the hobbit film

In Defense of Peter Jackson, Tolkien Fans, and Nerds Everywhere

Peter Jackson has taken a lot of flack for the alleged butchering of The Hobbit, variously described as…
Review: “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies”

The final installment of Jackson’s Hobbit trilogy hits many of the high, operatic moments of The Lord of the…
Teaching Tolkien: Biographical, Textual, and Historical Approaches

Though I have not yet had the chance to teach an entire course on Tolkien, his…
Who Owns Tolkien?

In case you missed it, Peter Jackson recently announced that, unless the Tolkien Estate grants permission…
Tolkien and the Political Pleasures of Sadness

One of the things that always stands out to me upon reading Tolkien’s work, whether that…
Why Blog About Tolkien?

When I first decided to devote the entire month of December (and, obviously, the latter part…
Review: “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition”

Given that the release date for The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is now less than…
Review–“The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” (Fan Review)

Warning: Complete spoilers follow. This is the second in a two-part series reviewing the recently released…
Review–“The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug”

Warning: Spoilers follow. Note: I am preparing two reviews, one for casual fans of the films,…