The Heart of a Chief and the Soul of a Dragon

Rating: 9/10 (13 June 2014)

Animated sequels tend to struggle capturing the same broad appeal as the original, but in the case of How to Train Your Dragon 2, that's completely off. The first How to Train Your Dragon is one of my favorite movies of all time, and the sequel was my 4th most anticipated 2014 movie, so it had a lot to live up to. My initial thought was did it live up to the hype? Yes, and quite frankly it was a great time at the movies. Is it as good as the original? I would have to watch it again, but I think they are two very different movies but if I had to choose I would say the original is a tad better. With that said this movie does certain things better.
The animation always looks beautiful, as all the flight scenes are absolutely amazing to watch unfold. The beginning journey with Toothless and Hiccup is stunning and instantly brought me back to the 'Test Drive' scene in the first film. The relationship between them is cute and of course is similar to a man and his dog. The introduction of Cate Blanchett as the mom was a nice touch, and answered some questions left open from the first. But it still kills me to think of Berk without Stoick at the helm. I have always loved Stoick and Hiccup's relationship because it brings a new flavor to the clichéd Hollywood parent-kid relationship.
The film also brings many laughs, most come from the supporting riders to Hiccup, led by Jonah Hill and Kristen Wiig lending their voices. Even with all the entertainment, I do think the middle part of the film drags a bit. The first film flies by the 100 minute runtime without loss of steam. You can feel the runtime this go around but the ending 25 minutes delivers both on the emotional and action packed side. I also think the villain, Drago, was underwhelming but did have his moments. Kit Harrington as Eret was near useless, but once again, had his moments.
I cant go this whole review without mentioning the true heroes of both movies, and that is John Powell and Jonsi. They both do a great job at capturing the locations, and the relationships between the Vikings and Dragons. This film while not as good overall on the score side does bring back all of the same themes. I will be as excited for the third and possibly last installment as much as this one. This film also does a lot to set up the third and any future installments. These are the animated movies that make Pixar step their game up. Not many films can do that. The score is hair raising, and the song by Jonsi is incredibly beautiful to cap the film off. It will take a few more viewings to truly decide my score, but I will go with my gut feeling as I did for the first film.
+Hiccup and Toothless together :)
+Beautifully spotless animation
+Once again another beautiful score/soundtrack
+Emotional moments are almost at Toy Story 3 level
+Sets the 3rd installment up
-Sometimes weak villains
-Drags a tad
9.6/10