Incredible film, and so much better than I thought it would be.

Rating: 10/10 (18 May 2010)

At first glance from commercials and trailers, it's just another one of "those" movies that have been coming out a lot recently for kids/families. Crude humor, cliché story, cheesy dialogue, waste of money (movie tickets are insanely expensive today). So this movie was not even on my radar until my friends saw it and said it was cute, so on a free weekend, I saw it, but the 2D version, just in case it wasn't worth the money.
I was SO wrong. Within the first couple of minutes, I was hooked and convinced and entertained the entire film, and I have since seen the movie 4 times (Quite honestly, I've never seen anything more than 3 times while it's still in theaters). I laugh, I cry, and the turning point of the film still makes my heart pound. It is a true gem.
The use of 3D is exemplary, unlike Avatar, which did absolutely nothing for the already dazzling 2D picture, except give James Cameron more cash than he already had. The flying scenes in How to Train Your Dragon are absolutely amazing and beautiful, seeing this in 3D is a MUST. While a lot of visually amazing movies fall short on everything else, this movie did not. I fell in love with each character, and while the story was cute, imaginative, and touching, it was NEVER cheesy or corny or made me cringe. The script is fantastic, and sometimes even very mature and smart, but not chatty. I can't even BEGIN to tell you about the music, but it is incredible and just as inspirational as the film itself.
Some have said the characters and plot are cliché, but quite honestly, because it's a MOVIE, a lot of elements are predictable. It's just the way things are. My favorite touch of originality has to be the fact that the leading heroine, Astrid, is smart, strong, independent, tough yet sweet on the inside, and ISN'T brunette; she's BLONDE! Being a blonde myself and quite offended by the way we are in the media, this made me extremely happy, and if I already didn't love the movie enough, I love it even more for that.
On a final note, I strongly wish this will win best animated picture for the next Oscars, because it truly deserves it. Not many movies stick with me for so long or make me emotionally attached to them, like I am right now. Bravo, Dreamworks.