Should Peter Jackson's _The Hobbit_ film be a trilogy?

The momentum of a single ongoing story is lost in a trilogy of films because of how much time it takes them to crank out a film versus a TV series. And also because the whole experience is different. Films are spectacle-driven while a good TV series is character-driven. While there are plenty of opportunities for spectacle in The Hobbit, it's really a character and argument-driven piece. Bilbo's conversations with Gandalf, Gollum, Smaug and Thorin, not to mention his own inner musings, are really what made us fall in love with hobbits in the first place and make it an endearing, classical work of fantasy literature.

Peter Jackson is NOT a filmmaker suited for fantasy or epics. His King Kong remake was awful. He was incapable of connecting us with the personal anguish of King Kong and so the spectacle falls flat. However, he's great with visceral imagery and should stick to horror. In that respect I would consider him superior to Tim Burton, whose brand of films are creepy because they reflect a disturbed childhood rather than a cohesive approach towards the horror/thriller genre, ie. Alice in Wonderland and Willy Wonka. Jackson's most successful scene in all of LOTR is the confrontation with Shelob. It combines epic fantasy action and CG effects with a gritty, visceral look that makes the physical dynamics of the struggle with the giant spider believable as an experience.

Tolkien's work is driven by linguistics and landscape. It is epic fantasy storytelling at its most meticulous and evocative. Ridley Scott is the one director who has proven that while he falls short with characters, he can create an entire world out of nothing. Perhaps James Cameron as well, although I'm not a fan of Avatar. Personally, I'd want Martin Scorsese to direct The Hobbit, since he's debuted successfully into the fantasy genre with Hugo and, as a true Italian director, knows how to get performances out of his actors that bring to life compelling characters onscreen.