The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies - Official Movie Guide

by Brian Sibley

Journey deeper into the magical world of the hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, through exclusive interviews with director Peter Jackson, Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom and principal filmmakers and cast, including Benedict Cumberbatch, who reveals film-making secrets about playing both the evil Necromancer and the dragon, Smaug.

Richly illustrated with hundreds of behind-the-scenes photos of the actors, locations, creatures and costumes, this special collector’s edition hardback is an essential guide to the final film in the award-winning trilogy.

‘In our adaptation of The Hobbit we have done something that Tolkien didn’t succeed in doing in print and, hopefully, this will come fresh to people who will have never seen the full story playing out in chronological order.’
PETER JACKSON

Genres: Nonfiction, Film, Art, Reference

168 pages, Hardcover

First published November 6, 2014

About the author

Brian Sibley is an English writer, broadcaster, and award-winning dramatist.

The author of over 100 hours of radio drama and hundreds of documentaries and features for the BBC, he is best known for his acclaimed 1981 radio adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, co-written with Michael Bakewell, as well as dramatizations of C. S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia, Mervyn Peake’s Gormenghast novels, and Richard Adams’s Watership Down.

Sibley has also written numerous original plays for radio, presented popular BBC programmes including Kaleidoscope and Talking Pictures, and produced documentaries on figures ranging from Lewis Carroll and Ray Bradbury to Julie Andrews and Walt Disney.

His contributions to broadcasting have earned him accolades such as the Sony Radio Award and the BBC Audio Drama Award for Best Adaptation.

In print, Sibley is the author of many acclaimed film “making of” books, including Harry Potter: Film Wizardry, The Lord of the Rings: The Making of the Movie Trilogy, and Peter Jackson: A Filmmaker’s Journey, as well as companion volumes for The Hobbit films, The Golden Compass, and Disney classics. His literary works range from Shadowlands to children’s books like The Frightful Food Feud and Osric the Extraordinary Owl, with stories appearing in official Winnie-the-Pooh collections.

A noted Disney historian, Sibley has contributed essays to The Walt Disney Film Archives and recorded DVD commentaries for classic films. He is the editor of J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Fall of Númenor, winner of the Tolkien Society’s Best Book award in 2023.

Sibley has served as President and Chair of The Lewis Carroll Society and is an honorary member of The Magic Circle, the Tolkien Society, and The Children’s Books History Society.

Reviews

[J. Jammy May · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

I did it. It’s finally done. After 23 books, I have now read every Tolkien related book I own in my collection. Another series I can finally say I’ve read after eventually getting around to.

[Samuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have seen some reviews of this book that castigated it (or the author) for the fact that it's more about "Desolation of Smaug" than it is about "The Battle of the Five Armies". While it is true that it covers the earlier movie more than the one mentioned on the cover, this is due, I'm sure, to the fact that this book had to be written and printed long before the title movie was completed. In fact, if this book and its predecessors are correct, Peter Jackson and crew were still working on "The Battle of the Five Armies" while I wrote this review on December 15 (the movie premiered the next day for American audiences and went into wide release on the 17th).

This "deficiency" should not have surprised the readers who have been following these books by Brian Sibley since their inception two years ago. The "Offical Movie Guide" for "An Unexpected Journey" dealt mainly with the pre-production details of the movie(s) and all that led into them getting made. The Guide for "Desolation of Smaug" dealt mostly with the actual making of "An Unexpected Journey". So it was only to be expected that this book would deal as much or more with "Desolation of Smaug" as with "Battle", not just because the movie wasn't finished, yet, but also because the filmmakers didn't want to give away too many of their secrets before us film-goers could get into the theater.

All that being said ... I enjoyed this book as much as the previous two volumes. The pictures and artwork are phenomenal and the text--even if it doesn't have quite as much about "Battle" specifically as I would like--has given me a lot of insight into the making of these films and the people who make them.

What we really need, I suppose, is for Brian Sibley to write (and release, maybe next year when the Extended Edition comes out on Blu-Ray & DVD?) a fourth volume, one that answers all our questions about "Battle" as well as wrapping up the creation of all these films and their subsequent home versions.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

i think that i would give this 3 1/2 my big problem with this was that about 85% of this was stuff from the desolation of smaug. this is a book on the battle of the five armies so why is there so much stuff from the last movie in this book. it was a real let down. i love anything hobbit so of course i loved this book i was just disappointed with the content

[Sharon Powers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book Review by: Sharon Powers.
NOTE: If you would like to see the whole review with graphics, references and sources, please visit my blog at http://sharonsloveofbooks.blogspot.com/
_________________________________

One of the biggest movies of the year, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is set for release on December 17, 2014. So much publication and promotion is going on around this movie, that I thought we could take a quick look at this cultural phenomenon this week.

Last week, I reviewed, The Hobbit or There and Back Again, by J.R.R. Tolkien, a truly wonderful book for young people of any age to read. So, if you haven't read, The Hobbit, please consider reading it--if you aren't sure, check out last week's blog post by clicking, here.

