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Merrick Thinks You Should Learn HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON!!
Merrick here...
…with a look at HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON, based on a series of books by Cressida Cowell (available HERE
).
If you're a regular reader of this site, you know that I tend to not write too many reviews . But, every once in a while, a title comes along that I think deserves a bit more attention than it's been getting. In this case, it's the story of a boy named Hiccup, the ostensibly evil dragon he knocks from the sky, and his society's escalating campaign against dragons as Hiccup comes to realize that the true enemy they're facing isn't the creatures themselves…but sheer presumption and ignorance.
When I first saw trailers for this film, I…wasn't convinced. The dragon looked like a big, black salamander cat and this felt like the kind of movie in which songs from All American Rejects or Green Day would show-up when you least wanted them. Neither is the case: the dragon, presented here with an amalgam of animal characteristics, works quite well (he sounds like a Cylon fighter from Ron Moore's BATTLESTAR GALACTICA when he whizzes by), and there are no rock songs until the movie's closing credits. Both of which illustrate my assertion that the most surprisingly quality of HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON is what it isn't, and I mean this in the best possible way.
The movie is being strategically (and understandably) positioned as coming "from the creators of SHREK and KUNG FU PANDA" - a notion which immediately breeds many pre-conceptions: anachronistic rock songs and sight gags, modern sensibilities and hipsterism peppered throughout its dialogue, etc. But you'll find precious few of these qualities here: DRAGON is very straight forward, fully embracing the immediacy of its time, setting, and concept - and it's self-assured enough not to distract with desperate gags and or jarring pop culture references. Put simply, directors Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders (who wrote the film alongside Adam F. Goldberg and Peter Tolan) believe in their material. As a result, we believe in their film.
Part of this acceptance rises from the film's willingness/commitment to actually be about something. When I say "about" something, I'm not referring to storyline, but substance. DRAGON's thematics are headier, and truer, than the noncommittal fluff we'd find many animated projects these days. As with the best allegories, DRAGON's conceits of understanding our enemy, and not instantly accepting authorities' determinations of who and what is 'bad', manage to directly apply to our real world without ever specifically evoking it. There's not a great deal of preaching here, but these messages are there, and their intent is unmistakable.
Production Design Kathy Altieri (PRINCE OF EGYPT) and Art Direction by Pierre-Olivier Vincent (FLUSHED AWAY) are atmospheric, surprisingly detailed, and remarkably immersive. John Powell's driving score is among his best work to date - always supportive, never overbearing, and roundly indispensable. The overall use of 3D here is exemplary - whoever ends up directing the next SUPERMAN film could learn a few things from this film's flight sequences, which range from elegant and beautiful to adrenalized and dizzying.
With all of this said, HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON is not a perfect film. In general, its storyline is agreeably propulsive, but pacing does dip from time to time. And, strangely, many of DRAGON's Viking characters are imbued with a variety of odd accents - some of the Norsemen in this film sound like they're voiced by the slightly tipsy denizens of a remote UK pub.
But such distractions and inconsistencies are minor compared to the overall effectiveness of this picture. HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON is the real thing, accessible to kids, imminently embraceable by adults, with a small plot point at the end which might make you gasp a little. No bullshit to cut through here, no self-conscious cuteness that dilutes our willingness to invest in the film. Apropos of the thematics driving this movie, you may very likely find that DRAGON is more than you expect it to be, and more than you thought it could be.
--- Follow Merrick on Twitter! ---
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Because it sounds like I'll be there with my kid in tow. Glad to hear it's not another Dreamworks yuk fest.
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I'll give it a chance... I remember walking into Kung Fu Panda thinking that I would hate it, but I loved it... Maybe, this will surprise me also.
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I'm in
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Mar 22, 2010 9:40:07 AM CDT
Dean DeBlois & Chris Sanders co-wrote/co-directed 'Lilo and Stit
by andrewwankenobi
Since it's not a Disney movie, they wouldn't tell you that in the marketing. But since Lilo and Stitch is one of the best Disney Animated flicks, I'll give this a shot.
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Clearly not my local.
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Oh well.
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Or am I reading too much into this?
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Should it be your not our dragon?
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Hehe, there are typos riddled throughout the review. It's probably just another one.
