Review - How to Train Your Dragon

I'll be honest. I had absolutely no plans on seeing this movie. I thought the name sounded kind of lame and childish. I didn't hear much buzz leading up to it. To top that off, it's a Dreamworks Animation movie. I am not a fan of Dreamworks Animation or anything they put out. Pixar blows them out of the water every single time. Check out this graphic as proof. No, seriously, click that and read it. You back yet? Okay, tell me that you're looking forward to a Dreamworks Animation movie. Correct. You aren't. And you probably shouldn't be. Do I make myself clear? Anyways, I felt all of these things until I read an article on my favorite film site, slashfilm.com, begging everyone to go out and see it. I still doubted. I then checked out rottentomatoes.com and noticed it had a 97% rating with 108 reviews. With all these signs piling on, I decided I had to see it.

This movie absolutely made my day. It is fantastic. Absolutely everything about it is fantastic. From the opening scenes to the end, a smile barely left my face. To briefly explain what you're getting into when you see the movie, the main character's name is Hiccup and is the son of the head of a group of vikings. Hiccup is the opposite of everything a viking should be and is often informed of this. Other vikings are overweight, burly, brutish, and all of them have killed a dragon. Hiccup rightly thinks that the only way he will ever be accepted by his father, his community, and a certain girl is if he is able to kill a dragon, thus begins his quest. However, things are not always as they seem in the world of dragons... and yes, that is how I'm ending my description of the plot haha.

The plot is heartwarming, exhilarating, and though many events are easily predictable, that does not take away from their enjoyment. The characters are all hilarious. Vikings are portrayed in a really comical way that never gets old, and their lines, even the ones you can barely hear in the background, are all great. The real treat however is Hiccup's in interactions with a dragon that doesn't talk back. It is up to the animators to make that relationship real, and here they definitely succeed.

My favorite part of the whole experience is the cinematography. The use of the camera (or fake camera in the case of animation) is what makes the movie soar, and the 3D only helps to enhance the experience. I'm not a believer in 3D but I enjoyed the 3D in this more than I did Avatar or Up. A few shots really gave you an awesome sense of flying. The camera sweeps around characters, takes a 3rd person person video-game-like perspective in some flying sequences, locks on to side views of characters where they don't move but the background does... I could go on and on. It actually felt like a ride. Not only was I being entertained by an engrossing story, but I was having fun. Fun! I don't remember the last time I could say that I had a really fun time in the movie theater... maybe Fantastic Mr. Fox? Not that these movies are similar but still.

If you have kids or knows anyone with kids, you absolutely 100% have to take them to go see this movie or tell other people that they have to go. If you're like me, a 20-something single who feels weird going into a matinee of a childrens movie, suck it up and go with some people. And see it in 3D. You will not be disappointed. There is no possible way you will be disappointed. This movie is great. How to Train Your Dragon definitely deserves the highest score I've given to a movie that was released this year. And you know what else? Pixar finally might actually have some competition for best animated feature this upcoming year! Crazy!

Potential based on Preview: 7/10
Actual Movie: 10/10