As you can see from the two book covers that I have, here, on the left, we will be looking at two books that relate to the movie, and tangentially, to Tolkien's book. Both of these books were created in anticipation of promoting the upcoming movie. Let's take a look at them [1-2]:
____________________________

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies--
Official Movie Guide
by Brian Sibley

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
This book covers some 58 sections with topics ranging from the Director and the Director's thoughts to "Bag End" and Home Again, with many wide-ranging topics in between. What you normally expect to find in a movie guide is information about the set designs, costume designs, stunts and stunt coordinators, and interviews with the stars. This movie guide includes all of the basic information you would expect to see in a movie guide.


Smaug and Bilbo from the movie, The Desolation of Smaug.
This glossy two-page spread are on pages 34-35. [Sorry about
the glare, the pages are glossy and seem to catch every light.]
In addition to the basic information, Brian Sibley has customized the book with specific information relating to the book and the movies: An Unexpected Journey; The Desolation of Smaug; and The Battle of the Five Armies. Within these discrete areas we learn about shooting locations, the importance of sound effects, music, and importantly, Smaug, the Dragon. We also find out about Benedict Cumberbatch's experiences voicing Smaug, about specific characters like, Bard the Bowman, Sarumann, the Necromancer, Gandalf, Thorin, and Bilbo. The book also revisits the movies, An Unexpected Journey and The Desolation of Smaug. And, finally, a section is included about The Battle of the Five Armies.

MY FAVORITE QUOTE FROM THE BOOK:
Actually, the quote I have selected for today, is not my favorite quote. It is a quote with which I disagree. Here it is:

Billy Connolly (left) and Peter Jackson (right) in this photo
from the Movie Guide, are discussing the character Connolly
will be portraying in the movie--Dain Ironfoot. (pp.140-143)
Oh, I saw the movie, it was nothing like the book. Well, it's not supposed to be: a book's a book and a movie's a movie and, with The Hobbit, I was in New Zealand to make a movie not a book. [Billy Connolly] (p.142)
And, then, just before this quote, Billy Connolly also said, "Peter asked me for lunch on the first day and asked if I'd read The Hobbit, 'No,' I replied, 'not only haven't I read it, I don't like people who have.'" (p.141)

OK, then. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I respect the fact that Mr. Connolly can voice his opinion. However, I have my opinion, too. Reading books is one of the most beautiful things anyone can do. It broadens the mind, stimulates cell growth, and in general, just keeps you young at heart. It also makes you more knowledgeable and able to speak to others on a wide range of topics.

Second, I know there exists some controversy over books being adapted to movies. Mr. Connolly has hit the nail on the head. A book, indeed, is a book, and a movie is a movie. The problem arises, though, when a movie is based upon a book--when the movie grows out of a book, like The Hobbit.

The whole process of book-to-movie adaptations can be very intriguing and most interesting. I love both the book and the movie. Movies makers must adapt or change certain things about a book to make it capable of being filmed. Seldom does a novelist write with a movie in mind as his/her end result. Usually, the desired goal is a book. From there, if movie makers decide it is suitable for being adapted, the process begins to convert the book to a screenplay. There is room for both. There is nothing wrong with discussing how books are adapted to screen. There is nothing wrong with discussing how visionaries of the movie saw the process of shaping the book-to-movie.

One final word: If you know someone who has read a book (or need I also add, genre?) that is not to your liking, please respect that person's individuality. You would want your tastes and choices respected. The world is a diverse place, so learn to accept the differences of others--including what they read. Don't hate people who read books you don't like.


WHAT I THINK ABOUT THE BOOK:

First, the good stuff. I do like that all the basic information that is normally expected to be in a movie guide has been included. This means that everything from choosing the actors for the movie, shooting locations, costume designs, music and sound effects, stunts and stunt coordinators, and, of course, interviews with the director, and actors and what they think about the movie, their fellow actors, locations, and just how much they appreciate being part of it all, is included in the book. Also, looking at content, the book is comprehensive and well-written. The comprehensiveness is a double-edged sword, here, though, which I will explain in a minute.

(1) Also heading the top of my likes list is the physical construction of the book, itself. The cover is cardstock, with beautiful embossing on the front cover of the movie title and the large helmet. Also, the front cover boasts glossy areas making the cover very attractive to the eye, and lending a nice feel to the hand.

(2) The pages of the book are semi-glossy with many single or double page photographs included. Also, as you can see from the photograph, the pages are securely glued and bound to the cover. The binding absolutely must be secure because if not, the pages will fall out. I have a few books that have had the pages come out; in effect, this ruins the book. So, I give a thumbs up to this book with its secure binding.

Next, what I find about the book that I consider to be negative: Above, I mentioned that the book was comprehensive in a good way. The other side of that, the negative side, is that the book is so comprehensive that justice has not been done to The Battle of the Five Armies.


