Friday, March 26, 2010
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Friday, March 26, 2010
MOVIE REVIEW
How To Train Your Dragon (IMAX 3D)
The Continuing Adventures Of
. . . "Avatar"?
A scene from "How To Train Your Dragon", directed by Dean DeBlois and Chris
Sanders.
Paramount Pictures/Dreamworks
By
Omar P.L. Moore/PopcornReel.com
FOLLOW
Friday, March 26, 2010
"How To Train Your Dragon" features a gryphon-like version of Felix the Cat,
flying through the air with the greatest of unease. It's one of the sights
in this animated adventure comedy directed by Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders.
The film, based on Cressida Cowell's novel, opened today in the U.S. and Canada
in IMAX 3D and conventional presentations.
In the Viking tribe young Hiccup (voiced by Jay Baruchel) has to gain rites of
passage to become a true Viking. Such status is attained by successfully
training dragons, taming them to perfection. Bumps, bruises and overall
growing pains ensue. Hiccup's father (voiced by Gerard Butler) will need
patience, while a gentler, more comedic Gobber (an entertaining turn by Craig
Ferguson) will provide words of wisdom. America Ferreira voices Astrid, a
bratty, competitive fellow trainee with Hiccup.
The film's visuals are striking on occasion and don't overwhelm as to obscure
the story written by four screenwriters. The energy and pace of "Dragon"
grow stale however, with neither 3D effects nor IMAX doing much to
bolster an otherwise straight-forward if not eye-popping adventure.
"Dragon" is enjoyable and entertaining enough to engage, but not especially
memorable as an animated product. Furthermore, the film isn't for very
young kids (a few were led crying out of the screening I attended.) Much
of the film's tone is grim, furious and boisterous. (Granted, I
haven't read Ms. Cowell's novel, although I'm now curious to.)
"How To Train Your Dragon" displays tenderness, mostly in the relationship
between the Night Fury dragon (pictured above) and Hiccup. There's also the usual
father-son themes and tensions. Like "Avatar"
the film delivers messages about love and understanding, without the New Age flair or
grand visuals of Mr. Cameron's film. All in all, "Dragon" is just good
enough for Saturday matinee entertainment and for most that's probably all that
suffices.
With the voices of: Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Kristen Wiig, Ashley
Jensen, David Tennant.
"How To Train Your Dragon" is rated PG by the Motion Picture Association of America for sequences
of intense action and some scary images, and brief mild language. The film's
running time is one hour and 38 minutes.
FOLLOW
Unscripted review of "How To Train Your Dragon":
Read more movie reviews and stories from Omar
here.
Read Omar's "Far-Flung Correspondent" reports for America's pre-eminent Film
Critic Roger Ebert in the Chicago Sun-Times -
here
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