Really, I did not think I would have liked this as much as I did. I didn't just like it, I loved it. The story is simple enough: A bunch of vikings with "Stubbornness issues," have been making their stand against dragons for years now. Hiccup, the son of the chief is not your standard viking and gets no respect. What no one knows is he has secretly caught a dragon and begins to learn how to tame these dangerous creatures. So judging from that synopsis, I figured I knew exactly how it would go down from beginning to the end where father and son hug.
Well, mostly I was right in my predictions, but that didn't change the fact that i had fun following Hiccup's adventures. At first, I didn't care for the vocal work for Hiccup. He sounded a bit too smart ass for my taste. But like the film, his character really grew on me as time went on. I think the whole film really came together and became something special when he first confronted the dragon he captured and found out he could not kill. Sure, it's the type of scene you see in a lot of kids film but there was something in the expression captured in the animation that really sold it for me. From then on, the film just got to a slightly deeper place than I thought it would go. It helped that they nailed the characters of the dragons perfectly. They were funny and scary and smart, but they were also creatures that were a part of the natural world. Hiccup, and we the audience, begin to understand their little secrets. What makes them happy, what scares them. We are drawn into their world and that depth changes everything.
The rest of the vocal cast, specially Craig Ferguson, are a smart and funny crew. The designs are crisp and just beautiful. The animation is slick without being dreamworks craptacular. Really, this was just a beautiful film about a boy and his dragon. Who can't get behind that?
STRANGE SPANNERS being an accounting of strangeness of the warp and woof of my mind For those of you new here, think of this as 1/2 "Night Gallery" Our Motto: Nos somnium quisnam es futurus fatum quod insolitus tutus vos!
This was one of my favorite movies to come out this year. It was a terrific ORIGINAL adventure with characters you just rooted for. The members of the village didn't understand Hiccup but they were not dicks about it. The love was always there. And how great a character was Toothless? The looks on his face spoke volumes and they resisted the urge to make him a talking animal. Everything about this movie was done right. It's will be around when memory of all those bad Shrek sequels have faded into dust.
ReplyDeleteVery true, that is why I was hesitant at first to watch this. I've been burned too many time by crappy cartoons. This at first looked like more of the same. It says how good it is, that it was able to draw me in so deep.
ReplyDeleteI have finally just seen this. (Better late than never, for sure!)
ReplyDeleteIt is a beautiful film, it has heart and empathy. It is amazing to watch Hiccup work something out to help Toothless, which consequently helps him. Nice give and take play between these two. Great animal loyalty portrayal, on both sides really.
It was a relief to not have a parent die, or to have anyone bashed in the head, as is Disney's wont.
For shear artwork, the reflections of the rock formations on the sea were spectacular.