Kids movies always have one major caveat: they are predictable. The unsung hero will prove him, or her, self at the behest of a whole bunch of non-believers and in the end be triumphant. Think “Shrek,” “Harry Potter,” “Star Wars,” “Lord of the Rings,” the list goes on and on. “How To Train Your Dragon” is yet another entry in this time tested genre and draws heavily from each of those films.
Thankfully, because everyone can figure out where the film is going from the first five minutes, “How To Train Your Dragon” has plenty of things to distinguish it and therefore make it worthwhile.
Set on the Viking island of Berk, the movie is about Hiccup (voiced by Jay Baruchel), a scrawny young man who doesn’t fit in with his big, strong, people. On this island, the main thing everyone talks about are the dragons that they must kill to sustain life and Hiccup, being so tiny, is regularly mocked for his lack of skill. He haphazardly ends up capturing one of the most mythic of these dragons, the Night Fury, and ends up developing a bond with it. This bond, and the lessons he learns from it, give him extreme skill with the dragons and even his father, Stoick the Vast (voiced by Gerald Butler), is impressed. Things, however, get a little hairy when Hiccup’s secret comes out and it’s up to him to prove himself and save the day.
Several things make “How To Train Your Dragon” stand apart from the ho-hum film it could have been. First is the voice talent. Each of the actors involved: Baruchel, Butler, America Ferrera, Chris Mintz-Plasse, Johan Hill, Craig Ferguson, Kristin Wiig, etc. all give the film a very realistic and humorous tone. They are simultaneously real and engaging. The music by John Powell will give you goosebumps it’s so good and some of the action scenes – the ones of Hiccup flying in particular – are beautiful, epic and will almost bring a tear to your eye.
Begin as it’s such a simple coming of age story, the film does drag a little bit in the middle. The only thing that save it is the fresh, interesting information provided about the viking and dragon cultures.
“How To Train Your Dragon” doesn’t reinvent the wheel, it just puts some shiny new gloss on it (the 3D is a whole lot of fun too). It provides audiences exactly what they want: a family friendly, epic action film. It’s not without some faults, but you’ll all be happy that you saw it.
