“How to Train Your Dragon review is a thrilling, beautiful fantasy adventure.”
- Fantastic cast performances
- Realistic fantasy visuals
- Compelling characters
- Heartfelt narrative
- Respects the source material
- Some rushed plot points
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DreamWorks and Universal Pictures successfully revived an instant fantasy classic with How to Train Your Dragon. This live-action remake of the 2010 animated film follows Hiccup (now played by Mason Thames) as he defies his Viking brethren and befriends the Night Fury Toothless, defying centuries of Viking traditions and revealing the true nature of dragons and their war with humans.
How to Train Your Dragon had to meet high expectations as a remake of one of DreamWorks’ most popular films. However, given that the animated film’s co-director, Dean DeBlois, also helmed this remake, it’s no surprise that How to Train Your Dragon remained true to what made the original movie so beloved. As a result, the movie presents a faithful reimagining of the original animated story, all while delivering outstanding performances and realistic fantasy visuals.
The remake does the original story justice
Based on this remake, it seems Dean DeBlois is a believer in the phrase, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” How to Train Your Dragon retains many of the story beats from the source material, sticking to the story of friendship, compassion, parenthood, and acceptance that fans know and love. The film also maintains a brisk and thrilling pace that, for the most part, succeeds at telling a balanced narrative. Nevertheless, Hiccup and Toothless’s adventure is as entertaining and heartwarming as ever, with the duo growing from reluctant enemies to symbiotic pals holding each other up.
How to Train Your Dragon delivers plenty of thrilling action, with the characters battling vicious dragons on the ground or in the skies. While it features plenty of lighthearted jokes like the animated film, the new movie still pairs them well with more grounded, serious character drama, particularly between Hiccup, Astrid, and Stoick. This all makes for a family-friendly adventure that audiences can enjoy and take seriously as a live-action movie.
New and returning actors steal the show
While most of the remake’s cast is different from the animated film’s, How to Train Your Dragon boasts extraordinary talent from its actors, particularly its younger players. Mason Thames plays the ambitious hero Hiccup with such awkward, youthful energy. He also has fantastic chemistry with Nico Parker, who plays his rival and love interest, Astrid, with realistic charm, pride, and intensity. Astrid herself is given more depth in the remake as she competes with the more privileged Hiccup and tries to fight her way to the top. Likewise, the film gives Gabriel Howell a chance to shine even more as Snotlout. By giving him a new character arc in which he desperately tries to impress his father, the film presents Snotlout in a more sympathetic and relatable light.
As for the adult cast, Nick Frost deserves props for bringing his skillful humor to his performance as the quirky, kind-hearted Gobber. However, Gerard Butler stands out the most, reprising his role as Stoick the Vast, portraying the battle-hungry Viking with great vigor, confidence, and charisma befitting a Viking chief. Despite this, Butler brings plenty of vulnerability to his macho-headed character. This captures Stoick as both a conflicted leader trying to protect his clan and a parent struggling to raise and accept his child, making his character arc in the remake even more compelling.
A stunning and realistic live-action adventure
The remake doesn’t just faithfully recreate the dragons from the original animated film. How to Train Your Dragon also flawlessly blends its CGI creation with its live-action visuals, giving dragons like Toothless such depth and realism to their appearance and behavior. The CGI succeeds just as well in the film’s high-flying scenes through the skies of Berk, making for an immersive and jaw-dropping fantasy epic.
Overall, How to Train Your Dragon preserves the visual style and aesthetic of the animated film with near-perfect precision, making it even more enjoyable for the franchise’s established fans. Cinematographer Bill Hope deserves considerable credit for recreating and enhancing the original movie’s look with the remake’s breathtaking imagery. It’s easy to call the latter an improvement of the 2010 movie, given the significant advancements in computer-generated animation since 2010. However, that doesn’t make How to Train Your Dragon‘s remake any less of a stirring visual marvel.
Is How to Train Your Dragon worth a watch?
DeBlois succeeds in preserving the legacy of How to Train Your Dragon with his faithful remake. It’s an engrossing, heart-pounding story rich in lore and filled with action, humor, emotion, and incredible performances. It may not have been necessary, given that the original motion picture was already such a beloved classic.
However, this How to Train Your Dragon remake is still a beautiful and blood-pumping adventure that welcomes audiences, young and old. Whether they are die-hard fans of the original movies or newcomers to the franchise, audiences should go out and watch this movie on the big screen.
How to Train Your Dragon is now in theaters.
