I wonder if the Kingsfoil bit was supposed to somehow replace the sleepy river incident, while at the same time attempt to force the Elf/Dwarf love affair subplot. Remember when Arwen needed Kingsfoil in the LOTR movie to save Frodo? Dwarves would not know of it, because it's needed for an Elf spell.
Kingsfoil is a healing herb known by elves and the Dunedain.
But that whole scene was just gut wrenching. I mean Arwen in the movies was also gutwrenching as well. But I digress. As I've said before I treat the movies seperately from the books because to me they're different tales entirely. They follow the same general outline but you can't fit all the material from LOTR into 3 movies. For the Hobbit I like the idea of the expansion but ultimately I think they should have just stuck to 2 movies. Hollywood has this desire to unnecessarily drag out their book based blockbusters, Harry Potter, Twilight and Hunger Games are all stretched out in their last book. Same basic thing happened with the hobbit.
It I was writing the screen play for 2 movies it would go
Start prologue style about the battle where Dain kills Azog
Beginning same as the book.
I'd add some more tension before getting to the Misty Mountains, because face it **** can get boring fast
Misty Mountains
Eagles
Beorn
Walk into Mirkwood end of the first movie with them captured by spiders.
Sprinkle in the Stuff with Dol Galdur in there as well.
Second movie. Open with assault on Dol Galdur, cut mid battle to fight with spiders.
Elves carpture and escape in the barrels. I'm not even 100% opposed to the battle escaping in the barrels, only other way to tell it is bilbo riding the barrels because honestly,showing from the dwarves perspective is boring.
Lake Town
Finish battle at Dol Galdur and Gandalf starting to return to the company
Lonely mountain stuff
Smaug dies
Post Smaug stuff
5 armies
bilbo goes home.
I think that would comfortably first into 2 2-2.5 hour movies with no major boring time.