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February 25, 2025
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey | Summary, Recap, & Review
Take a walk down memory lane with this summary of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, including a movie review, book/movie differences, and an FAQ.
9
Unexpected
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is the perfect movie to immerse yourself back into the world of Middle-earth. It is visually pleasing, suspenseful, and entertaining.
Pros
Amazing visuals
Expands upon the Dwarves’ story
Full of action and comedy
Cons
Added plots that don’t follow the book
>Buy: The Hobbit Merchandise & Gifts
Buy: The Hobbit Merchandise & Gifts
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the first of The Hobbit trilogy, follows the Hobbit Bilbo Baggins and his role in helping the Dwarves in their quest to reclaim their homeland from the dragon Smaug. In this article, we’ll be summarizing the most important plot points of the movie as well as discussing CGI, storyline, book and movie differences, and answering frequently asked questions.
An Unexpected Journey | Summary & Recap
The Greatest Kingdom
The story begins with an aged Bilbo, before the events of the Fellowship of the Ring, writing his story for Frodo. He recounts the story of the dwarves in the kingdom of Erebor. They found the heart of the mountain while mining and gained so much wealth and gold that it drew in the dragon, Smaug. It destroyed the villages below and forced the dwarves out of their mountain home. Their allies, the Elves, saw the destruction and turned their backs on the Dwarves. One young dwarf in particular, named Thorin, survived and vowed to retake his kingdom.
A Humble Hobbit
Bilbo begins recounting how he ended up going on an unexpected journey. Sixty years earlier, the wizard Gandalf the Grey meets him outside of his home one morning. Bilbo is wary of him, despite knowing him. Gandalf marks Bilbo’s door with a symbol. That evening, while Bilbo is trying to eat dinner, twelve dwarves arrive. They raid his pantry and devour his food and ale despite Bilbo’s confused protest. Finally, Gandalf arrives and has dinner with the merry bunch. When their leader, Thorin Oakenshield the Dwarf King, shows up, they begin discussing their plans to reclaim their home.
Thanks to Gandalf, Bilbo has been caught up in all of it. They need a burglar, someone who is light on their feet and with a scent Smaug won’t recognize. Bilbo refuses and, the next morning, all the dwarves leave.
Thorin’s Rise
Having changed his mind, Bilbo chases after Gandalf and the group of dwarves with his signed contract to join their quest. On their first night camping together, they tell Thorin’s story and how he became king. His grandfather fell in a great battle against the Orcs at Moria. Thorin stood against his grandfather’s murderer, the Pale Orc named Azog, while using a log as a shield. Thorin severed Azog’s arm, defeating him in battle.
The Brown Wizard
Deep in the forest, Radagast the Brown, another wizard, notices that plants, fungi, and animals are dying. He tries to save a hedgehog named Sebastian from an illness and he realizes, as Sebastian dies, that this sickness is the work of Dark Magic. Giant Spiders descend upon Radagast’s home, but the moment he pulls the magic from the hedgehog, they leave.
He follows them to Dol Guldur, where he is attacked by a spirit. Radagast disarms the spirit, who was using a sword from Mordor, and sees a terrifying figure that sends him running away. He takes the weapon and sets out to find Gandalf.
Dwarf for Dinner
Gandalf argues with Thorin on whether they should go to the Elves for help or not. Thorin refuses, seeing the Elves as an enemy. Angry, Gandalf leaves to find solitude until he calms down. While setting up camp and preparing for dinner, Kili and Fili notice two of the ponies are missing. They spot a troll carrying them and send Bilbo to rescue the animals from three Trolls. Bilbo almost manages to succeed, but the Trolls catch him. They’re about to eat him when the rest of the dwarves charge in and save him.
Bilbo sets the horses free but the Trolls catch him again. They threaten to rip him apart and force the dwarves to set down their weapons. They tie them up and start cooking them over a fire. Bilbo manages to stall by telling the Trolls the dwarves have parasites. Gandalf arrives and cracks a rock, exposing the Trolls to sunlight, turning them to stone.
Unexpected Guests
The party finds the Troll's cave and discovers multiple Elven-made swords. Gandalf gives Bilbo one that glows when Orcs and Goblins are nearby. Radagast arrives, telling Gandalf about what he found. But, the wizard isn’t the only unexpected company. Wargs and Orcs attack the party. Radagast steers them away while the party flees. It almost works, but an Orc finds the group. The others are drawn to the sound of battle. They’re chased to the Elven border, where Gandalf finds a cave for them to hide in. Elves on horses slaughter the remaining Orcs.