Excited about this movie, looks good and every review I've read has been glowing. I'm definitely going to see it. -
you's draggin
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It's some kind of sexual metaphor, isn't it?
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Mar 22, 2010 10:27:52 AM CDT
V'Shael: Maybe if there was any way to "train" China...
by royston lodge
...that might work.
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I was suprised that you didn't mention the creators and directors of Lilo and Stitch, are directing this project. I am much more interested in that, than the marketing it as a Kung Fu Panda/Shrek movie collaboration. I have a three year old daughter, and after all the repeated viewings of Disney animated films, Lilo and Stitch is one that still hold up and is funny, even after 50 or so viewings. That alone makes it worth checking out...
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...to become a Pokemon!!!! yeah someone had to say it so there ya go. anyway this does look cute and all, i'll definately rent it in 4 months.
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They built your railroads, didn't they?
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Also, Dude, chinaman is not the preferred nomenclature. Asian-American, please.
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...I can find a theatre showing it late at night with no fuckin' annoying kids in the theatre.
Can I train my dragon to eat annoying kids? -
... they could use a few more of those...
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It's a good movie, mainly because of what Hiccup, our hero, learns about the dragon he trains, and how getting to know this cute blowtorch with legs. It won't rival "Up", but it's way ahead of "Planet 51."
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oh crap.
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Remember the people on September 11th jumping off the top of the towers to avoid being burned to death? We do not need propagana about 'not accepting authorities determinations of who and what is
'bad''. Maybe we should be teaching our children that yes, evil does exist in the world and yes, it must be fought. -
Could you be more of a tool?
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The biggest point of this review was how great it was that this movie rolled out the old, 'the authorities tell you this is bad, but they're not bad, just misunderstood' trope. Oh, yeah, he loved that. Aside from being wrong it is unbelievably TRITE AND OVER-DONE. And yes, I have friends in Afghanistan and Iraq. And the people they are fighting aren't 'really not bad, just misunderstood'. Liberal propaganda - it's not just for adults anymore!
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Is that so wrong?
Reading between the lines of Merrick's review, it sounds like the "political message" may really be more just Merrick's own interpretation than an intentional lesson in liberal ideology by the filmmakers.
But, if I may indulge in a cliche, sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.
Why can't this just be a movie about cartoon vikings who fight dragons, but the dragons turn out to be cool?
Now, if the movie has major plot holes, like the dragons really are destroying the vikings' livestock but that's ok because they "aren't evil", that's a different story.
Or, if the Vikings end up being portrayed as "evil", that would also be a different story.
But JUST cuz the Vikings and the dragons end up getting along at the end doesn't mean it's liberal propaganda.
But if I see ONE dancing penguin, I'll be pissed. -
I gotta cut down...
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ALWAYS with a rock song. And what's with the disingenuous voice-over guy calling it "Dreamworks' DRAGONS!" instead of by its real title?
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Which works for me. I like that design.
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Is that the same as DREAMWORKS DRAGONS!!! Good to know someone knew the orginal name was fucking stupid.
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For this flick? I fucking called it, saying how theaters won't have enough 3-Dness for all these films. WELL Dreamworks is saying if you don't show this in 3-D you don't get a 2-D print. Disney is saying keep showing Alice, and Titans is pushing ahead and saying to not bother showing Dragon and to wait for them.
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You beat me to it, the whole DREAM WORKS DRAGONS!! bit. Great minds.
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He's really growing on me tho0ugh. Good review, buddy
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I was waiting for someone to make that connection... was surprised people went for the Chinese first *scratches head*
"Maybe we should be teaching our children that yes, evil does exist in the world and yes, it must be fought."
You just described the plot of aboug 85% of the movies out there, hun. If they haven't gotten that "lesson" by now, they never will. -
paranoid rantings, it is always helpful to ask why you should consider someone your enemy instead of just assuming they are (without caring about the why part). There are always two sides to a story, and if "training" a dragon stops them from burning down your villages, maybe it's an option that could at least be explored instead of just throwing every willing (and not so willing) warm body at them.
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http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/binladen_10-29-04.html
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So far I've heard/read good things about both movies and am actually looking forward to an impending, and possibly anachronistic, double feature.
