Another great experience

Rating: 7/10 (7 July 2014)

The best animated films aren't the ones with 'stunning CGI', or stuffed full of pop culture gags, or even celebrity voices. The cream of the crop are the movies which make you care for the characters... you get to know their personalities... you identity with their goals... and you want them to succeed. After all, if you don't give a hoot about the cast, how are you supposed to concern yourself with anything else? This could apply to almost all films, but it goes double for animation... as too many these days get lost in puerile jokes and mindless action to give us anything else of substance.
How To Train Your Dragon 1 was a pleasure, and the sequel shares many of the same qualities. Sure, there are amazing sequences of giant winged creatures dipping through the sky, and some humorous interludes involving some of the more... special members of the crew. But it never loses sight of the most important thing: Remember your characters, stay true to them, and just tell their story. There are some wonderful moments involving family ties, reunion and loss which will move anyone in the right frame of mind to tears. Not me, though. I'm TOUGH.
So, perhaps an alternate title could be 'How To Make An Animated Movie', because this and it's predecessor show us how it's done. Are you watching Madagascar? 7/10