Howdy Inter-webbers. I’m Matt Cohen, and I dig dragons.

Something about the mythical beasts always did it for me. Call it a combination of aesthetics – Disney “Villains” meet traditional folklore monsters with a twist of Tolkein thrown into the pot. However, besides the awesome PETE’S DRAGON, the decent DRAGONHEART, and the awful REIGN OF FIRE, there haven’t really been any dragon movies of note (I saw DRAGON WARS. I’m not counting it on purpose… because I saw it). One reason for this may be simply due to technological constraints – because there’s certainly no lack of dragon fiction to adapt to the screen. How does one pull off a convincing dragon on screen? There seem to be two routes to this destination – The classic practical/rubber suit dragon and the more modern incarnation: The animated dragon. Like most things that adapt with time, filmmaking is quick to embrace new “enhancements” to the overall moviemaking experience, most recently evident in the utter saturation of 3-D films being made. Some good, some bad – but none with dragons. Until now…

It makes me happy to report that the newest cg-animated film from DREAMWORKS (home of my favorite CGI cartoon to date, KUNG FU PANDA), HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON – based on the novel by Cressida Crowell – is pretty damn good.

The film takes place in the village of Berk, which plays home to a tribe of dragon-slaying Vikings. The vikings of Berk, led by Gerard Butler’s Stoick (speaking in a mix between his Leonidus and the pirate voice he rocked in THE BLACK FREIGHTER) lead a daily struggle against the countless hordes of dragons that, without fail, arrive every night to steal the village’s food supplies. Due to this constant threat, all life in Berk revolves around the extermination of said pests. In this society, social standing is based on dragon-slaying ability. At the bottom of this spectrum is our hero, Hiccup (voiced by America’s new favorite funnyman, Jay Baruchel), son to Stoick and the least likely dragon-slayer you’ve ever seen. Hiccup is a walking catastrophe, leaving a trail of destruction and disappointed vikings in his clumsy wake. The only job in Berk safe enough for Hiccup’s “touch” is apprenticing Cobber (played by TV late show host Craig Ferguson), the village’s “Dragon-Master”. Hiccup is content to mostly stay out of the spotlight and pass his time by dreaming up a life together with the object of his affection – the tough as nails, no-nonsense Astrid (voiced by Ugly Betty herself, America Ferrara). Unfortunately for Hiccup, trouble seems to find him – particularly when he manages to secretly wound a young member of a fabled and never-before-seen species of dragon who quickly takes a liking to the young viking. What is at first a terrifying situation for Hiccup soon turns into a new friendship with a dragon he calls Toothless.

After his most recent series of “screwups”, Hiccup’s father decides it’s time for the boy to finally put up or shut up – Hiccup would be trained as a Dragon Slayer, along with Astrid and the village’s other able teenagers (Jonah Hill, Mc’Lovin, Kristen Wigg and T.J. Miller). Of course, by this point in the film Hiccup has already established a deep bond with Toothless and the last thing he want’s to do is kill any dragons. And yet, he needs to impress the girl he loves and earn the respect of the father who never gave it. Quite a dilemma for a viking named Hiccup, who quickly learns some tricks from his time spent with Toothless and, more than that, has learnt that maybe the vikings had been wrong about dragons after all. Perhaps a bigger threat lies just beyond the veil.

I’m not a fan of spoiling films I would recommend to people, so I’ll leave the plot at that. Honestly though, it’s not the most innovative story ever, so I’m sure an astute enough viewer knows exactly where this film will go from minute one. That’s not to say it’s not an extremely enjoyable or a very good film, because it’s both those things. Maybe a bit more of the former then the latter. Without further ado, let’s jump to what worked for me about the flick.

THE GOOD

VISUALS/ANIMATION: There’s no getting around it… this movie looks pretty damn spectacular. I saw the film in Real3D, so I can only speak to that experience, but I can’t imagine a standard viewing diminishing the overall quality that much. From the opening credits to the closing credits, HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON is a visual feast in the truest sense – a sometimes overwhelming but always captivating buffet for the senses (I can’t believe I just wrote that, either). Berk, in its design, is now one of my favorite CGI sets that I’ve seen on film. Quaint and charming while at the same time real and gritty – like much of the rest of the film’s style – Berk seems to skirt the line between whimsical and semi-realistic (bordering on photo-realistic when it comes to minute details). The character design is top notch and the scenes that take place at night are some of the better lit I’ve seen. The film’s real strength, however (as it should be), is the dragons. The awesome, awesome, awesome dragons. Now, I’m not positive, but the animators/character designers must’ve done exhaustive research into reptiles and lizards, because each species of dragon reminds me exactly of a corresponding real species. There’s a crocodile dragon, a snake dragon, a frog dragon, and our second lead, Toothless, who I swear is the animated personification of an Axolotl (water newt). For this reason, the dragons, while fantastic, are also living, breathing creatures that act and react on screen as living creatures would. There is a definite biology to these beasts, and the filmmakers spared no detail in differentiating them and making them as compelling to watch as they wind up being.

