REVIEW: How to Train Your Dragon [2010]

Rating: PG | Runtime: 98 minutes
Release Date: March 26th, 2010 (USA)
Studio: DreamWorks Animation / Paramount Pictures
Director(s): Dean DeBlois & Chris Sanders
Writer(s): William Davies and Dean DeBlois & Chris Sanders / Cressida Cowell (book)

The offspring of lightning and evil itself.

I learned something new today—Scandinavian Vikings have Scottish accents. Well, at least the adults do, the brogue seems to have withered away in the next generation of dragon slayers. Yes, dragon slaying is the main occupation of these massive brutes, doing all they can to protect their island village while the fire-breathing beasts ravage it in search of food.

What I also learned while watching How to Train Your Dragon is that studios are catching on to what makes 3D effective. Much like how Avatar used it to envelop its audience into a world they’ve never seen, Dreamworks creates depth rather than the gimmick of throwing stuff at our faces. As a result, you soon forget the glasses on your face and begin enjoying the ride, sitting back as young Hiccup becomes the first Viking to attempt becoming a dragon’s friend rather than killing it while its down. Let’s just say the elders of Berk don’t quite take a shine to that idea.

The black sheep of the entire clan, Jay Baruchel’s Hiccup is, of course, also the son of its leader. Apprenticing with the local blacksmith Gobber—relegated to that duty because of a missing arm and leg from battle—this scrawny kid is always trying to create new ways to make his mark. Capturing and killing a Night Fury would be the best way to do so, and, as a result, Hiccup brings an invention out during a current battle to let its rope trap fly into the night in hopes of grabbing the elusive dragon no one has ever seen.

The escapade leads to disaster as his father Stoick saves him from another creature while fire breaks out and allows all captive dragons to fly away free. While Stoick and the adults go off to hunt the retreating legion down—hopefully arriving at their nest—Gobber stays behind to train the children how to become dragon slayers themselves. Against his will, Hiccup is forced to partake too, just when he finds the Fury he snagged and starts nursing it back to health by fixing its damaged tail to fly once more.

As a result, the middle half of the film deals strictly with the kids in training and Hiccup’s burgeoning friendship with Toothless the dragon. Being around the Night Fury allows the boy to have unfettered access to a species his people have been hunting for centuries, showing him the secrets of what they are—including fears and pleasures. Acting like a pet dog, Toothless goes from sneers of anger at the sight of weapons to the doe-eyed anticipation of fun and obedience otherwise.

When offering food back to Hiccup or playing around in the field that serving as his cage since his injury keeps him grounded, the facial expressions recalled my sister’s dog’s cute little pouty face of utter ambivalence—a cross between having nothing in his head with the pure desire of running around without a destination. The companionship soon shows the boy that these dragons are just as afraid of humans as they are of them. If only compassion was shown, perhaps they could live in harmony. No one can fear something that disarms from the pleasure of a scratch under its chin or cowers at the sight and smell of an eel—all tricks Hiccup learns and uses to become a God-in-training as the best dragon dispatcher the village has ever seen.

The final act is where everything gels together and we see the changing of the guard in Berk. With a common enemy—namely a behemoth queen who instills terror into her brood—maybe the Vikings and dragons can learn to live in harmony. And, like any good children’s film, there’s no better person to bridge that gap then a misunderstood youth. As such, the choice of Baruchel is perfect, lending that low self-esteem demeanor to the naïve kid you know will somehow overcome any anxiety and alter everyone’s outlook on life.

Throw in headstrong warrior girl Astrid (voiced by America Ferrera), manic fast-talking and over confident Snotlout (Jonah Hill), twin crazies in Tuffnut and Ruffnut (T.J. Miller and Kristen Wiig), and nerdy Fishlegs, who knows every strength and weakness of any dragon ever (Christopher Mintz-Plasse of course), and you have the right amount of humor to keep the physical comedy going while Hiccup continues to hone his dragon riding skills in secret. The fact that Gobber the teacher is voiced by Craig Ferguson doesn’t hurt either, especially when he utters random jokes opposite the serious Stoick, played by tough guy Gerard Butler.

And while the voice acting is superb, the animation also excels. Each character utilizes attributes of the people playing them and the motion is fluid and realistic. Creating so many different species of dragons must not have been too easy a job either, but the art directors do a bang-up job keeping the menacing ones fierce and the more humorous types cute and funny. Berk itself is an intriguing environment too, made up of stone and wood, perfect for the amount of destruction by fire wrought throughout.

But it’s that fire—along with the other elements—that’s rendered magnificently for the 3D format, creating some breathtaking flight scenes as we ride with Hiccup and Toothless through the clouds and around mountainous pillars of stone. There really is something for everyone in How to Train Your Dragon as a result. You’ll laugh at the comedy, enjoy the thrills of life amongst dragons, and be touched by the ugly-duckling type story at the center, pulling for Hiccup to rise above his limitations and be the hero he knows is locked inside of him. It’s a cute, family-friendly film that should do very well at the box office, something I wasn’t quite anticipating from its lackluster trailer.