Live action remake movies used to be an easy hit making machine. Disney has had numerous hits with turning their animated classics into live action movies, just take a look at Lion King, Jungle Book and the recent Lilo and Stitch. However, as of late remakes like Cruella and Snow White have been dismal at best. But given the pedigree of the good ones outweighing the bad ones, it was a hotbed for some studio who also made hit animated films to try their hand at a certain cash grab. Such as DreamWorks. Enter How to Train Your Dragon. Hopefully this attempt at remaking an animated movie classic would bring in old fans as well as new ones, let’s take a look.
We open to some narration about the town of Berk. It involves the weather, food, people, and of course the one thing that sets it apart from everywhere else, the dragons. Our protagonist, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III (played by Mason Thames) is the son of Viking chieftain, Stoick (played by Gerard Butler). Hiccup is different from the other Vikings in Berk, as he tries to use his brain rather than this brawn (or lack there of). This of course puts him at odds with the other Vikings who all value brawn over brain, especially his dad. Hiccup mostly hangs out at the local blacksmith shop where Gobber the Belch (played by Nick Frost) can keep an eye on him.
Hiccup does show potential as he comes up with several devices that he believes will aid the town during a dragon raid. One of these devices is a bolas launcher. Shortly thereafter, a dragon raid does rear its head. The young Viking gets into action and sees the fabled Night Fury in the sky and sends a shot out with his invention. To much his surprise, it does hit its intended target and sends the beast down towards a neighboring valley. The raid ends as the dragons fly away with unfortunately some livestock for their spoils. Hiccup tells everyone including his dad that he shot down one of the dragons but he is not to be believed.
Following this event, Hiccup spends time in the forest getting away from the general Viking folk. He comes upon a giant lake in the valley and that’s when he discovers the Night Fury dragon who is recovering from his wounds which have hindered the creature’s ability to fly. Hiccup releases the Night Fury from his predicament but the dragon does not attack the human. Shortly after, Stoick is rallying the village to rise up and find the dragons’ nest. He soon leaves with most of the Viking adults on ships to destinations unknown. It is decided that Hiccup stay with Gobber who also teaches the youngsters at the Trials on how to become dragon slayers.
This year’s crop of students include Snotlout (played by Gabriel Howell), Fishlegs (played by Julian Dennison), the twins Ruffnut (played by Bronwyn James) & Tuffnut (played by Harry Trevaldwyn) and the beautiful but tough, Astrid (played by Nico Parker). Astrid, who is the odds on favorite to win the trials and have her chance to slay a real life dragon has also caught the eye of Hiccup. Hiccup does his best in the first few classes, but fails miserably. At the same time, he goes back to the valley where the Night Fury is still recovering from his wounds and trying to find a way out. The young Viking decides to help the creature with his ailment and the two befriend each other. Little does he know that by helping the creature who he has named as Toothless, it will actually help him during the Trials.
However, there is a much bigger danger on the horizon and Hiccup, Toothless and every Viking in the town of Berk will need to come together to stop it. This live action remake does a wonderful job at re-creating the magic the trilogy of animated movies had before it. It’s been over a decade since the first animated film took place and about half a dozen years since the last one made its way to the theaters. Quite frankly, DreamWorks did a very faithful job with all of the elements. They got Gerard Butler back on board and it’s clearly second nature to him after doing films like 300 and Reign of Fire (as well as the animated version of these Dragon movies).
Gobber is also a standout role and I didn’t even realize that was Nick Frost at first because of all the makeup (not to mention the attachments). The other villagers fill out their roles nicely and add to the overall production. The CGI is out of this world, my mouth was practically gapped open, especially the few shots where they had dozens upon dozens of dragons on the screen at the same time. It actually made me want me to purchase a second ticket to experience it in 3D which is something I haven’t thought in years. I also appreciated that the film is very close to the animated trilogy and not trying to create something that is “more agreeable” to modern audiences. *cough* Snow White *cough*
However, there are a few criticisms here, mostly aimed at the youngsters who outside of Astrid and Hiccup are pretty forgettable. Honestly, I even struggled to remember the names and its been too many years since I had seen the animated movies so I had to Google search. They don’t do much to distinguish themselves beyond the cocky one, the slender twin, the tough twin who is infatuated with Astrid, and the bigger one who acts like an encyclopedia of the various dragons. The character work isn’t there and at least at this point, I have little reason to care whether they end up dragon food or not. It’s something I hope they cure by the time the second movie rolls around.
Speaking of which, a second live action remake for the How To Train Your Dragon sequel is already in the works for 2027. Right now, they are working on getting Cate Blanchett on board who voiced Valka (Hiccup’s mother) which I’m fairly sure will happen. For the first box office week, the remake pulled in ~$84 million, and is sitting around $200 million globally. I would venture to say that while it won’t make Minecraft numbers, it will easily fly over half a billion. It’s well deserved too, and will make you want to whip out copies our your old animated Dragon discs (or head out to your favorite retailer to purchase discs or streaming copies). It’s a rare remake where the very subtle improvements make sense and actually improve on the films of a decade ago.
This film gets a heavy recommendation from me as well as my family. The audience behind me at the theater gave it quite an ovation too. I look forward to grabbing this one on 4k once it is made available and will probably re-watch the animated films soon. I have a feeling we will see more DreamWorks live-action remakes in our near future. Shrek, Madagascar anyone? I for one, opt for Mr. Peabody and Sherman, but I’m pretty sure I’m the only one wishing for that one. Anyway, go see the live action remake of How to Train Your Dragon, it’s a blast. Enjoy.
| Overall: |  (9 / 10) |
