Direction: Dean DeBlois; Cast: Jay Banuchel,
Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah
Hill Screenplay: Dean DebLois; Based on the book of Cressida Cowell Producer: Bonnie
Arnold; Genre: Adventure/ Animation; Music: John
Powell; Distributor: Dreamworks Animation; Location: Berk
Village Running Time: 102 minutes
Technical Aasessment: 4
Moral assessment: 4
MTRCB rating: G
CINEMA rating: VA (Viewers of all ages)
Five years after
Hiccup (Jay Banuchel) has shown the Berks that men and dragons can peacefully
co-exist as companions and friends, he faces the challenge of Stoick (Gerard
Butler), chief of the tribe and father to him, to take over the leadership of
his village. But Hiccup doubts he can handle the responsibility and
prefers to explore the world with his dragon friend Toothless. In one of his
adventures, Hiccup and his girlfriend, Astrid (Ferrera), stumble upon Eret (Kit
Harrington) and his group of dragon trappers. The duo learn that Eret works
for Drago, a cruel Viking who wants to take over Berk by
assembling an army of dragons. Wanting to avoid conflict and protect the dragons,
Hiccup ventures to confront Drago and talk him out of his plan amidst
the objections of everyone else. Along the way, Hiccup is captured by Valka,
a skilled dragon rider and tamer, who eventually happens to also be his long
lost mother. As the story of Valka is revealed, so is Drago’s evil
plans to conquer not only Berk but the entire mankind. When Stoick is
accidentally killed by a hypnotized Toothless, Hiccup realizes he must stand up
against Drago to fight for Berk, for the dragons and for peace.
How to train your dragon 2 surpasses its predecessor in visual feats and animated
action. The recreated world of dragons and Berk are such spectacular
joys. John Powell’s scoring, although not as dynamic as the first movie, still
brings shivers with the triumph and excitement of his powerful and playful music. While
it is contextually deeper and more grounded, the pacing at times moves a
little too slow—probably to allow the audience to digest the emotions served in
family reunions and display of bravery. While it gave the storytelling
intensity, it took away a pinch of fluidity into the action sequences. Valka’s character was
supposed to provide the narrative highlight but her motivations and
portrayal feel damp and underdeveloped. However, the movie’s
clever comedy and lovable characters makes it worth the hour’s queuing at the
ticket booth.
The movie offers so
much inspiring moral worldviews. It tackles leadership and responsibility with
Hiccup’s initial hesitation to fill in Stoick’s shoes and eventual
realization that choices made for service and common good is
what a true leader really is. Family plays a dominant theme in the film as
well. We see a better father figure now in Stoick who accepts and
respects his son’s choices although he still would defend and protect him
at all cost. Bravery and selflessness is redefined with a father offering
his life for his family and the people he serves. We see a loving and
forgiving husband in him as well when without question or anger, he lets his
love for his wife resurface after almost 20 years. And like its
predecessor, the themes of peaceful co-existence and respect for others prevail.
It reinforces that neither hostility nor domination over God’s creation are
acceptable. We are all called to be stewards and to love unconditionally so
that we can experience prosperity and peace as did the Berk’s when
they learned to care for the dragons. However, parents are cautioned against
bringing their very young children because some actions and dragons might be
too scary for them.
