Plot: What’s it about?
If there’s something that Hollywood is good at, it’s making money. And there’s no easier way to make money than to take something that’s already been made, put a fresh coat of paint on it and sell it to the masses…again. And they did. Back in 2010 we were treated to a CGI version of How to Train Your Dragon. It was a fun movie with some top notch animation and a decent cast of voices that added to the allure of the film. Flash forward a decade and a half and we’ve got…How to Train Your Dragon, only this time it’s live-action (except for, you know, the dragon). I’ve finally accepted that we’re going to be inundated by the constant stream of remakes, reboots, sequels and so forth, but this one really had me scratching my head. Is 15 years enough “shelf life” for a movie to get a reboot? Evidently so. Add to that, the same director and even some cast members (Gerard Butler) return for this one. What further made me chuckle is that this was successful. The film had a $150 million dollar budget and managed to rake in over $600 million worldwide. Hollywood might be lazy, but evidently what they’re doing is working (or people are just cattle who’ll line up for anything, even if they’ve already seen it). But I digress…
On the Island of Berk they’ve got a problem – dragons. The townsfolk, under the leadership of Stoick (Gerard Butler), wage a seemingly never ending battle with the dragons as they attack the town. By the narrator’s own admission “the town is old, but all the buildings are new.” This is the way it’s been and it would seem that’s the way it’ll always be. Enter Hiccup (Mason Thames), son of Stoick and let’s just say that he’s got a ways to go physically, to look like the other Vikings in his town. Hiccup is your typical “nerd” for lack of a better word and he decides that he wants to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a dragon slayer. During a battle, Hiccup manages to cripple the most elusive of all the dragons, the Night Fury. Hiccup wants the credit for slaying the dragon, but when push comes to shove, can’t bring himself to do it. Instead the two form an unusual bond and through the dragon, Hiccup manages to learn more about dragons than the town has in the past several hundred years. Does the town even need to slay the dragons or will the knowledge garnered by Hiccup be enough to finally give the town the edge on the winged, fire-breathing foes?
Technically speaking, there’s really nothing wrong with this film. I suppose if the first one never existed (or you’ve never seen it) then it is a good movie (CGI or live-action). This live-action version adds about thirty minutes to the run time of the 2010 version, mainly culminating in a longer third act. You’d figure as long as they’re not re-inventing the wheel, why bother with more footage? At any rate, the cast is fine, Mason Thames had some big shoes to fill with Jay Baruchel’s vocal work in the first, but he actually does a pretty good job. There’s a lack of chemistry between him and his “love interest”, Astrid (Nico Parker) but that takes a backseat to the real love story: Hiccup and Toothless. My comments about the film aside, I’d actually forgotten how enjoyable this movie is and it’s no wonder why the original inspired two sequels. Will we see those in live-action form? I’m sure of it. Had this movie managed to not make a profit, the answer would be different, but as I said above – it’s all about the money.
Video: How’s it look?
The biggest difference between the CGI original and this one is, you guessed it, this one is live-action. So those sweeping visuals that were created in the world of computers were, well, probably still created in the world of computers with this one as well but they look, I dunno, a little more realistic now. Having said that, or a sentence fragment of that, the 2.39:1 HEVC 4K image does jump off the screen. It’s amazing how good some films can look on a big screen and this one is certainly no exception. Toothless seems to have a more defined look here and with actual flesh tones being used here, we can see the detail, color and contrast that the film employs. Suffice it to say that regardless of your opinion on this movie, it looks amazing.
Audio: How’s it sound?
Another benefit of the film in its live-action state is that John Powell’s brilliant score is back (and why not, everything else is)! I’ve never been much on watching a movie for the film’s score, but this one really does add a lot to the film. The Dolby Atmos mix spreads it across each and every speaker you own. Vocals are rich and pure, it’s odd seeing Gerard Butler on screen as opposed to just imagining what it’d be like for Gerard Butler to be on screen. This movie’s messing with my mind, man! Kidding aside, though this really does utilize the Atmos mix for everything it’s worth and viewers shall not be disappointed.
Supplements: What are the extras?
- Audio Commentary – Writer/Director Dean DeBlois surprisingly isn’t laughing all the way through saying “Ha! Suckers! Yeah, I’ll go back and re-direct the same movie I’ve already made!” No, he’s a little more restrained than that. But he does some obvious comparisons from the original to this and the various challenges that he faced along the way. It’s actually a decent track.
- Deleted Scenes – Introductions by Writer/Director Dean DeBlois help, but at over two hours, it’s clear to see why these were cut.
- Gag Reel – Yeah, those.
- Love and Legacy: Making How to Train Your Dragon – We go behind the scenes to see how the beloved characters and intricate fantasy world were brought to the live-action medium.
- Building Berk – Walk onto the set and take in the scale, detail, and heart that went into building Berk.
- Dreaming Up the Dragons – A glimpse at the technology, artistry, and imagination involved in bringing life-like dragons to the screen.
- Fit for a Viking – Witness the elaborate transformations the cast made to embody the Vikings we see in the film.
- Forbidden Friendship with Introductions by Writer/Director Dean DeBlois – Watch Mason Thames perform the full Forbidden Friendship sequence with a puppeteer in the early stages of creating one of the film’s most iconic scenes.
- Test Drive with Introduction by Writer/Director Dean DeBlois – Hold on tight as we join Hiccup on his first flight with Toothless, and see the various elements that came together to construct the thrilling scene.
- Exploring the Isle of Berk at Epic Universe – Explore the Isle of Berk and discover an island where Vikings and fire-breathing dragons exist together in harmony.
The Bottom Line
I was probably a bit too harsh when I started this review out, but I still don’t really see the point of taking a CGI movie that’s 15 years old and giving it the live-action treatment. But last time I checked, I wasn’t calling the shots at Universal Studios. If you liked the original and had/have always wondered what it’d be like to see in live action form, that wait is over. It does look and sound good, but part of me still has to ask “why…”
