This weekend the historic Jones theater lights up and dims down for the showing of How to Train Your Dragon, a live action remake of the 2010 modern classic animated film similarly titled. Sequels were produced and released in 2014 (How to Train Your Dragon 2) and in 2019 (How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World), making this cute fantasy a franchise enterprise. This version, by the way, was made for IMAX viewings.
Many film critics reviewing this wildly popular re-do turn their attention from the film to rendering historical commentary on the genre itself: the merits and pitfalls of translating animation to live action. That makes for interesting discussion, but will neither enhance nor diminish your viewing pleasure. It’s a lovely story and whether you’ve seen and cherished the 2010 version and its sequels or not, this cinematic revisit will lighten your day. And the kids will squeal with delight amongst all the clash and bang of both the action and the music score.
Some reviewers do pause though, to encourage adults in the audience to heed relevant quasi-political motifs conveyed in How to Train Your Dragon. As free-lance critic Aparita Bahndari puts it, “Young audiences will be delighted…For the older folks, there’s the added subtext of a post-war commentary, and the whole us-versus-them narrative to unpack, that’s ever more relevant today.”
For those not familiar with the children’s books or the animated versions of the tale, the “us-versus-them” of How to Train Your Dragon is Vikings-versus-dragons in the village of Berk, located on a remote ocean-bound island. Filmed in Ireland, this current rendition brings what had been previously graphic cartoon into the realism of actual, breath-taking landscape, particularly in the flight scenes.
With no further spoilers for those new to the charming fantasy, suffice it to say that our teenage hero, Hiccup, manages to capture the fiercest of all the dragons, a Night Fury, only heard of but never seen, let alone captured, by the Viking adults. That Hiccup names him Toothless tells you something about what he is learning about dragons—they may be more like wary puppies than the imagined beasts of the war-mongering Vikings.
New York Times film critic Brandon Yu notes that, “…this iteration is entertaining, bears a sense of heart and brings a tight script of fantasy and friendship to life.” The Fourth of July holiday weekend brought the PG-rated, two hour and six minute How to Train Your Dragon into summer blockbuster status, grossing close to $223 million, the largest box office draw for the franchise to date. Valley audiences this weekend will add to the film’s popularity, so wing on down Main Street for the 7 p.m. screen time Friday or Saturday, or for the Sunday, July 13, 2 p.m. matineé. The Jones Theater opens 30 minutes before showtime—with ticket prices so modest you’ll think you and the kids have outwitted both Vikings and dragons just to relish their age old conflicts.
Enjoy!
– W.A. Ewing
