They Shall Not Grow Old (2018)

A documentary film of soaring ambition, They Shall Not Grow Old was commissioned by the Imperial War Museum in London. They chose Peter Jackson of Lord of the Rings fame, a WWI-buff who also happens to be an excellent director. After the end credits is a  short documentary narrated by Jackson about the making of the money and it is maybe even better than the movie because he's such a nerd and he's funny. They used his uniform collection to match colors in the movie. They use his authentic WWI weaponry for sound in the movie. They use his WWI propaganda collection for stills. The Museum could not have chosen a more apt director. The discussion about the sound and color and lipreading and look of the movie is fascinating. These are soldiers that had never seen a movie camera before, they didn't even know what to do! He went through hundreds of hours of archival footage they had to enhance and archival sound recordings from the BBC. The amount of research that went into this movie is very impressive.

The beginning and end of the movie, the black and white parts outside of the trenches, are excellent. I admit I fell asleep in the colorized trenches portion. Not because it was bad. In the parts I was awake, it was actually stunning. The color pops in 3D like a moving painting. I love the concept of the movie (and the trailer beautifully, perfectly explains it) keeping film alive. I know it's kind of controversial that the footage was given color and sound. But I think it's a brilliant way to breathe new life into this excellent footage that no one would otherwise have seen, some of which was literally unviewable without his digital restoration. Film is meant to be seen.

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)

I still maintain that the Hobbit did not need three films to tell a complete and satisfying tale.  In the novel, Bilbo misses the majority of the climactic battle, resulting in a battle that only lasts a few pages. Comparatively, this battle lasts for over two hours.  The movie is mostly this one gigantic battle, and it gets a little old.  The whole movie is literally battle scenes without much room for plot, not that much plot was left after the second film. That being said, this is the shortest film in either trilogy, rightfully so.

Nonetheless, this movie is the culmination of over a decade of work by Peter Jackson.  This is the capstone on JRR Tolkienn's imaginative masterwork that is Middle Earth (I don't see Peter Jackson making a film version of the Silmarillion).  It is a fitting end to an excellent series.  If the series was characterized by epic battles, this movie certainly epitomizes epic battles.  If Peter Jackson was a master of visual effects, the opening sequence in which Smaug the dragon destroys the town is stunning.  Remember that magical score by Howard Shore from the original trilogy?  The final scene in the Shire (coming full circle) closes with the theme we know and love.  The ending credits have a familiar voice in Billy Boyd (Peregrin Took from the original trilogy) who fittingly sings "The Last Goodbye."  Goodbye Middle Earth...  

  

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)

A big improvement over its predecessor, but not quite as good as the original trilogy.  I'm still a little miffed that the very thin Hobbit was split into three movies.   This middle movie takes us almost to the end of the book.  And yet, I bet the third installment will be another three hour saga.  For the amount of plot that occurred,  the movie was just too long.

That being said,  there were some exhilarating scenes such as the one in which the dwarves and Bilbo are "barreling" down the river with the orcs and elves in pursuit.  Of course,  what we have all been waiting for was Smaug,  the fire-breathing Sherlock-voiced dragon.   He is certainly an incredible sight to see.   Peter Jackson's higher, realer frame rate shines in these scenes.   The visuals are enough to hold us over till the big Battle of the Five Armies.