Story
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is the third Hobbit film, continuing from where the second film ends. The inhabitants of Laketown are in turmoil as the dragon Smaug (voice of Benedict Cumberbatch) descends on the town and sets it ablaze. Luckily for Laketown’s inhabitants, Bard the bowman (Luke Evans), who was imprisoned at the end of the second Hobbit film frees himself from his cell and with longbow in hand climbs to the top of Laketown’s bell tower. With help from his young son Bain (John Bell), Bard manages to fire a giant black arrow into Smaug’s vulnerable underbelly, killing the dragon which plummets into the lake.
Meanwhile, the dwarves – led by Thorin (Richard Armitage) and Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman) – have been watching from the dwarf fortress atop Lonely Mountain and witness the destruction of Smaug. They barricade themselves in Lonely Mountain in anticipation of being besieged by all who seek the riches hoarded there.
Bilbo worries that Thorin’s sanity is affected by greed for gold and an obsession with finding the Arkenstone. The dwarf Kili (Aidan Turner) and the elves Legalos (Orlando Bloom) and Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly) head to Lonely Mountain to join up with the others.
Meanwhile, Gandalf the wizard (Ian Mckellen), who has been imprisoned by Sauron in the evil fortress of Dol Goldur, is in dire straits at the hands of the Orcs. Unexpectedly the elf queen Galadriel (Cate Blanchett), the elf king Elron (Hugo Weaving) and the Wizard Saruman come to the rescue.
Within in a short space of time two separate Orc armies – one led by the vicious King Azog (Manu Bennett), and the other by Azog’s lieutenant Bolg (John Tui) – are marching towards the Lonely Mountain intent on wiping out the dwarves, elves and Laketown survivors. The scene is thus set for a tremendous battle.
Themes
Fantasy and the supernatural; war; self-sacrifice
Violence
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies contains extended sequences of intense fantasy action violence, mass destruction, and the depiction of multiple deaths, including the violent deaths of lead characters. The depiction of violence is less intense that that seen in the Lord of the Rings trilogy with the depiction of blood and gore minimal. There are, however, some disturbing scenes of death. Examples include:
Sexual references
In a couple of scenes a man dresses as a woman to avoid having to fight.
Alcohol, drugs and other substances
There is some use of substances in this movie, including:
- A couple of scenes depict a wizard hold and smoking a pipe.
- A couple of glasses of wine are poured but not drunk, and we see a wagon containing some jars of wine.
Nudity and sexual activity
There is some nudity and sexual activity in this movie, including:
- Some mild flirting occurs between a dwarf and an elf woman; the elf woman is in love with the dwarf. In one scene the dwarf hands the elf woman a small stone as a symbol of his betrothal to her and she refers to love as being painful.
Product placement
None of concern
Coarse language
The film contains mild coarse language and some name calling.
Ideas to discuss with your children
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is the third and final instalment in the Hobbit series. It is an action fantasy targeted at teens and adults, particularly fans of the previous Hobbit and Lord of the Rings films. This film has a much higher body count than the previous two, with some of the deaths being brutal and emotionally disturbing. It is not recommended for children under 13 with parental guidance strongly recommended for the 13-15 age group.
The main messages from this movie are:
- Love can be painful to endure.
- Wealth can generate greed and be destructive, destroying friendships.
Values in this movie that parents may wish to reinforce with their children include:
- Selflessness: Throughout the film Bilbo Baggins performs selfless acts at the risk of his own life and constantly puts the welfare of other before his own.
- Friendship: The dwarves constantly demonstrate the value and strength of their friendship towards each other.
- Courage: Throughout the film many characters demonstrate courage and courageous acts.
Parents may also wish to discuss the fact that Bilbo Baggins steals, lies and betrays for the greater good. Are there instances when doing something wrong is justified? In what circumstances could this apply?