How to Train Your Dragon

[Sxottlan]

This was another pleasant little surprise by the Dreamworks animation team.

When they're not making Shrek films, they're actually creating some good little movies lately. They're copying the single parent plot device a lot recently, but the character interaction has felt very natural, for lack of a better word.

That said, the fellow village kids felt a little under-developed and Astrid's explanation for the dragon nest didn't wash at all. I also thought Hiccup could have broached the truth a little earlier from the angle that it would benefit the village if they were to tame the dragons.

Otherwise this was a thrilling little adventure with some stunning art direction and visuals. Always nice to have Roger Deakins around to help out.

[lovejuice]

love it too. i like that they have different breeds of dragons, and the godzilla-dragon is way awesome.

too bad with the shrek and toy story coming out, this thing seems to go under radar.

[MadMan]

This movie has been getting very good reviews, and some friends of mine enjoyed it. So I'll probably try and go see it in theaters.

[Sxottlan]

I have really liked how Dreamworks has found a niche for simple little stories told in small films that still have very epic scale. It feels like the right kind of counter-point to Pixar's more complex narratives where audiences will seek both out. I recently watched the San Francisco sequence from Monsters vs. Aliens again and it remains a lot of fun with massive action.

And the dream sequence from Kung Fu Panda is one of the most beautiful scenes in recent years. I'm also still blown away by the complexity of some of the relationships in the film, such as between Shifu and Tai Lung.

All of these films also benefit from the studio pursuing young comedic talent and incorporating their type of humor.

[lovejuice]

I have really liked how Dreamworks has found a niche for simple little stories told in small films that still have very epic scale. It feels like the right kind of counter-point to Pixar's more complex narratives where audiences will seek both out.

While I can't say Monsters vs. Aliens succeeds to the same degree as Kung Fu Panda or How to Train Your Dragon, I really agree with your analysis here. The fight and flight scenes in H2TYD surpasses a lot of like scenes in recent summer blockbusters. (Heck! In some aspect, I will say, they surpasses Avatar's even.) If Dreamworks keep up with this, perhaps in three or more years, it'll be in "cartoon" where people go to see real actions.

[Fezzik]

Saw this last night. On first blush, I think it's the best CGI animated film DreamWorks has ever done. I loved the hell out of this thing.

The voice work was very good, the animation was stellar (seriously..the facial expression animations? Maybe the best i've ever seen).

Toothless is a wonderful character. Not surprising, really, since co-director Chris Sanders created Lilo and Stitch, and there are some similar earmarks here.

The set pieces were pretty much top shelf across the board, with the final battle being a rather potent high point.

Good stuff.

I echo what's been said before about DreamWorks finding their stride and knowing their strength. Both Kung Fu Panda and this show that they're not trying to out-Pixar Pixar anymore and are comfortable making solid films that feel bigger than they are.

[Sxottlan]

If Dreamworks keep up with this, perhaps in three or more years, it'll be in "cartoon" where people go to see real actions.

Richard Corliss over at Time wrote an article about this very topic. He compared Dreamworks to Warner Brothers and Pixar to Disney back in the old days.

The article speaks favorably of Dreamworks' earlier animated films, but the reason I've enjoyed their recent films so much is because I thought the earlier ones were so terrible. Behold:

Shrek: **
Shrek 2: *1/2
Shark Tale: *
Madagascar: **

Whereas:

Kung Fu Panda: ***
Monsters Vs. Aliens: ***
How to Train Your Dragon: ***1/2

And kind of off on its own:

Prince of Egypt: ***1/2

[Kurosawa Fan]

Wow. I really liked this. Took both sons to it this morning, no one else was in the theater so my youngest was free to ask me questions. Great story, good animation, a few funny moments. This was much better than I expected. My oldest really liked it, too. My youngest, not as much. Still enjoyed it I think, but I think a lot of it went over his head.

[Watashi]

Guess I was one of the few who was really let down by this film. Lovely visuals and great 3D work, but just plain dull characterizations and most important.... it's just not funny. Every single side character outside of Toothless serves little to no purpose.

[lovejuice]

Guess I was one of the few who was really let down by this film. Lovely visuals and great 3D work, but just plain dull characterizations and most important.... it's just not funny. Every single side character outside of Toothless serves little to no purpose.

without watashi's seal of animation approval, somehow i feel like it might not be that great afterall. :sad:

[

Show Spoiler

:P

]

[balmakboor]

Saw it. Loved it. My daughters both want a Toothless for their very own.

[MadMan]

Stunning visuals, plus this was incredibly entertaining. I don't place much stock in characterization anyways-and besides, the characters seemed fine to me, as the story was rather simple yet managed to keep my interest throughout. Toothless was akin to an adorable large dog-I laughed at the scene where he tries to smile. The big action flying sequences were cool, although they did kind of appear to be something that you would find in a video game. Overall, a really good movie that actually warrents the use of 3D, and is a sign that maybe Dreamworks is going in a more interesting direction-although I guess there's Shrek 4 looming in the distance.

