Of course this like the other this movie is 2 hours and 46 minutes and there isn't a dull moment at all. Every minute is consumed with lush cinematography, story story story, humor, set up for future films, and breathtaking special effects.
The plot is Bilbo is with a group to help a mission of securing a home. I don't want to give the plot away, but so amazing.
The characters are well rounded. They aren't just a bunch of loud mouth dwarves. I couldn't take my eyes off the screen except for when I had run out of popcorn and had to switch to Sour Patch Kids.
If you liked the first three Lord films then you will LOVE this. A few surprise cameos for those of us whom have watched the 9 hour trilogy back to back on more than one occasion. Worth the price of admission for anyone whom hasn't seen the first Lord films and want to start at the beginning. I predict another Oscar nomination from Sir Ian McKellan and Richard Armitage of Thorin blew me away. He's got an AMAZING future. He is basically Viggo Mortensen's character for this trilogy.