How to Train Your Dragon (2010) Review

When it comes to DreamWorks Animation, the films that often pop into people's heads are Shrek, Kung Fu Panda, and Madagascar. One film in particular appears to be sandwiched between them. The one I'm talking about is How to Train Your Dragon. While not incredibly underrated or underexposed, as it does have a growing number of fans and both this and its sequel have so far been acclaimed by critics, I felt it was time to look back at the original since the sequel is out.

I remember watching it in theaters back in March or April of 2010. I liked it and even watched it again when it came out on DVD and Blu-Ray. After that, however, I didn't watch it again until the sequel came out this year. That's a pretty big gap. I don't know why but I never gave it a lot of love like I wanted to because this movie is so darn good.

I have never read the book so don't expect me to compare it; I judge films on their own regardless. It's interesting to know that this movie was written and directed by Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois, the same guys behind Lilo & Stitch, one of my favorite Disney movies. Actually, it does feature some subtle shout-outs from that movie, though you probably won't catch it the first time.

Story and Characters

The film takes place in the Viking village of Berk that is often plagued by dragons that steal the livestock and set their houses on fire. A young boy named Hiccup strives to become a Viking, but the problem is that the Vikings value brawn over brain. It begins with him shooting a dragon down. Turns out, he shot down a rare dragon called a Night Fury. He attempts to kill it, hoping to earn the others’ appreciation, but he sympathizes with it and sets it free.

His father, after being convinced, places him in dragon training. In between training, he meets up with the dragon, trapped in a glade, names it "Toothless" and forms a clandestine friendship. He begins to study Toothless, and learns that dragons are not evil after all. The little things that he learns about dragons helps him out during training, finding non-lethal ways to take them out, making him a star pupil, and catching the attention of his father.

The movie does go through some familiar and predictable territory, especially tropes like the "Liar Revealed” and "All of the Other Reindeer” (Hiccup, an outcast, trying to prove his worth). However, this never bothered me, as I managed to get invested in the story and characters, as well as much more. Plus, it manages to challenge its audience by taking some risks without going too far. If you’ve seen the film, you probably know what I’m talking about (HINT: it’s near the end). Also, it doesn't rely on pop-culture jokes like many of DreamWorks' previous films.

The movie features a nice cast of characters:

Hiccup

(voiced by Jay Baruchel)

Hiccupt is a brilliant, but awkward teenager who strives to be Viking, but his scrawny appearance and rebellious nature makes him a social outcast. Part of what makes him an enjoyable character is Jay Baruchel’s acting. Some people might be turned off by his distinct nasally voice, but I think it works. I've never heard of Baruchel before this movie, and watching a behind-the-scenes video about the voice cast, it's not his natural voice, and it really adds a sarcastic side to the character.

Toothless

Toothless, named because of his retractable teeth, is the dragon that Hiccup befriends. He was crippled after Hiccup shot him down, damaging half of his tail fins, therefore making him unable to fly on his own. However, Hiccup manages to make an artificial tail fin in its place. The relationship between the two characters is the main highlight of the film. You can quickly see the bond growing between the two, as Toothless begins to understand, protect him, and show a lot of affection.

The way he’s animated is great, as he was inspired by various animals such as cats and dogs, though he is more feline in appearance and has lizard-like eyes. Even though he doesn’t speak (obviously), he has a lot of personality, being playful and docile when not threatened, and can also be sarcastic, something which he picked up from Hiccup. It especially helps when you can tell how he feels just by his facial expressions and actions. By the way, doesn’t he resemble Stitch from Lilo & Stitch a little?



Stoick the Vast

(voiced by Gerard Butler)

Stoick is Hiccup’s father and chieftain of the Hooligan Tribe. He is fierce and brave, determined to scare the dragons away, but he is also misunderstood and lacking in perspective. The relationship between him and Hiccup is another one of the film’s highlights. They have little in common and rarely talk to each other. When they do talk to each other, their conversations are often one-sided, and he rarely listens to Hiccup. He's probably the most human character in the movie especially near the end, which I'll mention later (it's a spoiler, though).

