How to Train Your Dragon 2
It’s been five years since Hiccup (Jay Baruchel: Robocop) convinced the people of Berk that dragons were not the enemy. The Vikings have laid down their arms and picked up saddles, domesticating dragons and racing them for fun. Even Hiccup’s dragon-hating dad Stoick the Vast (Gerard Butler: Olympus has Fallen) has converted his dragon-killing armory into a custom dragon-saddle business.
Peace has brought Stoick and Hiccup closer, but father and son still don’t understand one another. Stoick sees Hiccup’s skill with dragons as a sign that he’s ready to become the next chieftain of Berk. Hiccup is terrified of more responsibility, so he avoids his father for adventures with Toothless, his rare Night Fury dragon.
While adventuring, Hiccup encounters a group of unscrupulous trappers who shoot dragons out of the sky and sell them to warlord Drago Bloodfist (Djimon Hounsou: Baggage Claim). Drago has found a way to bewilder dragons, gaining control of their minds as he builds an army to take over the world. Hiccup and mysterious dragon-rider Valka (Cate Blanchett: The Monuments Men) are the world’s only hope against Drago and his fire-breathing beasts.
How to Train Your Dragon 2 is a story about the families we make and the families we earn. The sequel to the wildly popular How to Train Your Dragon, the film expands on the imaginative universe of the first movie but shrinks its heart. Second-time director Dean DeBlois offers great action sequences and soaring chases, but he does little with the characters we’ve come to know.
Hiccup goes through the standard teen angst of movie characters between the ages of 10 and 25. His body has matured but not his character. He still spurns responsibility. That’s typical teen behavior, but odder is that a boy with raging hormones spends so much time away from his girlfriend. Hiccup’s true love seems to be Toothless, his constant adventuring companion.
On its surface a film about familial ties, Dragon 2 is more deeply focused on the relationship between pet and person. Hiccup’s connections with his father and his extended family are barely explored, because he is never in the same room with them. There’s a great deal of talking about family and very little interaction.
Late in the movie, Valka explains to Hiccup that there aren’t any bad dragons, just “good dragons forced to do bad things.” Hiccup learns this first-hand when Drago uses his dragon-controlling powers to force Toothless to betray his beloved master. It’s a crushing blow for fire-breathing beast and boy, and one of the more effectively poignant moments in the movie. Sadly, it’s quickly shoved to the side so that we can go through more dreck about family.
Though the human dramatics often fall flat, DeBlois is a master of dragon emotion. He gives each dragon a distinct personality. The film works best when the dragons take center stage. They romp, soar, spit fire and act like dopey dogs when they’re with their humans. Who wouldn’t want a dragon for a pet? Seeing this movie will more likely inspire you to give your pet an extra cuddle than to call your parents.