The Map
The cave’s exit is in Rivendell, home of the Elves. There, they meet with Elrond and Gandalf convinces Thorin to tell the Elf about the map he carries, which is written in ancient dwarvish. Elrond reveals its secrets under the light of the moon and tells Thorin about a secret entrance into the mountain. However, he is against the dwarves retaking their home and awakening Smaug.
While the dwarves feast, Elrond summons Galadriel and Saruman. They have a meeting with Gandalf about the dark forces at work, but Saruman does not believe him, constantly undermining his claims. Finally, Gandalf reveals the sword from Mordor. During the meeting, the dwarves use the opportunity to escape, per Gandalf’s instructions.
Treacherous Lands
The dwarves are traveling along a path in the Misty Mountains when the mountains begin to crumble and come to life. They are actually Stone Giants and the dwarves have just walked into the middle of their battle. Bilbo nearly dies in the process of escaping. Thorin tells him he has no place in their group. They rest in a nearby cave and Bilbo decides to leave. He’s sneaking away when his Elven sword starts glowing blue, a warning that Orcs or Goblins are near.
The ground crumbles and all the Dwarves plus Bilbo end up in a cage, swarmed by hundreds of Goblins. They take the Dwarves to the Great Goblin King, but Bilbo manages to escape by simply crouching down.
Gollum and the One Ring
Bilbo fights another Goblin and they both fall deeper into the cave. When the Hobbit wakes, he sees a gangly creature dragging the Goblin off for dinner. A golden ring falls out of the creature's pocket. Bilbo picks it up, putting it in his pocket. He is caught by the creature named Gollum. Gollum wants to eat Bilbo, but he strikes a deal with him. If Bilbo wins the riddle game then Gollum will show him how to get out. If Bilbo loses, Gollum gets to eat him.
They go back and forth until Gollum demands that Bilbo ask him a question. Instead of a riddle, Bilbo asks Gollum “What do I have in my pocket?” Gollum loses and plans on using the ring to attack Bilbo but he discovers it’s gone. That is when he puts two and two together, realizing Bilbo has the ring.
Grand Escape
The Dwarves stand before the King of the Goblins, who plans on killing them. Gandalf arrives to save them, but he only manages to distract the enemy. The Dwarves use their environments to their advantage and cleverly fight their way through hundreds of Goblins.
In the end, there are too many to face. Their only chance of success is finding sunlight.
Bilbo is being hunted by Gollum when he falls and the ring ends up on his finger. Gollum can’t see him allowing Bilbo to sneak by him. He sees the party escaping, but Gollum stands between them. Bilbo contemplates killing him but lets him live.
Thorin vs Azog
The Dwarves demand to know how Bilbo escaped, but Gandalf sees him pocket the ring and changes the subject. Before they can rest, they’re attacked by Azog and his army of Orcs and Wargs. The dwarves climb the trees at the end of a cliff and start lighting the forest on fire, but the Wargs cause the trees to fall. The Dwarves are dangling by branches at the edge of the cliff when Thorin stands and charges Azog.
Thorin is quickly defeated and about to be beheaded when Bilbo rushes in to save him. He can only do so much, but the rest of the party soon follows and they fight the Wargs. Gandalf summons the giant eagles and they use them to escape.
The Mountain
The eagles drop the Dwarves off somewhere safe. Thorin thanks Bilbo for saving him and admits he was wrong about the Hobbit. They see their home, the Lonely Mountain, in the distance. They are now closer than ever to reclaiming their home.
Inside the Lonely Mountain, piles and piles of gold rest undisturbed. The simple sound of a bird trying to break a nut wakes the monster sleeping under the gold, Smaug.
An Unexpected Journey | Review
CGI and Visuals | 10/10
The CGI in this movie was absolutely amazing. Getting to see the world of Middle-earth come to life nearly a decade after the Lord of the Rings trilogy was fun and exciting. The scenery was beautiful and the different structures and civilizations, like Rivendell, were breathtaking.
The most impressive part to me were the creatures. Gollum looks the same, but you can see how smaller details, like skin blemishes, have improved. The Stone Giants were awesome, but the Goblins looked the best to me.
