Mrs. P. and I finally escaped our holiday duties and took the afternoon off to go see the Hobbit, in 3D and 48 fps (HFR). You might recall that while I am a lifetime addict, Middle Earth matters little to the wife. Like our visit to Hobbiton last year, she will go to accompany me, and ends up having a good time.

She enjoyed the movie more than I expected and I enjoyed it less than I expected.

By the time we'd found a parking place and made our way to theater in sub-freezing temperatures, the only center seats available were in the second row. I like to be a bit further back than that to get the optimum effect of the 3D. My neck hurt from looking up by the end of the film. The high frame rate bothered me not at all; in fact I liked it - the clarity was amazing. But either that, our proximity to the screen, or the 3D, put Mrs. P. at unease. If not for her knowledge of pressure points that offset nausea, she'd have left the movie about halfway through. I've seen this effect reported in reviews before we went to the film.

Over-all, I really enjoyed the Hobbit and plan on seeing it again in the theater; and buying the DVD when it comes out. There were alterations to the story I didn't like, geographical inconsistancies that bothered me, and wanted a tighter edit. The cast was great, though, the casting of Bilbo was perfect. Classic scenes like the Riddle Game and the Trolls were delightful to finally see on the big screen. And the scenery...ah...the scenery! It is Middle Earth.

The best, spoiler-laden review I've read is over at the OneRing.Net The comments are very good as well.