My baby brother, I use the term loosely as he's almost 22, loved the original animated version of this movie so Jamie and I had promised to go on a double date with him and his girlfriend when the live action version was released. We'd agreed to go to a 4DX showing which would be the first time for all of us aside from Jamie, and it was certainly an experience to say the least.
In my old age I've developed roller coaster anxiety where the notion of being thrown about at a great height gives me so much anxiety that a panic attack comes on. It was in these very seats as the previews came on and the seats began to tilt that I started getting the feeling in my belly of that same anxiety. Despite the fact we were seated and at no great height I couldn't stop the fear from creeping in and to be fair, as it turns out those seats do chuck you around with some force so I was right to be a little fearful, but it turned out alright and I calmed down.
How to Train Your Dragon is almost identical to the original film with some slight scene additions. The narrative follows Hiccup, the clan chief's son, who isn't quite of the same calibre of Viking as his neighbours. Hiccup has brains you see, not brawn, and in his desperation to prove that he is a Dragon killer just like everyone else, he injures the rarest Dragon going with a contraption he has made. A Night Fury. No one believes him of course which leads him to go off and find said Dragon and when he finds that he doesn't have the strength to kill it after all, he befriends it.
Calling the Dragon Toothless, we follow Hiccup as he navigates training to become a warrior in the fight against the winged beasts while juggling his relationship with his new pet as well as making a contraption to fix his injury and allowing Toothless to fly again.
Of course his big secret doesn't stay secret for long and Toothless is taken by Stoic, Hiccup's dad in the quest to find the Dragon's Nest and stop their plight for all, but the threat is bigger than just the Dragons and its down to Hiccup and his new junior warrior team to save the day and change the Vikings minds against Dragons being killed.
What I expected to just be another rehash of a beloved animated movie was actually quite an emotional roller coaster (literally). We got the opportunity through live action to see the disappointment growing between father and son as each wasn't what they wanted to be to each other. We got to see the pressures weighing down on Hiccup and how he struggled to keep his head up, the pressures on Stoic and how he struggled to remain the fearless leader everyone looked up to. It was quite powerful in these moments, exploring the relationship between a single father and his quite different son.
This also was the perfect movie to introduce us to 4DX as it had plenty of faced paced bits to throw us around and lots of water to soak us, but it also had its slower moments which let us recover. God only knows what mess we'd be in if we'd seen Top Gun!
I liked the fact that this version gave a little more depth to Astrid. She wasn't just the love interest, she had ambitions and a reason to fight to be the best. She said she came from nothing but had her eyes on the chiefhood and you could really see how determined she was to fight for her own worth. She was feared and respected in this movie and not just an object for attention.
HTTYD is a fun, family friendly movie which is the perfect way to spend an evening or a Sunday afternoon watching. It's easy, it's funny, it's cute, what more could you want? There was nothing in this film that was too strenuous and the addition of Nick Frost as Hiccup's mentor was inspired, he came across as exactly the right amount of parental figure and outsider which shaped Hiccup. He was also interchangeable as warrior, teacher, and best mate to Stoic.
The acting involved here was all pretty good and there was nothing but familiar faces. If you're a fan of Lockwood & Co, Deadpool, Lara Croft or Tim Burton's Dumbo then you're in for a treat.
Overall then, this movie is worth a rewatch to us even if we wont get the chance to be thrown all over the place a second time. The perfect film to doomscroll to, I'm giving How to Train Your Dragon a 7/10. It wasn't anything special but it wasnt offensive either and we got the chance to see the events unfold in a more realistic light which is something us humans seem to like to do with the fantastical. However, if a live action Shrek is on the cards I'm out, you have to draw the line somewhere.
I do think this was a much better live action remake then you would have seen from Disney. While there was absolutely no need to remake HTTYD just as there is no reason (aside from keeping the trademarks) for Disney to remake any of their animated movies, HTTYD did more than just remake or modernise, they used their platform to give depth to a beloved movie. So far all the Disney remakes I've seen have been a way to market new music and make amends for the politically incorrectness of the originals by shoving it down our throats and losing the magic of them in the process. I'm all for everyone's rights, but there is also no need to disrespect the past. If it's wrong as a whole 100%, but people uninvolved with any wrongdoing still worked on those movies and dont deserve disrespect just because they were chosen to voice an animation in a discriminatory culture.
Rant over but my point still stands, How to Train Your Dragon is a good movie even if it was unnecessary.
Have you seen the live action version? What were your thoughts? Leave a comment on my socials and dont forget to check out my other blogs!
Phantom Adventures
The Autumn Cook
Comments
Post a Comment