(2010) 3.5 Perry Seibert Visually speaking, most family films -- especially animated family films -- are as bright as polished marble. Fortunately, How to Train Your Dragon directors Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois have devised a world often lit by just fire, and by staying remarkably true to that fact they've fashioned a unique visual experience. The story follows the basic hero's journey: Young Hiccup (voiced by Jay Baruchel) wants to help his Viking community battle the dragons that terrorize their village, but he just doesn't have it in him to harm the fire-breathing creatures. His father, the town's fearless warrior leader Stoick (Gerard Butler), has difficulty communicating with his awkward son, not even wanting Hiccup to go through the dragon-fighting training classes that many kids his age attend. Just as Stoick's friend Gobber (Craig Ferguson) convinces Stoick to let his son train, Hiccup befriends an injured dragon he names Toothless, and soon his relationship with the creature -- which has a very boy-and-his-dog vibe -- gives him insight on how to make the monsters allies to the Vikings and bring peace to all. While the plot itself offers no surprises, it is solidly constructed; there is a reason these storytelling tropes endure. But the visuals make How to Train Your Dragon stand out from the pack. The directors hired gifted cinematographer Roger Deakins to consult with them on the movie's look, a job he also performed to perfection for the makers of WALL-E. The award-winning DP brings a level of realism to the images that's nonchalantly perfect. The flames and the water are tactile, and never once are the directors showy about these showstopping effects -- they're just there giving the film an authentic sense of place. If there is a serious flaw in the movie, it's the casting of Jay Baruchel. He's a talented young comic actor (few people could have so skillfully played straight man to the cast of crazies in Tropic Thunder), but here he sounds thoroughly modern, which is a distraction when the movie's visuals -- as well as the thick Scottish accents used by Butler and Ferguson -- drive home the sense that the film takes place in an authentic past. Sure, the 21st century voice and speech rhythms accentuate how much of a misfit Hiccup is, but the juxtaposition is too jarring. On sheer visual terms, though, How to Train Your Dragon more than delivers; it's the kind of movie that will stick in the memory of kids who might want to make movies when they grow up.

cast-crew for How to Train Your Dragon on AllMovie

How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

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How to Train Your Dragon

editor rating

user rating

mpaa rating

flags

Mild Language
Violence

genres

Children's/Family

sub-genres

Children's Fantasy

category

Animated

alternate title

How to Train Your Dragon 3D

directed by

countries

USA

release date

March 26, 2010 (USA - IMAX 3D)
March 26, 2010 (USA)

run time

98 min.

produced by

DreamWorks Animation

released by

Paramount Pictures

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cast

Jay Baruchel: Hiccup

Gerard Butler: Stoick

America Ferrera: Astrid

Jonah Hill: Snotlout

Christopher Mintz-Plasse: Fishlegs

Craig Ferguson: Gobber

Kristen Wiig: Ruffnut

T.J. Miller: Tuffnut

crew

Chris Sanders: Director, Screenwriter
Dean DeBlois: Director, Screenwriter
Bonnie Arnold: Producer
Cressida Cowell: Book Author
Will Davies: Screenwriter
John Powell: Composer (Music Score)
Kathy Altieri: Production Designer
Pierre-Olivier Vincent: Art Director
Kristine Belson: Executive Producer
Tim Johnson: Executive Producer
Alessandro Carloni: Supervising Animator
Craig Ring: Visual Effects Supervisor
Matthew Baer: Animatronic Effects
Simon Otto: Character Animation