When I was growing up, The Hobbit was one of my all-time favorite books. Over the years, I’ve always hoped for it to be made into a movie. When the Lord of the Rings was turned into a series of movies, I was thrilled. I loved those and think they really hit their mark.

The Hobbit movie came out a while ago. I took the boys to see it in the theater and we really enjoyed it.

Or at least I thought we did.

When we picked up the DVD the other day, my youngest wasn’t so keen to watch it again.

I didn’t push him, of course. We watched another movie instead.

Last night, I checked out the DVD, and realized the problem. There is way too much graphic violence. Heads get knocked off. Creatures have bars of metal stuck through them.  There’s even one scene that features piles of dead bodies filling the screen. It’s surprisingly disturbing.

The first time I watched it, all that nonsense was just blocked by my internal filter. I’m used to that kind of thing in movies. You might even say I’m desensitized to it. And that’s a huge shame. As a movie-goer, I hate the idea that my brain is missing things just because it’s so used to them.

The Hobbit is a good movie, but it completely missed its mark. It took a truly classic kid’s book and turned it into a gore-fest.

In a way, I wish it had just been a bad movie. I hate the idea that it’s changing people’s memory of The Hobbit.

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