Peter Jackson Bids Goodbye to Middle Earth with "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies"

 The Hobbit trilogy has reached its bloody climax finally with mayhem and bloodshed unleashed in "Middle Earth."

And director Peter Jackson says it is not a minute too soon. "It's the first time we've got to kill dwarves," he said, reports the Associated Press. His enthusiasm for the destructive climax is at odds with his laid back looks.

"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" ends the trilogy based on J.R.R. Tolkien's book where hobbit Bilbo Baggins reluctantly leaves his abode to help dwarves retake their mountain home from a dragon.

"It's hard to get any emotional power in a film unless you are able to actually kill some of your main characters," he said. "We've been hampered with that in the first two 'Hobbit' movies. But at least we have a good dwarf death toll in the third one."

The movie is a 3D extravaganza with CGI and relatively shorter than the other two films. The others were journeys but this is about a battle to regain lost home involving dragons, elves, hobbits, dwarves, orcs and humans, he said.

Jackson has spent almost 15 years in making the Tolkien films and technology has changed in that period. "When we did the first 'Lord of the Rings' movie we couldn't do CGI water and fire," Jackson said.  Now "The Battle of the Five Armies" opens with a spectacular dragon attack on Lake-town.

"Battle of the Five Armies" ends the Tolkien saga that includes Jackson's three "Lord of the Rings" films.

The director said that Hobbit was deliberately not treated as a children's film to adjust to the grown-up world of "The Lord of the Rings," set decades later.

He also said he was relieved that fantasy films were now being treated as a respectable genre and was amazed at the popularity and interest in the "Game of Thrones" saga.

"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" opens Dec. 17 in the United States.