managed to present a more open and detailed world to the adaptation of The Hobbit and a deeper presentation of it.