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Does that include your brave boys when they're torturing people they've kidnapped off the street, murdering suspects (yes, that's right, SUSPECTS) via drones from thousands of miles away or carpet-bombing Laos?
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Hot Tub is pretty fun. Bring beer.
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Mar 22, 2010 2:56:05 PM CDT
Series7, how could one possibly sneak a liquid into a theater?
by soylentmean
Besides, that's against the rules. Then again, so is talking, cell phone usage, texting, kicking seats, and overall just ruining the movie going experience.
But since ushers (doing anything more than ostensibly checking the temperature in a theater) have gone the way of the dodo maybe you're onto something. -
that SmokingRobot is a moron. As an adult individual you've got to give people the benefit of the doubt then make your own decisions. But while SmokingRobot is a moron, so is Fitzcarraldo. The 'we're evil' thing is just as ignorant as the 'us versus them' thing.
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on the rocks at Alice in WOnderland. If anyone noticed, they had nothing to say about it. Just do it.
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People who wish to do you harm exist. They want to change your religion, destroy your way of life and take over your resources. If you are not with us, you are against us. Everything is black and white, good vs evil.
People who are different than you, with different beliefs and value systems exist too, and most of them do not want to kill you. They just want to be allowed to live their lives on their terms.
Guess which side you are on, you fucking retard. -
The trailer didn't do much for me, but this review and some other word-of-mouth makes it sound promising. Shrek put me off to so many animated features that followed suit. Let's see if this one begins to poke through, or out of, that shell.
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Mar 22, 2010 5:31:05 PM CDT
I just want to go on record that Cloudy with a Chance of Meatbal
by soylentmean
was awesome!
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Reading the talkback you wouldn't think so. Yeah, I read the review and I understand the connection, but seriously. I'll give you a movie and you all can argue endlessly about religion and politics: Caddyshack. Go. (Bonus points for Sept. 11, Hitler, atheism, and Bush references.)
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I love Vikings. I love Dragons. I love animated films that don't play like someone threw a pack of Trivial Pursuit Pop Culture question cards at the screenwriters and picked out the ones that killed the smartest. I like themes. I like movies that play well to adults and children because children can be smarter and tougher than they are treated by everything marketed to them, which has resulted in a generation of lazy, stupid people. I love animated movies that are good stories, well told, and aspire to be only that.I am very excited for this movie.
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Not only was it awesome that was freaking funny movie. Mr T. "FLIINT LOCKWWOOOD!"
Why are some morons so pissy over anything that has to do with warfare or the lack of? It's Dragon and a dork Viking in a cartoon. Get over it! War is getting it's chance for fucks sake in the real world, aren't you happy yet? Fuck 50,000 troops are at it and there doesn't seem to be any withdrawal in sight. So what's the problem for you over a "let's get along with the mythical magical black flying salamander" cartoon. No one pay attention to that feel good crap beyond being stuck in the movie for hour and half. -
That movie was on the ball. I've watched it several times and laugh every time. If this movie is as good as that one, which is seems like it should be, it'll be great and under-appreciated like most everything else that is awesome.
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...does anyone fart in this movie?
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... Bolivian politics in the 1920s.
I mean, how can you not see that?! -
sounds like Kung Fu Panda: sit down and we'll give you a no BS thoroughly entertaining 2 hours. Also I'm a sucker for well shot aerial action. Mmmm... Porco Rosso...
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...wait to watch it on a DVD from NetFlix.
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as long as its "The Slaughtered Lamb" im ok with that
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Ever heard of a coat?
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with a pump and it's really well trained by now.
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Was probably the funniest movie of last year. Its pretty much a SNL Digital Short in a a movie.
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A cartoon movie
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I haven't seen Series 7 in awhile. Why is it not available on DVD? WTF Series7? Make yourself available to the masses. Make them fear reality television, before it's too late.
And what the hell is a coat? -
My dragon's gotta be free to roam, man.
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Ever heard of a hoodie? And Yeah TELL ME about it.
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Going into the theater with a jacket on the middle of 100 degree weather in the middle of the summer.
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and he fucking rocks. That is all.
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If this does well perhaps Outlander will be re-released in MOTHERFUCKIN' 3-D!!!
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