Gobber

(voiced by Craig Ferguson)

Gobber is Hiccup’s mentor and Stoick’s friend, acting as a bridge between the two. He is missing a right foot and left arm, the latter being interchangeable with other prosthetics like a hammer or mace. He seems to care about Hiccup as it was shown in one scene where he saves him from nearly getting blasted by a Gronkle. He is well-meaning, but his advice doesn't turn out how he says it. Ferguson has voiced in other animated films, and he’s hilarious as usual with all the lines he’s been given and the way he delivers them.

(from left to right) Snotlout, Ruffnut, Atrid, Tuffnut, and Fishlegs

Lastly, there are Hiccup’s dragon training classmates including Astrid (voiced by America Ferrera), an energetic and tough Viking and his love interest; Snotlout (voiced by Jonah Hill), a brash and unintelligent classmate who sometimes flirts with Astrid; Fishlegs (voiced by Christopher Mintz-Plasse) a nervous Viking teen who has a good knowledge of dragons and speaks in role-playing terms; and Ruffnut and Tuffnut (voiced by Kristen Wiig and T.J. Miller, respectively), fraternal twins with foul tempers who often get in fights with each other. Wait, Ruffnut... Tuffnut... the fact that they're both twins... oh, I see what they did there!

They weren't particularly fond of Hiccup at first, but they start to warm up to him due to his performance in dragon training. All except Astrid, who grows jealous of him.

Apart from Astrid, I couldn’t remember the other characters’ names at first, but I did remember what they looked like and how they behaved, which I guess is good enough for me.

While DreamWorks often cast celebrity actors in their films, this selection of cast members really works and is not distracting, well most of the time (Jonah Hill’s voice is too recognizable). Maybe it’s because I’m not too familiar with the cast members that I was able to associate them with each of their roles.

Favorite Moments

One of the best parts has to be the “Forbidden Friendship” scene, where Hiccup begins to earn Toothless' trust. It shows an example of “show, don’t tell”, with very little dialogue and relying on visuals and music:

If this scene doesn't win you over, something's wrong.

Another scene that stands out to me...

**SPOILERS**

Is when Stoick disowns Hiccup after finding out he befriended a dragon. The way he says “You are not a Viking; you’re not my son” is pretty harsh and really heartbreaking, especially when the camera cuts to his reaction after that. After rescuing Toothless while battling the Red Death, the main antagonist, he apologizes to Hiccup for feeling ashamed of him and says that he is proud to call him his son. I nearly choked up in both those moments because you can feel his heartbreak and regret. I guess Toy Story 3 wasn’t the only animated film that year that gave me the “feels”.

**END OF SPOILERS**

Animation and Visuals

The movie is great look at, complete with a nice setting. As I mentioned before, the film is set on the Isle of Berk, which has some nice greenery, landscapes, and a "charming view of the sunsets." Some scenes are well-lit, especially during the indoor scenes where the rooms are dark and candle-lit, reminding me of the natural lighting techniques from Stanley Kubrick’s Barry Lyndon. Though, for a setting in which it “snows nine months of the year and hails the other three”, not a single snowflake appears.

The Vikings look like typical Vikings that we've seen in pop culture, being all big and muscular, complete with their outfits and beards, along with their horned helmets, which Vikings never actually wore in real life. The creators themselves were aware of that fact, but kept them in there because of audience expectations. But that just gives the movie a whole whimsical feel, plus there's dragons.

While all the human characters are distinctly designed, so are the other dragon species, each being inspired by other animals. For example, the Deadly Nadder’s movements remind me of birds and the two-headed Zippleback is more snake-like in appearance. As well as that, each one functions differently, having strengths and weaknesses. They might come off as a little cartoony, but it fits overall; I don't think they were really going for realism in terms of designs.

