"HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON"(2010) ... (A-)

[Carl M. Zapffe]

"HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON"(2010)  ... (A-) ... This is a wonderful film for the entire family from the talented crew at DreamWorks, the same studio which has given us the Shrek and Madagascar series of films. We saw this film in 3-D, and I have to say that the special effects here are even better than those for Avatar. In a word, sparkling 3-D effects that will entrance you along with everything else that this film has to offer. Equally high on my list would be the dialogue, which is just about the best that I have ever heard written for a cartoon.

Much of this film's considerable appeal lies in its nicely developed characters centering around a young, disaffected teenager who goes by the less than impressive name of "Hiccup" (voice of Jay Baruchel). He is the son of Stoick the Vast (voice of Gerald Butler), the Village Chieftain in a tale that takes place long, long ago and far, far away up in the Viking town of Berk.

Berk is so desolate that Hiccup starts the movie off with this witty and hopeless observation: "This is Berk. It's twelve days north of Hopeless and a few degrees south of Freezing to Death. It's located solidly on the Meridian of Misery. My village. In a word? Sturdy, and it's been here for seven generations, but every single building is new. We have fishing, hunting, and a charming view of the sunset. The only problems are (sic) the pests. You see, most places have mice or mosquitoes. We have... dragons." 

The appeal of Hiccup's lament for young kids is immediate, for what kid out there doesn't wish that he or she were somewhere else, preferably without their parents? Adding to his appeal, Hiccup is the town dork centuries, millennia before dorks became cool and ruled the world. Hiccup is slight of stature in a world ruled by brute force. His father is highly disappointed by what he sees in his son, for the dad epitomizes the very definition of what a Viking ought to be. He is either out pillaging the neighboring countries or off fighting dragons. 

Hiccup is sent to Viking School, which consists of lessons to slay increasingly dangerous dragons. (The dragons here are wonderfully envisioned.) The problem with Hiccup is that he has brains instead of muscles, so he is more interested in finding out what makes dragons tick. A chance meeting and rescue of the most fearsome dragon of all while off on a woodland exploration leaves Hiccup with a new dragon friend and a chance to save the village. Maybe he can win the friendship of Astrid (voice of America Ferrera), his cute and sassy classmate, and perhaps even win the grudging respect and acceptance of his dad. 98 minutes.

Carl M. Zapffe,

The Cat's Meow Movie Critic

http://www.catsmeowmoviecritic.com

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