Examiner writes: Serving as a prequel to the Lord of the Rings trilogy ("Fellowship of the Ring", "The Two Towers" and "Return of the King"), director Peter Jackson reluctantly steps back into the directors chair to begin yet another trilogy taking place in Middle Earth (Jackson was originally going to serve in a supporting role as Guillermo Del Toro was originally set to direct before bowing out a year before principal photography was to begin). Any fan of the film series should know automatically what to expect from another visit to J.R.R. Tolkien's wonderous world filled with all sorts of fantastical delights and those expectations are met perfectly. As if more proof were needed, Peter Jackson proves once again that he was born to bring these stories to the big screen with "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey", a fantastic beginning to what should hopefully be yet another amazing journey through Middle Earth. (Cinema, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey) A/A+