When people talk about How to Train Your Dragon, they often bring up the flying sequences, which are very stunning to watch, and I would be lying if I didn’t say it brought chills down my spine every time. It makes really good use of point-of-view shots to make it feel like you’re riding on a dragon, in addition to the various angles that were shot.

Remember when Avatar kick-started the whole 3D fad and year after year there were films that used 3D to enhance the movie such as Hugo, Life of Pi and Gravity? I think How to Train Your Dragon was that one film from 2010 that tried to deliver on that, despite being post-converted and not shot in 3D.

The Nostalgia Critic talked about this movie and mentioned the 3D being breathtaking and immersive. Actually, I did watch this movie in 3D four years ago, but I don’t remember being blown away by it. Maybe I SHOULD have seen it in IMAX 3D to get the full experience. Heck, he’s right, they should rerelease this movie in theaters. As much as I hate 3D for being nothing but a money-making gimmick, I’m curious to see it in IMAX 3D after hearing him praise it.

Music

 

One aspect that is often brought up when talking about the movie is the score, composed by John Powell. I bought the soundtrack off of iTunes and yeah, it’s really good. It makes good use of percussions and strings, and adding a little Irish and Scottish tone with tin whistles and bagpipes (and yes, I’m slightly wording this off of Wikipedia as I’m not much of a music expert, nor am I that good at classifying instruments).

It also features a lot of leitmotifs, or recurring musical phrases, as some themes are reused at times, sometimes changing in tone from light-hearted to sad, and certain instruments were used for certain characters like the violins for Astrid, brass instruments for dragons, and a tin whistle for Hiccup. And who can forget that memorable refrain. If you’re wondering, my favorite tracks apart from “Forbidden Friendship” are "See You Tomorrow", "Romantic Flight", "Battling the Green Death", "The Vikings Have Their Tea" (an unused track), and of course, "Test Drive".

It also features a vocal song performed by Sigur Rós vocalist, Jónsi, called “Sticks and Stones”. I found it forgettable at first and thought it was pointless to add to the movie, but I gave it several more listens and it really grew on me. He has some great vocals (though it can be hard to know what he’s saying the first time) and the song has a nice mix of English and Icelandic lyrics and really good percussions. I think the reason he was hired was probably because co-director Dean DeBlois also directed the 2007 Sigur Rós documentary film, Heima, so it's probably no coincidence.

The score overall manages to breathe life into this movie as well as giving it an overall epic and emotional feel, two of my favorite things when it comes to instrumental music. It really deserves all the praise and the Oscar nomination. It’s just too bad that it lost to The Social Network, though.

Conclusion

So that’s How to Train Your Dragon. It’s easily one of DreamWorks’ strongest in their oeuvre and one of the best animated movies in general. There are so many things to love about this movie:

• Great story overall, with some nice pacing and good balance between comedy and drama.
• Great voice acting, with a nice cast of actors that I almost don't recognize right away.
• The friendship between Hiccup and Toothless is charming and believable and you really feel their bond progressing.
• The characters are memorable and very three-dimensional, adding some emotional depth.
• The score is one of the best soundtracks I have ever heard. Props to John Powell!
• The movie is gorgeous overall, especially with the cinematography of the flying sequences.

I don't have much to complain about, and if so, they pretty much went over my head. Being the first review to use my new rating system, it really is…

WORTH CHECKING OUT!

It has a lot to offer for both kids and adults. Kids will appreciate the story about a boy and his dragon and its funny moments, and adults will appreciate some of its mature moments. It’s a film that will stand the test of time alongside many others. And hopefully there will be an opportunity for it to be rereleased in IMAX 3D, because if it's as good as the Nostalgia Critic said (he even said it was better than Avatar), then I guess 3D isn't so bad if it's used correctly.

Will I be reviewing the sequel in the future? In due time.