The Hobbit is almost upon us! If you’ve had trouble differentiating between the (many) dwarves, working out how this all fits with Lord of the Rings, or just aren’t sure what the whole thing is about, our handy beginners guide has everything you need. Minor spoilers ahead.
We don’t know anyone who hasn’t seen Lord of the Rings at this point, but if you’re going into The Hobbit expecting some kind of continuation of that story, sorry friend. Although director Peter Jackson has certainly made an effort to make the first part of this fantasy trilogy accessible for the large contingent of Rings fans, there’s still the inevitable confusion resulting from new, young (and different actor) Bilbo, and all those dwarves.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was released in New Zealand on December 12, and will be released in the United Kingdom on December 13, in USA on December 14 and in Australia (after a long wait) on December 26. If you live elsewhere, check the full list of release dates.
Bilbo Baggins
Meet your reluctant hero, Bilbo Baggins. You may remember a certain hobbit named Frodo who was eager for adventure, that’s not our Bilbo at all. Set up in his comfortable hobbit-hole, Bilbo is certainly interested in hearing about the rest of the world, but he has no desire to enter it. Unfortunately for him, Gandalf chooses him as the final member of a party of 12 dwarves, set to reclaim their home in the Lonely Mountain. Bilbo (of course) joins them on their adventure, getting into all kinds of trouble, proving himself in ways he couldn’t imagine, and not to mention finding a very useful ring…
Played by Martin Freeman
Martin Freeman is a highly regarded English actor who has proved himself in numerous productions – but who cares about that. He’s Dr Watson! The poor guy is lucky enough to achieved two typecasting roles – no one will see him as anything other than Bilbo or Watson for the rest of his life. We have no worries about Freeman’s acting abilities, what will be interesting is seeing how much (if any) his performance is reminiscent of Ian Holm’s Old Bilbo in Lord of the Rings, and how they tie the two versions of the character together. Given that this film begins with Holm’s version of the character, this evolution (or de-evolution?) of the character should be a fairly subtle exchange.
Gandalf
Gandalf is a powerful wizard with a complicated history, although much of that is unknown in The Hobbit. While the dwarves are out for treasure, and Bilbo just wants to go home, Gandalf is playing the long game. He is using the quest as a method of seeking out information about the Necromancer, who he believes is growing in power. Sounds boring, right? Well remember that the Necromancer is an alias for none other than Sauron. Gandalf assists the others, often saving the day when they are in trouble, but also ditches them to hang our with BFFs and fellow wizards, Saruman (who is much nicer pre-Rings) and Radagast (whose friends include bunnies and birds and Snow White).
Played by Ian McKellen
What do we really need to say about Ian McKellen. Honestly, we are just glad to see this amazing actor return to one of our favourite characters, who he played with such brilliance in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Additionally, Gandalf is one of the only characters who really crosses over with Rings. We can’t wait to see what choices he has made to show that this is both the same character, but simultaneously a younger version who lacks the knowledge of his Rings counterpart.
Thorin Oakenshield
Thorin Oakenshield is a dwarf, the King-in-Exile, and the leader of The Company of Dwarves. He desires to recapture his homeland in the Lonely Mountain, take back the treasure which he believes to belong rightfully to the dwarves, and kill the dragon Smaug. He is quite unlike the other dwarves in the party (or any dwarves we have met in previous films), and is initially very unwelcoming to Bilbo, although he respects Gandalf enough to allow the hobbit to join the group as its 14th member.
Played by Richard Armitage
Richard Armitage is an English actor who frequents the stage and the screen. You may recognise him as Guy of Gisborne in Robin Hood or Lucas North in Spooks, amongst other things. Thorin is really the third of the main characters (or as main as a character can be in a huge ensemble film like this), behind Bilbo and Gandalf. From the footage we have seen so far, Armitage certainly looks appropriately dark and serious to inhabit this unique dwarf, and we have high hopes that his gravitas will be enough to balance out the inevitable silliness that the rest of the dwarves will provide.
The Dwarves
The dwarves are going to be the main problem for many film goers. PJ and his team have gone to obvious lengths to make sure we can tell who is who, but honestly (unless they have increased their roles drastically from the book), none of the dwarves play a hugely important part. Instead they act more as a comedy troupe, travelling around in pairs with rhyming names, and doing their best to confuse us. So, in order to keep them clear, we’ve listed the moniker that each dwarf seems to be appearing under, and anything else you really need to know about them.
Balin, Dwalin and Bifur
Played by Ken Stott, Graham McTavish and William Kircher
Balin: The one who looks like Santa.
In the book, Balin is second-in-common to Thorin, and certainly looks a bit worse for wear. As the oldest of the dwarves, he seems to have been given the grandfatherly role. We predict he will be spouting some kind of sage advice and (hopefully) riding around in a reindeer-drawn sleigh. No, just us?
Dwalin: The Hells Angels gang leader.
