I make no apology for not seeing this movie when it first came out late last month, but I am sorry, after viewing it, that I waited. This movie is one of the two best I’ve seen so far this year – live or animated.
If you expect to see a coming of age story about a young, misunderstood boy suddenly accepted as a hero, you won’t be disappointed. But what you will also find is a story about what motivates us to do the things we do and how that motivation is universal. And there is a wonderful subtext about the eternal relationship and conflict between fathers and sons. This sub-story is what made How To Train Your Dragon a joy for me.
This movie make excellent use of 3D technology. It resists throwing things at you for the sake of creating an effect and relies on immersing you (when appropriate) in the story. There are violent scenes which may be too intense for the very young especially in 3D, but everyone else should really enjoy this saga. This movie is a clear reminder that we are living in the golden age of animation: the storytelling has finally caught up to the art technology.
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