So, the dragons may look great, but how do they move? And therein lies my favorite part of the film and the reason I can’t wait to revisit it on Blu-Ray (hopefully 3D Blu-Ray) – The flight scenes in this movie are ethereal and beautiful while at the same time scary and tense. It’s a mix of emotions one would imagine would be elicited in actual flight. And, if it’s to be believed, the flight scenes never seem to “CGI-y” – rather, they are visually stuck in a world between animation and practical physical limitations – i.e., this stuff looks as real as flying dragons with vikings on their back can get. For my money, I’d say the flight sequences in HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON give the ones in AVATAR a run for their money. Repeat viewings will be needed to see which I prefer in the long run. Again, while not groundbreaking, the animation certainly takes the current technology to new heights (Get it? Flying joke. I’ll stop now).

THE VOICE WORK: Led by the extremely capable Jay Burchel, this film continues the recent trend of casting recognizable actors in EVERY speaking role imaginable, which sometimes can lead to a snooze-filled star fest (SHARK TALES) – Or, on the positive side, a pool of talented performers who bring their varied skills to the table. Baruchel gets the brunt of the work here as Hiccup (and Toothless) and owns the vast majority of screentime, but it’s actually the supporting roles that really stood out to me. Gerard Butler is perfect as the brave and yet parentally unsure Stoick and Ferguson is spot on and his usual charming self as Berk’s disfigured dragon expert. America Ferrara is fine in her role, but nothing more. Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Kristen Wiig, and T.J Miller are perfect as the youngest vikings in the village, and bring a real sense of fun to their performances. That being said, there is one performance in the film that I must commend individually, and that belongs to Mr. Jonah Hill. Look, i dig Hill as much as the next guy, but if you told me he’d be my favorite part of ANY movie, I’d say you were crazy. I am the crazy one, apparently. I went the entire length of the film trying to match the character to an actor but was left unsuccessful – and what’s crazy is it’s pretty much Hill’s speaking voice. It’s just that it is SO perfect for the character he is portraying that one can’t help but get lost in the performance. Not the biggest role or the most important, but in my opinion, the most memorable. If only for the fact that Jonah Hill, one of comedy’s most recognizable voices, pulled a fast one on me.

THE NOT SO GOOD

It’s a testament to a good film that my complaints aren’t even complaints, really, but rather missed opportunities. This being the year of AVATAR, I, like many others, have come to accept that sometimes story is not the most important part of a filmgoing experience. I don’t think I’m the only one who would say the plot of HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON is fairly formulaic and predictable, if not straight up archetypal. There’s no real surprises, no emotional left hooks – rather, it’s a cute little story about a dude and his dragon. Harmless. And if the animation wasn’t so incredibly strong, the story would hurt the film more then it does now. Likewise for the humor in the film – and that’s not to say it’s not a funny movie. It’s not trying to be the next KUNG FU PANDA, and I don’t blame the filmmakers for that, but the jokes are kind of far between in some sections of the film, -leaving the viewer waiting for the next awe-inspiring visual to keep them going. It’s not like the movie has a lot of jokes that fail, it’s just that the movie doesn’t have all that many jokes to begin with. Yes, there are definitely some chuckles spread throughout and even one or two laugh out loud moments, but overall it is not the laugh riot that it could’ve been. But honestly, it didn’t need to be. I will flat out say it – the visuals alone are worth the price of admission. For any kid who ever dreamed of riding a dragon, I’d even dare to say the film is a must-see (or at the very least a must-rent). So it’s not the overall package, but the great in it certainly outweighs the average.

In summing up, HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON is a visual must-see, but otherwise just an average, harmless kids movie. Which leads me to a final note. Though the film not surprisingly ends on an up note, there is a MAJOR down note that plays before it – one that I personally felt the film didn’t really need (and that if I was still a kid, would’ve possibly bummed me out for days). So who’s to say it’s even a kids movie. I’d like to think of this film as a love letter to any kid who grew up reading about dragons or drawing their own…. Any kid who ever owned a salamander and wished for more… Or for anyone who wants to see the ever-expanding capabilities of CGI animation. PIXAR owns story, but after this one, I think I’d say that Dreamworks is the top dog (or Dragon) when it comes to visual impressiveness.

Sadly, I have to hop on my own winged beast and ride out of this piece until next time. Stay tuned for exciting installments of this very column covering such varied topics as movies… and movies (with some comedy shows/other events thrown in for good measure, as well). So until then, never fear, dry those tears, and wait fondly until the day in which I take your hand and lead us on a stroll through…

“The Wonderful World of Talkies’.”
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–Matt Cohen is currently learning how to train his imaginary giraffe.

For more Matt Cohen, check out CameltoadProductions.Com and, of course, “Bagged and Boarded“, right here at FRED entertainment.

Stalk Matt Cohen on Twitter = @CamelToad

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