While DreamWorks has produced some great films for over 20 years, one of their most unexpected and pleasant surprises was the 2010 animated hit How to Train Your Dragon. Loosely adapted from the book series of the same name, How to Train Your Dragon is centered on a young Viking named Hiccup who unexpectedly befriends a dragon (who he later names “Toothless” for its retractable teeth) and discovers that these creatures can be trained like any animal. After earning critical acclaim from critics, impressive box-office sales and several award nominations (including winning the prestigious Annie Award for Best Animated Film), DreamWorks announced their plans to make this film the first part in an epic trilogy. With higher expectations and a larger scope, How to Train Your Dragon 2 soars into theaters with the promise of a bigger story that will expand the horizons of the film’s universe. Even with its greater ambition, however, How to Train Your Dragon 2 not only succeeds in creating a rousing spectacle for the senses, but also a heartfelt and moving story that builds upon the foundations of the first installment and takes the story of Hiccup and Toothless to new heights.
Five years have passed since the events of How to Train Your Dragon, and now the Viking village of Berk has now come to realize that dragons can co-exist alongside them peacefully. Dragons are now fully integrated into the town, the village is finally at peace again, and Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) is now a hero among the villagers. Hiccup’s father, Stoick (Gerard Butler), the chieftain of the village, wants him to become his successor, though he does not feel that he can accept the responsibility of this position and live up to the qualities of his father. Instead, Hiccup prefers to explore the unseen corners of the world with his faithful dragon Toothless, exploring new environments, charting new areas and discovering new dragons. Everything changes for Hiccup, however, when he runs into Valka (Cate Blanchett), who reveals herself to be Hiccup’s long lost mother who has been hiding for years protecting a sanctuary filled with dragons. Hiccup and Valka will have to unite to fend off a threat that is preparing to endanger both the villagers of Berk and dragons alike: Drago Bludvist (Djimon Hounsou), a madman who seeks to create a dragon army to conquer his enemies. With Drago’s army threatening the village of Berk, Hiccup will have to accept his responsibility to protect his people as the strength of his friendship with Toothless is put to the test.
Rather than making a sequel for the sake of making one, director Dean Deblois instead decided to not only take everything that was excellent about the first movie and build upon it, but also expand upon all of the ideas and concepts established previously. Berk is no longer a struggling village trying to fend off dragons, but a utopia where humans and dragons live in the same house and even participate in sports. Hiccup and Toothless are now exploring new horizons and filling out blank spaces on the map. New inventions are created, such as a dragon-like glider for Hiccup now allows him to fly in the air like his loyal companion. New secrets are learned about dragons that were not seen before. Characters are taken in new directions and developed further. No matter which way you look at it, the sequel goes above and beyond everything that the first movie did from its characters, to its story, to its animation and to its action, but more importantly, it never loses the spirit and heart that made How to Train Your Dragon such a compelling movie to watch.
This is where How to Train Your Dragon 2 succeeds best: it is not just an excuse to turn a great film into a franchise for the sake of money; it is an actual continuation of all the plot points and ideas that drove the first installment. Hiccup is now forced to accept responsibility as being the new potential chief of Berk while also trying to stop Drago from taking over the dragons and learning more about his mother who he has not seen since he was a baby. There are a lot of important events going on in this film, but How to Train Your Dragon 2 does a remarkable job of keeping it all balanced. Much of the story ties into the themes of the bond between humans and animals (in this case, dragons), and even with these varying character developments and plot points, they all remain integral to the core message of the movie. There are no superfluous story bits or unnecessary padding; everything is built off of what began in the first movie and allowed to expand even further with this new installment.
The relationships in How to Train Your Dragon 2 are the heart and soul of the film. Hiccup and Toothless were already a compelling and likeable duo in the first movie, but the sequel makes them an inseparable group, and their tight bond with each other makes for some great scenes of both light comedic bantering and powerful dramatic support. They are the yin and yang to each other; they are completely different beings but are both an integral part to each other, and their parallels to both each other and the antagonist of the film make for an even more compelling friendship than ever – one that will likely inspire many kids with its heartwarming messages. Some of the side-characters are admittedly still not quite as relevant to the story, but they are still enjoyable enough that they do not bog down the core of the movie, and they occasionally get some good laughs every now and then. Perhaps the most notable new addition How to Train Your Dragon 2 brings to the franchise is Hiccup’s mother, Valka, who is a fascinating new character to the universe. With a warm, motherly nature and the spirit of a determined fighter, Blanchett delivers a wonderful performance that compliments the story beautifully, and is a welcome new addition to the franchise.
How to Train Your Dragon 2 is easily one of DreamWorks’s most ambitious projects, and as a result, its animation is in another league of its own. Not only is this the studio’s best animation to date, but it is also one of the best-looking computer-animated films ever made. The character animations are so believable and natural that it is almost easy to forget that they were artificially created from computers; they feel like real people because of the detail put into the animation and the superb voice acting from the great cast of actors. There is an incredible variety of dragons in this movie that all feature unique appearances, behaviors and movements, and they all interact like how you would imagine they would in real life when looking at them. The environments are stunningly detailed and given a larger scope and more environmental effects such as snow. All of this is impressive enough, but the flying sequences are truly jaw-dropping; they unfold almost like ballets in the sky that are exhilarating to watch – especially in 3D. The action scenes are also incredible in size and scale, particularly a pivotal battle that features a massive army of warriors coupled with dragons flying in the sky and intense combat surrounding a large, snowy battleground. From a technical and artistic level, and from its action-packed encounters to its emotional moments, the animation excites, dazzles and compels in every frame of this movie.
Much like how DreamWorks improved over the first installments with Shrek 2, Kung Fu Panda 2 and Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted, How to Train Your Dragon 2 is another prime example from the studio on how animated sequels should be done. Rather than extending a popular property simply because audiences loved the first movie and want to see another, Debois and his crew instead treat How to Train Your Dragon 2 as a proper saga that continues the story of Hiccup and Toothless with respect and creativity. The animation is breathtaking at every turn and its action, scope and sound design (especially the outstanding music by John Powell) are all first rate, but more importantly, its story still remains the quality that makes this sequel shine. It is a great story about love, friendship and companionship that is filled with passion, tenderness and emotion at every turn, and even in the film’s most dazzling sequences, its characters and themes always come through at every moment. How to Train Your Dragon 2 is a majestic sequel that matches – and in some cases surpasses – the original, and with two great films under their belt, one can only wonder the exciting possibilities Debois has in store for audiences with the conclusion to this wonderfully exciting and riveting trilogy.
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The Good:
Builds off of the best qualities of the first installment while expanding on its concepts with more environments and dragons, expanded character developments and great new ideas
A moving and compelling story that builds off of the events of the first movie while expanding on the relationships between the human characters and their dragons
Top-notch voice acting from an impressive and talented cast, with Jay Baruchel once again adding a great humility and relatability to Hiccup and newcomer Cate Blanchett delivering a wonderfully sweet yet confident performance as Valka
Features some of the best computer-generated animation put onto film, with natural character animations, impeccably-detailed and varied dragons, and gorgeous environments
Excellent implementation of 3D that favors immersion over gimmicky effects
Exhilarating flying sequences and great action scenes that are jaw-dropping in scope and fun to watch
Excellent sound design that features dynamic and exciting use of surround sound and a fantastic score by John Powell that surpasses even the excellent music of the first movie
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The Bad:
While some of the hints at his past are intriguing, Drago is a slightly generic villain that is not as interesting as the rest of the characters in the movie
The pacing can be a bit too slow at times in the first two-thirds of the movie
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Overall: 9/10 (Excellent)
