One of the the craziest things about “The Hobbit” film trilogy is the fact that like in many mainstream films, the concept of “home” is romanticized, and yet unlike many mainstream films, the reality of “home” is shown to be incredibly toxic. 

Both Thorin and Bilbo glorify their homes in their minds, yet in both cases when they actually reach the home they’ve been dreaming about, they find them to be empty, desolate, and nightmarish. Their homes literally trap them in a downward spiral of corruption and bring them into proximity with evil objects of gold that subvert their inherent personalities and goodness as people. Their homes destroy them.

This is still wild to me. Sure there’s other, more artistic films that will deal with the idea of “home” being a toxic rather than a healthy place. But it is unusual to see the reality of their homes vs. the narrative about their homes that the characters believe to be true running so contradictory to one another in a film that isn’t otherwise too concerned with being intellectual. Even the books don’t focus on this message to that extent. Whereas in the films, there is a central theme that the idea of “home” as a fixation on a place is less healthy for us than the actions we take, and the people we choose to be with. 

And that is quite bold and unusual.