"Dragon" breathes a lot of smoke, but doesn't catch fire

Rating: 7/10 (21 July 2010)

For a decade now, Dreamworks has had to carry the uncomfortable burden of playing second fiddle to that animation behemoth, Pixar. If this was a family, Disney's Pixar would be the older, ambitious sister, the one always doted upon and destined for greatness, and Dreamworks would be her cruder but sometimes more entertaining brother. However, the rivalry between the two studios seems to be fodder for the media more than anything else. Instead of stewing in jealousy or attempting to outdo Pixar, Dreamworks opts to stay true to itself and to fashion its own path to success; in fact, the studio could act as the protagonist in one of its own movies. With movies like the Shrek franchise, Madagascar and Monsters vs. Aliens, Dreamworks tends to aim for entertainment rather than art, simplicity over depth and the funny bone over the brain. For the most part, their latest film, How to Train Your Dragon, stays faithful to this trend.
Strongly reminiscent of the 1999 movie The Iron Giant, Dragon employs Dreamworks's most reliable formula: that of the misfit underdog who ultimately gets his chance to shine and learns a valuable lesson along the way, usually on the lines of the ever-popular "be yourself" mantra of most kids movies. Though The Iron Giant was superior overall, How to Train Your Dragon does possess a lot of the same earnestness and heart as that film. The scenes devoted to the emerging bond between Hiccup and Toothless are the best in the movie, and their relationship feels organic and natural instead of coming across as a corny plot device. Toothless in particular comes across almost immediately as likable and, in nature, resembles a puppy more than a ferocious dragon. In addition, the animation is very well-done throughout, and the flying scenes, especially one that recalls the "A Whole New World" magic carpet ride in Disney's Aladdin, are as realistic as any. I didn't find them quite as engrossing as those in Avatar, but I'm sure they would have benefited had I caught this movie in time to see it in 3D.
Still, even with those pluses, it is difficult to overlook the movie's flaws. The plot is predictably predictable, which would not have been quite so bad if the secondary characters had not been reduced to mere stereotypes (the disapproving father who only wants what's best for his son, the overachieving girl who eventually falls for the hero despite herself, the bullies, the comical friend/sidekick/confidant). While the usual pop culture references are thankfully absent and there are a handful of sharp lines, much of the humor and dialogue feels tired and wooden; the mostly lackluster voice cast does little to help. Furthermore, the movie strives to explore Viking and Norse mythology, but despite occasional shout-outs to Odin and Thor, this is all largely rendered moot by the presence of Scottish accents when they are obviously supposed to reside in Scandinavia.
It's hard to really hate Dreamworks, though. After all, in terms of bug movies, I preferred Antz to A Bug's Life, and though I'm probably in a minority here, Kung Fu Panda was infinitely more enjoyable than Wall-E, which, for all its technical mastery, felt like an artsy message movie masquerading as something more accessible and less preachy. In spite of its faults, How to Train Your Dragon was a pleasant enough movie and certainly surpasses some of the other fare we've been subjected to thus far this year. It's no Toy Story 3, but it is something kids will probably love. Adults might not mind it much either.