Pejman Yousefzadeh

I wanted to love this movie as much as I loved the installments from the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Alas, I can only like the first installment. The epic scenery remains magnificent, the return of old characters from the Lord of the Rings is charming and Martin Freeman makes for a very good Bilbo Baggins. But I have to concur with those who have complained that in many places, the pacing of the movie is much too slow and only serves to exasperate viewers. Additionally, while the adventures of the Fellowship of the Ring had the air of an epic quest, those of Bilbo and his group seem somewhat less epic in scale. I look forward to the second and third installments, but I can only hope that the weakest one is behind us.