Movie Review Monday: "How to Train Your Dragon"

After a brief hiatus, I'm starting up my regular blog posts. Here's a review of a fairly recent flick (one of my personal favorites!). Enjoy.

Movie Review: “How to Train Your Dragon”

Runtime: 98 minutes

Rating: PG

Year: 2010

Directed in part by both Dean DeBlois (writer for “Mulan” 1998 and “Lilo & Stitch” 2002) and Chris Sanders (writer for “Beauty and the Beast” 1991 and “The Lion King” 1994), this family feature team creates another masterpiece for theater and home. Of course, it helps when the material is basically already written: British author Cressida Cowell’s book makes a wonderful screenplay.

Jay Baruchel (“Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian” 2009) voices Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, the film’s misfit protagonist. Hiccup’s father, Stoic the Vast is Gerard Butler (Gerry in “P.S. I Love You” 2007), and television star America Ferrera, known as “Ugly Betty” (2006) to many, tries her hand at bringing an animated Viking girl to life.

Hiccup narrates the beginning of the film, describing his island home. Viking tradition dictates that only the strong survive, and much of the Viking tradition is based on slaughtering marauding dragons. Despite his father’s clan headsman status, Hiccup is an outcast, a misfit weakling more apt to using his brains than his brawn to solve problems.

In one particular attempt to show his value to the clan, Hiccup manages to bring down a legendary Nightfury—a rare dragon that no clansman can even physically describe—while no one is watching. When faced with killing the downed dragon, Hiccup cannot do it. Instead he befriends the “killer” creature, helping it to fly again. This friendship leads to many surprises about the dragons haunting their village and a possible solution for dragon and Viking alike.

The graphics in the film are amazing, particularly any scene shot in the air. “Shooting” typically refers to live-action films, but the details in the animation make the flight scenes vivid and completely lifelike. Viewing the film once again in high-definition, viewers might even notice a subtle fuzz of stubble on Hiccup’s adolescent face or individual hairs on a Viking’s animal-skin vest stirring in a slight breeze.

Some other delightful aspects of this film include the portrayal of the dreaded Nightfury dragon—its mannerisms are quite catlike and therefore familiar, helping audiences connect with the strange creature. With so many films produced today, directors might feel the need to add a dramatic edge by killing off key characters. Viewers will be delighted to see (spoiler alert!) no one important dies.

Better yet, to offset the sugary-sweet happy ending where nothing goes wrong, Hiccup does undergo some trauma, further demonstrating the strength of his character. This is great for young viewers especially—they learn that bad things may happen in life, but those challenges can be overcome.

This is an excellent film and should be rented, borrowed from friends or purchased for the next family night activity. As British author G.K. Chesterton says: “Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” Or, in Hiccup’s case, befriended!