[hey it's ethan]

I enjoyed the hell out of this. The best thing about it is how it's not designed exclusively for jokes the way something like Shrek or Madagascar are but rather is just a fantasy movie that takes advantage of the animated medium. The extra work put into this movie by getting people like Roger Deakins and Sigur Ros to give a helping hand really ends up showing.

[Watashi]

What scene was Sigur Ros used?

[hey it's ethan]

What scene was Sigur Ros used?

The end credits; I'm aware that it thus has nothing to really do with the actual movie but it shows that there was more inspiration put into this movie as opposed to something like Shrek 2 which just uses "She Bangs".

[kopello]

This was a total blast, may be my favorite movie so far this year. Even though I was a little stubborn about seeing it in 3D because of the extra price I thought it was actually used very well. Some scenes it was especially used well in were the battle scenes and when Hiccup first flies on Toothless were amazing to look at. It seems Dreamworks is starting to give Pixar a run for its money (not including Shrek lulz).

[Sxottlan]

The end credits; I'm aware that it thus has nothing to really do with the actual movie but it shows that there was more inspiration put into this movie as opposed to something like Shrek 2 which just uses "She Bangs".

Huh. How did I completely miss that? My esteem for this film just went up half a tick.

All the more I feel I need to see this again.

[KK2.0]

I enjoyed the hell out of this. The best thing about it is how it's not designed exclusively for jokes the way something like Shrek or Madagascar are but rather is just a fantasy movie that takes advantage of the animated medium.

It's based on a book series, maybe that's the reason why it's more story driven. I've found this very enjoyable as well, even if it doesn't escape from a few cliches, like:
[

Show Spoiler

the omnipresent tear jerking "ïs he dead or not?" ploy, yikes!

]

i love Nico Marlet's character designs to death, he's the same guy who created Kung Fu Panda's characters and his collaboration with dreamworks has been solid.

[Henry Gale]

Really loved it. I've never felt anything like I did when Toothless takes that first dive down close to the water. Maybe it was the 3D, but I honestly felt it almost physically, and the movie never stopped in that same way of keeping me emotionally captivated either, especially after scenes like that.

Sure, some of the characters seem pretty much just there to spout themes and move along the plot conveniently while not being very interesting and mostly there to say what they don't think kids may be understanding about the plot. Butler's father character has a few too many "[I feel this way about you at this moment], Son." lines, but otherwise I thought the story itself (despite some of the ingredients that drove it) was engaging and realized enough to not have such things feel overly forced.

The whole thing's absolutely gorgeous, I know a lot of credit has been given to Deakins' visual consulting (people forget he also did this for WALL-E), but even the simplest compositions are painted with such perfect and fitting touches. The amount of detail in everything from the freckles on Hiccup's face, to Toothless' skin and any close up to fabric or littles bits of what make of the "natural" environments; it's all spectacular.

The ending got me choked up in a way I definitely didn't expect it to and maybe can only understand again with the full experience of the film, but it like so much of it, it caught me off-guard. For me, only Kung Fu Panda and the first Shrek (which I haven't seen since I was about 13...) come anywhere close to this from the rest of Dreamworks' CG output. DeBlois and Sanders are now an animation duo I will put much trust in for the future.

***½

[Morris Schæffer]

For my money, one of the best animated adventures I've seen in a long time. At times though it virtually moves too fast such as when [

Show Spoiler

Hiccup's dad and armada discover the nest, I kinda wish there would have been some more buildup with them venturing into the cave etc...

]

The final baddie is so fucking awesomely spectacular that had this scene been stretched a bit more, it would have been one of the tensest scenes in all of animation I'm sure. Still, I suppose kids might have fleed the theater in terror.

There's this awe-inspiring shot of a flaming torch being launched into the cave's aperture, and the innards light up and reveal a seemingly infinite number of dragons, resting motionless on its insides.

And just when I thought it ended on too happy a note, Hiccup gets out of bed and WHAM and well, that I didn't expect.

Wonderful stuff!

EDIT: Hiccup and Toothless will return!!!!!

http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=27706

Yes, I think I'd like to see these two return.

[Kurosawa Fan]

It's a series of books. I think there are currently four of them. Not surprised to see a sequel, but I'm definitely happy about it.

[Spaceman Spiff]

This was cute. I liked it. Baruchel's voice is unnecessairly nasal in this though.

Probably the best animated Dreamworks movie, if that says anything.

[Watashi]

This was cute. I liked it. Baruchel's voice is unnecessairly nasal in this though.

Probably the best animated Dreamworks movie, if that says anything.

Kung Fu Panda is by far and away the best CGI DreamWorks movie.

It gets better every time I see it.

[Qrazy]

It's a series of books. I think there are currently four of them. Not surprised to see a sequel, but I'm definitely happy about it.

1. How to Train Your Dragon (2003)
2. How to Be a Pirate (2004)
3. How to Speak Dragonese (2005)
4. How to Cheat a Dragon's Curse (2006)
5. How to Twist a Dragon's Tale (2007)
6. A Hero's Guide to Deadly Dragons (2008)
7. How to Ride a Dragon's Storm (2008)
8. How to Break a Dragon's Heart (2009)

After just reading a synopsis of the first book in the series however I have to say the plot of the film is almost completely different.

[eternity]

It was okay. Just okay.