The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
★★★ — The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
The second instalment of Peter Jackson's Hobbit trilogy arrived in December 2013, roughly a year after An Unexpected Journey had opened to mixed critical notices but enormous box office returns, clearing close to a billion dollars worldwide. Jackson, working again through his Wellington-based WingNut Films in partnership with New Line and MGM, was adapting J.R.R. Tolkien's comparatively slender 1937 novel across three films rather than the originally planned two, a decision that drew considerable commentary about padding and studio incentives. The budget sat at around $250 million, consistent with the scale of the Lord of the Rings productions Jackson had helmed a decade earlier on the same New Zealand locations. New to this chapter were Orlando Bloom reprising Legolas and Evangeline Lilly as Tauriel, a character invented entirely for the screen.
The Desolation of Smaug is like a rich, overstuffed meal, delicious in bites, but you’ll regret finishing the plate. The film’s visuals are jaw-dropping (Smaug’s lair alone is worth the price of popcorn), and Benedict Cumberbatch’s dragon is a masterclass in smug, slithery menace. The barrel escape sequence is ludicrous but fun. Jackson still knows how to stage a chase. But then… the romance. Tauriel and either Fili or Kili (still not sure who’s who under all that hair) feels like a studio exec scribbled “add YA love triangle” on a napkin. It’s jarring in a story that should be about dwarves, dragons, and Bilbo’s cleverness, not angsty elf-dwarf drama. And Legolas cameo so random it just felt like pure fan service. The film’s biggest sin is stretching Tolkien’s middle chapter into something it’s not, a sprawling epic. The Lonely Mountain looms forever, and every chase feels padded by… more chases. It’s beautiful, bombastic, and occasionally brilliant, but it forgets the cozy heart of The Hobbit . Still, Smaug himself is worth the ride. Just skip the love subplot and pretend Thranduil’s eyebrows are the real dragons here.
Rating: ★★★ | Year: 2013 | Watched: 2025-06-05
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Related on Movies With Macca
More from Peter Jackson: King Kong (2005) · The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014) · The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012) · The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
More with Ian McKellen: The Da Vinci Code (2006) · X-Men: The Last Stand (2006) · X2 (2003) · The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)
More from New Zealand: What We Do in the Shadows (2014) · Mortal Engines (2018) · King Kong (2005) · 'Aho'eitu (2015)
More from the 2010s: Wonder (2017) · Beautiful Boy (2018) · The Witch (2015) · What We Do in the Shadows (2014)
More fantasy: Viy (1967) · Alice in Wonderland (1951) · Mononoke the Movie: The Phantom in the Rain (2024) · Mononoke the Movie: Chapter II - The Ashes of Rage (2025)
More adventure: Alice in Wonderland (1951) · The Eagle (1925) · Louisiana Story (1948) · The General (1926)
