1. By expanding the story and tying it closely together with The Lord of the Rings, Peter Jackson has made a movie for fans of the book (of which, I am one), and I appreciate that.
2. The Hobbit is a shorter book than The Lord of the Rings, so the movie expands the tale rather than contracts it. For those who love the book, they are quite happy with 45 minutes at the beginning of the movie in Bag End.
3. Martin Freeman is a better lead as Bilbo than Elijah Wood was as Frodo (no disrespect to Elijah Wood; it's just true). (It would be interesting to see how Elijah would have played Frodo if the part had come to him when he was middle-aged like Frodo is in The Lord of the Rings.)
4. The characterization of Thorin (an imperfect character throughout the story) is better and more nuanced than LotR characters like Denethor and Faramir.
5. The flashbacks to the destruction of Dale and Erebor and the Battle of Azanulbizar are like little movies hidden within the larger movie. One of the cooler scenes in LotR was the prelude, when we see the Last Alliance and the battle with Sauron when he loses the one ring. Both of these flashbacks fill in history that cannot be recounted in a full-length movie.
6. The character of Bofur is why fans like the movie version. In the book he doesn't say anything, and he is mostly just a name to fill out the company of 13 dwarves. In the movie, Jackson and James Nesbitt have created a wonderful character who can be funny, friendly, and a great warrior.
7. The two dwarf songs are true to the letter of the book and the spirit of the book. I enjoyed them singing about breaking the plates, but even more, liked the way they used the song about finding the lost gold to end the party at Bag End, and prepare us for the coming quest. Very well done.
8. Elrond was kind of a grump in much of LotR. Here is gets to be a little more like Elrond of the book.
9. The movie is just a lot of fun. Some of the jokes miss the mark, but overall, there is a lot of fun in this movie. From the aforementioned Dwarf songs to the fleshing out of the dwarves' characters to the ridiculous Great Goblin, there is a lot of fun in the film.
10. The best parts of the story are still to come!