This is clearly the tough guy, who probably has ‘Dwarf 4 Life’ tattooed across his knuckles. He is Balin’s younger brother (easy enough to remember, thanks to the Tolkien’s helpful rhymes), and essentially the bouncer of the group. We suspect his main job will be intimidating Bilbo when he isn’t so keen on joining in on their dangerous adventures.
Bifur: The one with an axe in his head.
He literally has an axe partly embedded in his skull, so we can’t imagine that he will be awfully cheery. To continue the family explanations, his cousins are Bifur and Bombur. Bifur doesn’t look to play any key role in the film, instead he makes up numbers, grunts and grumbles, and did we mention the axe which is literally sticking out of his forehead. Just to clear that up.
Fili, Kili and Bofur
Played by Dean O’Gorman, Aidan Turner and James Nesbitt
Fili: The other young hipster.
Next to his brother Kili, Fili is the youngest of the dwarves (you know they’re brothers because – say it with us – their names rhyme). Fili is a talented warrior and acts as scout for the group. We predict he and his brother will be very much a Tweedledee and Tweedledum kind of duo, and their unique attributes (read: being young and less hairy) will give them a fairly prominent role amongst the dwarves.
Kili: The eye-candy for non-Sherlockians.
Oh just look at him, he’s adorable (although he doesn’t look awfully ‘dwarfy’ to us). The absolute eye-candy, Kili is the youngest of the group. Just to amp up his less-than-dwarfy features, he’s a skilled archer with sharp eyesight, who often scouts for the group. So basically he is a brunette Legolas, who functions as a double-act with his brother.
Bofur: The one who is Pippi Longstockings in a hat.
With his Heidi-meets-Pippi Longstocking vibe, Bofur doesn’t look incredibly intimidating. In fact, we think that with Bofur PJ is going for the more cheerful sort of dwarf, like Gimli after a few pints in Two Towers. He will be affable, not overly bright, but you’ll just want to give him a hug (even with the hat). And inevitably, he’ll lose the hat in a crucial moment.
Oin, Gloin and Bombur
Played by John Callen, Peter Hambleton and Stephen Hunter
Oin: The one with grey hair.
Oin is the older brother of Gloin and has a kind of Medusa-thing going on in his beard. He seems like a tough old guy, intelligent and steadfast. He is uncle to Lord of the Rings‘s Gimli, and despite the grey hair you can see the family resemblance. In the film he will also reportedly be the healer of the group, so he has that going for him.
Gloin: The one that looks and sounds like Gimli.
Jackson has gone to great lengths to make sure the resemblance is clear between Gloin, his son Gimli, and his brother Oin. We predict he will have been given some similar personality traits to entrench this family connection, and give the Rings fans something familiar to cling onto. Based on this assumption, he’ll be a bit loud and a bit brash and a bit racist against Elves.
Bombur: The one that’s a bit fat.
Bombur is brother to Bofur and cousin to Bifur. His main areas of expertise seem to be eating and falling asleep (during his watch, after falling a river, really wherever you like). Bombur is very clearly going to be the comedic relief of the film, although we hope they give him more to do than just be there to allow jokes at his expense.
Nori, Dori and Ori
Played by Jed Brophy, Mark Hadlow and Adam Brown
Nori: The cone-head.
In the book, Nori’s main purpose was to have a name that rhymed with his brothers Dori and Ori, in the film they seem to have made him into the slightly untrustworthy, Mundungus Fletcher-type (for non Potterheads: a criminal). Who knows what he might be hiding in his hair, maybe it’s so big because it’s full of everyones secrets.
Dori: The strong man.
Despite the lack of family resemblance, Dori is the oldest of the three brothers. He is a a Negative Nancy who can only see what will go wrong, and as the big brother we expect he might spend a large portion of the film keeping an eye on sneaky brother Nori and looking after quiet brother Ori. So if you’re unsure, just remember that he’ll be the boring one.
Ori: The fussy one who definitely trims his beard.
Just look at that beard, he trims that thing with a ruler and a magnifying glass. Ori is the dreamer, constantly writing and drawing all of their adventures. He is the youngest of the three and probably suffers the downsides of youngest child syndrome, that is, being bossed around by the others. Given that Ori is so quiet and appeasing, we are guaranteed at least one moment of him snapping back unexpectedly at his elders.
Smaug
We have only had a tiny glimpse at Smaug, the Big Bad of The Hobbit films and all around grumpy dragon. You can catch the best look at him in this Hobbit TV spot, and this is just to show you the endgame. You’ll hear a lot of talk about Smaug during this first film, and while we aren’t sure exactly how much PJ will decide to show us this early on, it’s always good to know where you’re headed.
A ‘Hobbit’ Round-Up
There’s plenty of news surrounding the release of The Hobbit. If behind-the-scenes are your thing, PJ has you covered. Check out this 20 minute mashup of filming on the first Hobbit movie, and watch all of the amazing production vlogs.
Additionally, you can watch the highlights from the world premiere in Wellington, New Zealand. And please, do yourself a favour and don’t go to the film without listening to Howard Shore’s gorgeous soundtrack to The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.
‘The Hobbit’ on Hypable
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Hypable Movie Review: ‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’