The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

So, not unexpectedly, the latest Tolkein/Jackson film is gorgeous to look at. And its clever and funny and heart-warming and thrilling and all to be expected. The question is, are all the extra bits worth it? In the sense of making one film into three. Bilbo does a lot more than he does in the book. Even at this early point. He decides on his own to race after the dwarves to join their party. He's the one who stalls the trolls until daylight. And he gets lost under the mountain after sneaking away from the goblins. The bits with Radegast were nice and I love his sleigh drawn by oversized bunnies. But they really only add into the whole extra backstory, not the core story of Bilbo and the dwarves. Same for the meeting in Rivendell between Elrond, Gandalf, Galadriel and Sarumon. Not that seeing more Christopher Lee isn't great...

So lots of unnecessary fluff, but ENJOYABLE fluff...