Battle for the Mountains

The enthralling journey through the Middle Earth which had begun 13 years ago with the formation of the fellowship, ends with the battle for the Lonely Mountains. With the battle, ends an era of fantasy envisaged by Peter Jackson.

The Battle of the Five Armies picks up at the point where the Disolution of the Smaug had ended. The enraged Smaug wreaks havoc on the Lake Town. But before everything is reduced to ashes, Bard ( Luke Evans) slays the dragon with his black arrow. As the news of Smaug's death spreads, the armies of the Elfs and the Oarks begin marching towards the Mountains. Lonenly Mountains not only have huge reserves of gold and other precious jewels, but they are also strategically located. The matter is further complicated when Thorin (Richard Armitage), submerged into the madness induced by the vast treasures, refuses to honor his word to share the treasure with the residents of the Lake town.

The last installment of the Hobbit trilogy is fast-paced and hardly wastes any time before the armies engage into deadly combat. The one-to-one fight sequences between the main characters keep you glued to the screen. However, there are not many elements of surprise and the freshness factor is missing. The central character of Bilbo Baggins has little to do in the film and is portrayed more like a spectator. Any comparison with the LOTR series is going to leave you high and dry.

Nevertheless, this last installment of the Hobbit series is worth a watch is certain to cross the figures grossed by the first two films of the series.

My Rating : 7/10

Exodus: Gods and Kings

Ridey Scott's much awaited Biblical epic Exodus: Gods and Kings, is a visual spectacle shot on a grand canvas. But just like most of the other cinematic adaptations of various Biblical stories, it (somehwat) fails to grip the audiences.

It introduces Moses (Christian Bale) as the young Egyptian prince. Moses is favored by the Pharaoh Seti over his son Ramesses (Joel Edgerton)  to succeed him as the next ruler. But the Moses' destiny was much bigger than ruling a kingdom. He was the chosen one to change the course of the  history. Nun (Ben Kingsley), a Hebrew elder, reveals to Moses his true identity that he is a Hebrew and is destined to liberate the Hebrew people from the oppression of Pharaoh. Ramesses succeeds Seti and soon Moses is banished from Egypt.  He takes shelter in a village, marries a village belle (charming Maria Valverde) and starts a family. Years pass on and it seems that the Moses has forgotten his old life . But an encounter with the "God" convinces him of his real purpose. He decided to liberate 'his people' from years' of slavery.

The movie has not been able to connect with those audiences who have little background knowledge. The character of Nun is very much under-cooked. Even Moses looks like a mook spectator when the God inflicts Egypt  with the ten plagues. In spite of all these shortcomings, the flick is a visual marvel. The battle sequence (against Hittites) in the beginning of the film has been wonderfully filmed. The depiction of the ten plagues leaves one speechless. Exodus has certainly not turned to be the epic which Ridley Scott intended to make, but it's not a bad film either. I would recommend you to watch this film only if the slow pace of the story does not bore you and you are not averse of exploring the Biblical stories.

My rating : 6/10