The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug instal the new for mac

Some of that cash could be heading Harvey Weinstein's way after the producer signalled the latest round in an continuing battle over profits from the new trilogy by issuing a $75m lawsuit against studio Warner Bros. The new film is consequently predicted to carry all before it at the global box office once again, with some suggesting it may even outpace An Unexpected Journey's gargantuan $1.017bn (£600m) haul. In fact, the movie as a whole has been picking up markedly better reviews than its predecessor did. While The Desolation of Smaug was screened for critics at 24fps in many territories, those who did see it at the higher frame rate have often remarked that the sequel has a much improved look. The film speed and the look of the picture are almost, kind of, two different things.'

Not more like 35mm film necessarily, but just to take the HD quality away from it, which I think I did reasonably successfully. 'When I did the colour timing this year, the colour grading, I spent a lot of time experimenting with ways we could soften the image and make it look a bit more filmic. 'So what I did is work that in reverse,' he said. Jackson said he took time out to try and gauge exactly why some audiences did not like the look of higher frame rate in the wake of An Unexpected Journey's release, and came to the conclusion that the film's image was sharper than viewers were used to in cinemas.

'It's so much more comfortable on the eyes.' He said the screen blur, or strobing effect of lower rate film 'certainly is one of the contributing factors to eyestrain and people having an uncomfortable experience in 3D'. 'Forty-eight frames per second is a way, way better way to look at 3D,' Jackson told Variety. But he said he had taken steps to ensure the sequel's look more closely resembled traditional film. Jackson remains convinced that the higher frame rate, with its ability to eliminate the screen-blur effect seen at the standard 24fps during fast-paced action sequences, represents a significant step forward.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug instal the new for mac