Storyline and Plot Development | 10/10
I like how the story unfolded. It was full of action and there was plenty of build, so we got to know the Dwarves pretty well. The fight scenes were satisfying and clever, but of course, the best part happens when Bilbo finds the One Ring. The first movie has multiple smaller enemies, the Trolls and Goblins, which are defeated, but none of the bigger enemies are defeated just yet. It leaves me wanting to binge the rest of the series to see what happens with Smaug and Azog.
A small detail that I noticed, and really enjoyed, was the fact that they never showed Smaug’s full body. They’re leaving the grand reveal for the next movie and I love the suspense that this creates.
Character Development | 9/10
Few characters develop in the movie, since not all the Dwarves have story arcs and a chance to grow individually. Bilbo, of course, has the best development. At first, he simply wants to stay in Bag End and live comfortably, but he can’t resist the call to adventure. He becomes braver, takes chances, and, by the end of the movie, is willing to stand against an enemy that he can’t defeat to protect his allies.
Thorin sees Bilbo’s bravery, which causes his opinion of the Hobbit to change and he grows to respect him. Thorin also manages to set aside his pride to get help from the Elves in order to save his home.
Sound and Music | 10/10
The music felt familiar and different at the same time since they kept a similar tone from the Lord of the Rings films. I loved it when they played the theme from the original trilogy when Bilbo picked up the ring. The Dwarves' singing really brought a nice touch to the movie. The songs fit their personalities. They’re a tight-knit group who knows how to have fun, when appropriate, but they all share a solemn past.
Reception and Impact | 8/10
While some fans were worried that the director would mess up The Hobbit’s story by turning a short book into a trilogy, they weren’t disappointed. Many loved it just as much as Lord of the Rings, if not more.
However, there were still plenty of people who felt strongly about the changes Peter Jackson made in order to make an action-packed trilogy. Rather than being upset about what wasn’t included in the movie (a common complaint with any book-to-movie adaptation), fans of the book were angry about the enemies and storylines added to make a longer series.
Final Score | 9/10
An Unexpected Journey | Book and Movie Differences
Azog
Azog, the Pale Orc, is a prominent antagonist in the films and Thorin’s nemesis. Having battled before, Thorin severed Azog’s arm and the Orc now seeks revenge. Azog, while he does exist in Middle-earth lore, does not exist in the books. He was killed before the events of The Hobbit took place. The movie took a pre-existing character and changed his placement and story in history to make the movie more exciting.
Gandalf’s Knowledge
In the movie, Gandalf learns about the Necromancer from Radagast the Brown, who went to Dol Guldur, and Gandalf takes this knowledge to Rivendell and the White Council. In the books, Gandalf already knew about the Necromancer and visited Dol Guldur himself, where he met Thorin’s father who gave him the map.
Gandalf and Bilbo
In the movie, Gandalf remembers Bilbo as an adventurous child who loved danger and thought he’d rather enjoy the opportunity to embark on an adventure. But, as Bilbo grew older, he mellowed out and is no longer that same child.
In the book, Gandalf knew Bilbo’s mother, who had a very adventurous spirit and hoped Bilbo would be the same way. He is disappointed to discover that he isn’t but that changes when Bilbo joins them on their quest.
The Trolls
In the movie, when the Trolls begin cooking the Dwarves, Bilbo tries to trick them to stall for time. He tells them they’re cooking them wrong and then says they have parasites. This gives Gandalf time to arrive and break a rock, and expose the Trolls to the sun.
In the book, Gandalf throws his voice and tricks the Trolls into thinking the voice is one of them. He makes them argue with each other until the sun rises and turns them to stone.
Bilbo’s Appearance
In the books, Bilbo’s appearance doesn’t change much between when he finds the One Ring and when he gives it up at the start of the Lord of the Rings 60 years later. The ring didn’t just prolong his life, it delayed physical aging as well. This is changed in the movie since present-day Bilbo and past Bilbo are played by two different actors and the age difference is pretty noticeable.
Buy: The Lord of the Rings Merchandise & Gifts
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why was The Hobbit split into three movies?
+What are the names of all 13 Dwarves in The Hobbit?
+What is the significance of the Map in The Hobbit?
+Who is the Necromancer in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey?
+Which characters from LOTR were in The Hobbit?
+What is the watch order for The Hobbit?
+How long is The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey?
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