Peter Jackson's The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is another box office hit based on J.R.R. Tolkien's book The Hobbit.
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was a British writer, poet, philologist and a teacher who was known for his staunch belief in the Catholic Church. The writer's devout Catholic faith played an important role in the conversion of famous Christian writer C. S. Lewis, a former atheist turned Christian apologist. Given the Tolkien's religious affinity, it's no wonder The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies contains plenty of Christian themes.
The plot revolves around a Hobbit called Bilbo Baggins, played by Martin Freeman. Bilbo is friends with a powerful and good wizard called Gandalf, played by Ian McKellen just like in the other Lord of the Rings films.
Bilbo and a group of dwarf companions face dangerous situations. They battle evil characters like orcs, wargs, goblins, trolls, and giant spiders.
There is the recurring theme of good winning over evil in the entire film. The main characters display Christian traits such as humility, faithfulness and love.
Similar to unwilling and insecure Biblical characters like Moses and the Christian persecutor Saul, Bilbo ends up successful in his mission through divine providence.
In one scene, Bilbo tells Gandalf the wizard how lucky he (Bilbo) has been. Gandalf replied, "You don't really suppose do you, that all your adventures and escapes were managed by mere luck?"
There is also the strong Christian theme of forgiveness in the film. In one scene, the residents of Laketown form an angry mob, wishing to punish a selfish character called Alfrid. Bard the Bowman, the captain of a company of town archers, stops them from seeking revenge. This brings to mind the Biblical quote, "Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord." - Romans 12:19
The film is rated PG-13 for sequences of violence. The script however is mild and does not contain swear words. God's name is never taken in vain. The film doesn't display sex or nudity in any form.
The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies was released on December 17 in America and made over $54 million during its opening weekend.