3 days ago
A parent-kid take on seeing 'How to Train Your Dragon': Bring stuffies, snacks and tissues
Hello, Yahoo Entertainment readers. I'm Suzy Byrne, and I've been covering entertainment in this space for over a decade.
I'll be the first to tell you that I'm no hardcore cinema buff. Since I had a child, though, I've made it a point to see as many kid-friendly movies as possible. Maybe it's because I'm a big kid ✔ and I love a cheerful ending ