Just over a decade ago, Peter Jackson redefined cinema, the adaptation of novels and special effects integrated with live action with his epic Lord Of The Rings trilogy. After some false starts, including a possibility of Guillermo Del Toro directing, winter 2012 sees a return to Middle Earth for Jackson and audiences, and what a return.

60 years before the harsh journey faced by Frodo, Samwise, Merry, Pippin and the Fellowship, Middle Earth was a brighter, sunnier, happier place, full of hopes, dreams, wants and wishes, a world full of folks from clans of different species all mingling up and aiming at the short term goals that mean most, those goals that when faced up against the evil of Sauran are insignificant, but as he lay dormant are much more focussed on. It's the smalls and the seemingly insignificant that play the largest part in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

With a prologue narrated by older Bilbo (Ian Holm of course) seeing the events that led the Dwarves to untold riches in their mountain home, and the evil dragon Smaug to take them out, steal from them their home, their money, everything they've ever known. The film incorperates the way the novel was written from Bilbo's latter day perspective, whilst offering context of the Bilbo who writes it, guest spot to Elijah Wood not looking a day older than when he last walked around The Shire, as the two interact, Frodo tries to look over Bilbo's book, and then opts to head out and wait for Gandalf (The ultimate set-up for the sequel). These little touches add a flourish of personality that felt sorely missed in a stunning, epic but oddly clinical adaptation of the Lord Of The Rings films. A heart, humour and pathos shines through The Hobbit from the get go, and as Gandalf and Bilbo meet, and dwarf after dwarf arrives at Bilbo's door, eating all his supplies and seriously putting a damper on a quiet Hobbit evening of food, reading, smoking and relaxing, it's quite clear that the film will revel in the interactions, the characters and the small events that make the world living and breathing. The Lord Of The Rings was a place for the stoic, the serious and above all else, the extremely large scope, story and seriously jeopardizing events. The Hobbit is about fun, adventure, excitement and the small things that make life a joy.

The journey that the title claims is unexpected, so now we expect it, begins very well in this feature, as the dwarves enter Bilbo's home, singing songs of joy and sadness, and get Gandalf to broach the subject of taking Bilbo along to help, seeing as Hobbits aren't likely to be noticed on their adventures, invisible to those who don't look for them. Naturally, Bilbo being of sound body and mind doesn't wish to head off to possible death, but as the dwarves and Gandalf begin to bring a sense of localised community that the Shire just doesn't offer as closely as it could, Bilbo begins to want to join them. And what a great idea. Sure, the perils are all around, but what fun and larks Bilbo, Gandalf, Thorin, Balin, Dwalin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Fili, Kili, Nori, Ori, Dori, Pugh, Pugh, Barney McGrew get up to. Be it taking out a trio of trolls, or squaring up to the Goblin King, whose chin is Boss Nass meets a rather infected testicle sack, and voiced wonderfully by Barry Humphries. The feeling of adventure is stronger than the threat of death, and the overwhelming feeling that this beginning is the small start of an epic ending is glorious.

And that's where we come to look at the performances, in an epic sweeping adventure, it's all housed on the shoulders of its leads, and with Martin Freeman and Richard Armitage as young Bilbo and dwarf king Thorin, a mighty warrior dwarf who proves that size matters not when heart and bravery in the face of unmentionable horrors flow through you. Freeman's Bilbo enchants, with a neurotic sense of worry as anyone considerably out of their comfort zone would be, but never seeming to be too worried to give up and go home. His sense of adventure and loyalty to the group is handled well, it's a small performance but perfect for the character, the film's arc and the story. In Armitage, we see a tough, proud dwarf cutting a figure similar to that of man, standing up and leading the charge. He may not be of the smartest race, but he's got enough brains to match the brawn, and whilst Armitage has less to build the character with, it is clear who Thorin is from the get go, and handles the more by-the-numbers character evolution well.

In addition to those two, of course, is founding member of the franchise Sir Ian McKellen, once again as Gandalf The Grey. He's comfortable in the wizard's skin now, and can get big dramatic moments and sly wit with ease. Scenes with Bilbo are magnificent, and his roundtable with Elrond, Galadriel and Sauroman are just perfect fan-baiting material. Super performance as ever in an expanded role.

The other dwarves don't get enough time to bring attention, but there's no weak link, plus it's nice to see James Nesbitt in 3D 48fps nowadays.

Sylvester McKoy's Radagast the Brown, whilst not seeming to have much rleevance to the adventure, does well in being kind of kooky whilst bringing the omnipresent notions of future darkness and doom into the film, and Andy Serkis returning as Gollum, with slightly more hobbitity to him, is fantastic. A cracking 20 minute sequence between he and Bilbo is truly magnificent. And Gollum in 3D, with those bulging eyes and pouncing pose, superb.

Given that this is but part one of a trilogy based on a considerably shorter book than any of the Lord Of The Rings series, it is well paced, almost always entertaining, most importantly fun and funny, and hugely enjoyable. The scary sense of danger is clear, but The Hobbit always makes sure there's a lighter side, we're not bogged down as the audience in doom and gloom. There's a hope, and it's a shinging light full of colour, warmth and heart. A cracking script played by excellent actors on sets and effects work that are technically marvellous. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is easily the best of the Middle Earth series, and Peter Jackson's best film since The Frighteners. It is clearly part one, and by that the conclusion feels less than stellar, and the action directing leaves you wanting, but that may be based on the following look at the HFR element, but The Hobbit's first part is a journey that is unexpectedly good, and one you'd want to go on again soon. Magical.

Technologically speaking, there's obviously 2 things to discuss here. First up, Middle Earth in 3D. Peter Jackson's good with this, whilst there's a lot of things done for the popping out effect, including birds and butterflies flying into the screen, it's not all about that, and with subtle elements pushing through the screen such as tree branches, sheathed swords, hands and staffs, it's not all showy, but never dull. The depth of the film is clear throughout, Middle Earth has always been so utterly lifelike and gorgeously realised, but now to see the depth and distance of it all, the film offers such a visual experience, a real treat for fans, that it comes highly recommended. Any issues of darkness or colour lost worries are insignificant, as it's a lighter picture than the LOTR trilogy, and the colours in the film pop with vibrancy not seen outside of The Shire before on screen. Cleverly played and outstanding.

The HFR (High Frame Rate) sees the film running at 48 frames per second rather than 24. You've heard of the word about people feeling ill, claiming it looks like a cheesy soap opera, and in some cases they are correct, I had a bit of eye strain as the film wore on personally, and as my eyes adjusted in earlier sequences, Bilbo wandering around his home looked a little off, but for the most part HFR looks great, stunning even, with clarity so strong and detail clear. That is mostly because a lot of the movie is relaxed and involving talking rather than walking, running, fighting. When action is called upon, between some brutally choppy editing and camerawork that just doesn't work, the fps change makes it feel like things have been sped up, Maybe no motion blur, but things move in such an odd way that it takes you out too much. As said earlier, as my eyes adjusted it felt like Bilbo was walking quickly round his house, doing things, but it just doesn't look right. Sure, water flows naturally now, and rain drops better, but everything feels sped up. The best stuff is in slow motion moments, clarity is gorgeous and the flow is sublime. But that's more Zack Snyder's area than Peter Jackson's, and as a whole, whilst it's an interesting attempt, it's hard to justify testing out something that has potential to hurt or win people over on a film that runs as long as this. You're in it for the long haul if you're not happy with it.