'How To Train Your Dragon' is a story the world needs right now
Has the world got you feeling down? If so, go to see the live-action film How To Train Your Dragon. It honours and extends the Oscar-nominated, animated series that launched in 2010, adapted from the popular books by Cressida Cowell and directed by Canadian Dean DeBlois.
The animated films, one to three, were instant classics, loved by critics and audiences alike. So many viewers asked, why turn the franchise into live action when the magic of the films was due to the animation? After attending the premiere in Los Angeles, I can safely assure you that if you're a fan of the original books and animated series you're going be even more entranced with the live action version. Audiences whoop and holler, laugh and make that sound that comes when the heart stirs: 'Awwww.'
The story focuses on many themes the world needs now. Forgiveness, empathy the courage to be who you are rather than who the world wants you to be, all wrapped up in humour, action and a large dose of adorable. Hiccup (Mason Thames) is the son of a famous and ferocious Viking chief, Stoick the Vast (Gerard Butler reprising the role he played in the animated series). Hiccup is emerging from his father's gigantic shadow, trying to live up to the pressure of becoming the next leader while possessing none of the skills valued by the clan.
Intellectual and awkward, Hiccup sets out to prove himself worthy by capturing a Night Fury, the most elusive of the swarms of dragons that have become the Viking's mortal enemy by attacking their village and stealing their sheep. Hiccup wounds the dragon and tracks it, locating it miles from the village and caught in Hiccup's snare with part of his tail gone, making it incapable of flying.
The wonder of the film is in the relationship that builds between the two as each overcomes their innate distrust of the other. Hiccup creates an appendage that helps the Night Fury, whom he names Toothless, to fly again. The two soar along the wild coasts and skies in wonderful, rousing visuals. When Stoick discovers that his son has befriended the clan's enemy, whom he's vowed to eradicate, the father-son betrayal/redemption unfolds in both funny and emotional ways that may have many males identifying and reaching for the phone to talk to their dad or son.
The finale brings a reckoning of epic proportions in an action sequence that will have youngsters on the edges of their seats, while absorbing lessons both heartening and satisfying.
The live action has benefited from the advances in technology, creating a lovable Toothless that's guaranteed to charm the audience. Keeping DeBlois in charge has ensured that the splendour of the animated series is amplified with scenes you didn't think could be replicated in live action. 'To do it right we needed to protect the wonder, heart and wish fulfilment of story,' says DeBlois.
Toothless displays loyalty and human emotions so cute that you won't miss the animated version. Mason Thames (The Black Phone) is well cast as Hiccup, delivering self-aware humour, awkwardness and heart. 'Hiccup's village casts him out,' explains the 17-year-old. 'He's not accepted, because he's not like everyone else. I wanted to explore a darker, sadder side of Hiccup. All he wants is to make his dad proud. To do that, he has to kill a dragon. Once he realises that he can't, he accepts he's different and goes with his strengths. That's what makes Hiccup so special to me.'
Nico Parker (Mad About the Boy), actress Thandiwe Newton's daughter, is aptly cast as Astrid, embodying the gumption of a girl with ambitions of leading the Vikings, who ultimately falls for Hiccup. Parker calls Astrid a badass: 'I was a fan of the animated series. Dean brilliantly built out her back story and justifies the relationship between Mason and Astrid.'
Gerard Butler reprises his role as Stoick, the fearless and fearsome leader of the Vikings who bends the world to his will but is also responsible for keeping the clan safe. Butler channels all the charisma of an action hero that audiences follow in his global box office hits (300, Den of Thieves, the Fallen franchise), but he also brings a complex character to life.
Stoick is a single father struggling to connect with a son whose ineptitude is dangerous in a brutal world. In his harried life as Viking leader he strives to protect and inspire his son portraying an inner life of frustration, pain and love. He's also flat-out hilarious in the 'heart-to-heart, let's have a chat, son' scenes that elevate the live action beyond the animated films.
This is a movie fathers and sons can watch together to open up their softer sides. Butler deserves to star in a comedy of his own and to have a seat at the table with some of the great actors of our day.
The versatile Scottish actor addressed the differences between the two genres.
'It was emotional and exhausting. The costume and beard were heavy and cumbersome. Live action requires a physical commitment and transformation. We delved into the vulnerability of Stoick, the deeper, darker emotional side with its contradictions. Those quiet moments reveal his pain. A man bound by traditions being cracked open. It's almost like a breath held within him.
'Then he shows the vulnerability and unravelling. That was a powerful experience. The live action plays into the bigger parts of Stoick, especially his inner struggles and workings. Ultimately, that's what grabs the audience.'
In an emotional aside, Butler, who comes from a single-parent household, shared that his mother, Margaret, was dying while shooting the film. The emotions of her being a single parent and loving Gerard — who was fired from his job as a lawyer because he really wanted to act — paralleled the story of disappointing a parent, yet being loved regardless. The overlaps affected the affable actor.
'All I wanted to do was please my mom. I didn't grow up with a dad. My mom was both parents, like Stoick is both parents to Hiccup. I was fired up when the Vikings say to Hiccup: 'You're not part of our village.' I was terrified to call my mom that night and say, 'Mom, I've just been fired.' She wrote me this letter saying, 'I'm just proud of you, as long as you're doing what you believe in.''
He adds, 'My mom was ill while we were filming this movie. We shot some scenes in Belfast, and I went back on weekends to see her. It brought a lot of stuff up for me playing Stoick. Watching myself on the screen, normally I'd criticise myself, instead I asked myself, 'Is that even me?' I saw more of my mom in the character in this film.'
Butler also thanked DeBlois. 'At the end of the movie Dean added a dedication to my mother,' says Butler.
'The film plays on strength and masculinity, but it's really the opposite. It's about giving those things up and letting uniqueness shine through. It's about being a leader, but also being willing to let go of that and have some compassion and empathy for those around you.'
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