The book is open to pages 116-117, where The Battle of the
Five Armies is finally beginning to be discussed. Between
page 116 and 168 only 18 pages discuss the movie.
Since the title of the book is The Battle of the Five Armies Official Movie Guide, one would expect the book to be about The Battle of the Five Armies. The book is also promoted as covering The Battle of the Five Armies. The problem, here, is that very little of the book speaks to the movie--about which the book has been named.

Take a look at the photograph, here, on the right. I have opened the book to page 116. This is where the book starts to address The Battle of the Five Armies. The total amount of pages in the book is 168. Of the 52 remaining pages, 18 are full page photographs, 15 pages are of material other than the battle (ex. The Weta Workshop, and the love triangle between Legolas, Tauriel and Kili), and finally, 1 page is an epilog. The total remaining pages addressing the battle? It is 18 pages out of 168 total pages in the book. This can only be described as pathetic.


The Hobbit: An Un-
expected Journey. [3]
Since this book was released to the public for purchase November 11, 2014, a little over a month before the movie comes to theaters on December 17th, I have to assume that the book is meant to promote the movie. After all, it is an "OFFICIAL MOVIE GUIDE." What else can we deduce from this? Given the extremely small amount of information about The Battle of the Five Armies, I can see that the creators of the book merely counted on excited people to buy the book and give them their hard earned money. In turn, they provided a rehash of material already published about The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.


The Hobbit: The
Desolation of Smaug. [4]
Filling the book up with information about The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey, and The Desolation of Smaug is nothing more than padding; this is a quick way to make money off of consumers without providing what they impliedly promised through the title of the book. This book blatantly misrepresents that the book is about the movie, when in fact only 18 pages out of 168 address the movie at all. I was extremely disappointed with the content of this book.

While some new information is provided in the 18 pages that may be exciting to fans, I found that watching the trailers for the movie, I could figure out most of the "new" information. I think that, in general, anyone hoping to get new information about this movie will be disappointed.

MY RECOMMENDATIONS AND RATING FOR THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES:
Aside from a few pictures of Smaug and orcs I saw no real "monsters" in the book. Nor did I see any mayhem or read any off color language. I would rate the book as acceptable to persons of a general audience.
[5]
Given the reasons I have stated, above, I rate this book 3.0 stars out of 5.0 Stars. The book gets credit for a great cover, glossy, professional and elegant presentation, and, of course, beautiful pictures. I downgraded the rating given the lack of meaningful content for The Battle of the Five Armies.

[Terry Wryt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having enjoyed the previous official guides for The Hobbit films, this final installment offers an incredible behind-the-scenes look at the epic conclusion to Bilbo Baggins’ journey. Filled with exclusive interviews from director Peter Jackson, the cast including Martin Freeman and Ian McKellen, and insights from Benedict Cumberbatch, the book reveals fascinating details about bringing the terrifying Necromancer and the mighty dragon Smaug to life.

The hundreds of rich photographs showcasing locations, costumes, and special effects make this collector’s edition a visual feast for fans. It provides a comprehensive and immersive experience that deepens appreciation for the film’s scale and artistry.

This guide is an essential companion for anyone who has followed the trilogy and wants to explore the magic behind the final battle.

[Henry Cavil · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have had this book for a while. I've often flipped through it, but today I sat down and read it/looked at it page by page. In the forward Martin mentions being nervous about Fantasy Flight giving a face to all of his characters. This book was published before the TV show, of course, and while that is true I now have so many of these characters firmly in my head that some of the art was unsatisfactory for that reason. Unfair perhaps, but that is how it goes.

[Rise Naomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books are totally awesome.

[Martein Joaquim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Watch the battle of the five armies

[sarai · Rating 4 out of 5]

WILD that this was PUBLISHED before most of the movie was finished. like i KNOW pj's cranking up until the deadline so like what is the point of half of this

[Austin J Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another trip to a land filled with wonder and beauty! What I like the most about this book was getting insight into the various forces that were unfolding such as the armies Azog and Bolg were leading, the elves, dwarves, and men who opposed them, and hearing about the locations and some of the mindsets of the other characters and more. Great book and it was an awesome movie!

[Austin J Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing! There were many things that I enjoyed about this book. One thing that was particularly interesting was hearing how the actors thought of Peter as a director and how he let them do what they wanted while maintaining his high standards. The chapters and pages on Smaug was also fascinating: hearing about the challenge with designing him, hearing about how intelligent and cunning he is, and about hearing about his mindset especially when he was asking Bilbo questions in The Desolation of Smaug. I especially liked reading about the Kili, Legolas, Tauriel triangle, especially after reading about the movie in Entertainment Weekly about how Tauriel is way out of Kili's league and how man on elf action is way better than dwarf on elf action. I just saw this movie on Christmas and it was awesome!

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's cool. No full-page pictures of Thranduil though. :( I mean, the companion guide for Desolation had him, so I guess they thought they didn't need him twice. They were wrong.

But yeah, I love seeing the behind-the-scenes stuff & reading a bit of how something was done, little trivia pieces, etc.

[Ella · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the movie guides! In my opinion they're better than the movies!! They're just like written versions of the extras, not that I've watched the extras for The Hobbit just yet.