【電影簡介】

《霍比特人：史矛革之戰》繼續講述主角比爾博·巴金斯的冒險，他與巫師甘道夫和十三矮人一同開始旅程，在索林·橡木盾的領導下進行史詩般的任務——收復孤山和失去的埃爾波爾中土矮人王國。

在意外之旅的初期階段存活下來，矮人遠征隊繼續向東前進，沿途在幽暗密林這個變幻莫測的森林中遇到換膚者貝奧恩和一群大蜘蛛。在逃離危險的木精靈的追捕之后，矮人們來到河谷鎮，最終到達孤山。在這里，他們必須面對迄今為止最危險的事情—巨龍史矛革，一個前所未有的恐怖生靈，這考驗的不僅僅是他們的勇氣、還有友誼的極限以及他們自身的智慧。

【音頻文本】

About 80 years ago, when English author J. R. R. Tolkien wrote "The Hobbit," he might not have known that his art of symbolism would become reality on the other end of the Eurasian continent. He might not have known that the phantom of his imaginary dragon would loom over the world's largest population. Yes, since last weekend, Beijing residents have been seeing and living "The Desolation of Smaug".

To those careless viewers, Peter Jackson's adaptation of Tolkien's children novel, "The Hobbit," is a trilogy of fantastic films, the second installment being slightly better than the first entry. The scenes are better paced and the action is better choreographed. There is even room for a little romance to grow between one of the dwarves and an original female elf character played by Evangeline Lilly. The "Lost" heroine's smooth action in this film makes her a very memorable part of the story.

Another eye-opener is the fierce dragon Smaug, brought to life by none other than Benedict Cumberbatch. His first encounter with the Hobbit is amusing to watch, although you may find it hard not to think of similar scenes on BBC's modern version of Sherlock Holmes, where Cumberbatch as Sherlock constantly teases Martin Freeman, a.k.a. Doctor Watson.

In lieu of good quality acting, there is actually a shift of focus from characterization to the story, with moderate success. By success, we've noted the improved pacing and action, and by moderate, I mean there is still the urge to push a skip button, even in the well-acted first encounter scene. The dragon simply won't stop showing off his high-end British accent. I suppose it is one of the sad truths about life that years of slumbering would inevitably turn a lethal beast into a chatterbox.

A little devotion on the part of the producers have helped create a more entertaining movie, perhaps too entertaining for viewers to realize what Tolkien was trying to tell us. Well, the Chinese people are now ina better position to identify with the author, because they are right in the grip of the titular dragon.

It is not by pure chance that the name Smaug sounds so much like "Smog." The English writer has always been against industrialization, the dragon is only one of its many evils he tried to warn us about. But unfortunately, his warning came a bit too late: we Chinese have not yet finished building a magnificent Erebor,but the greedy behemoth "smog" has already cast its shadow upon us.

For that reason, I will not complain about the length of "the Desolation of Smaug" this time: Peter Jackson and his dwarves would slay the dragon soon enough, sooner than China's own land-loving Hobbits.

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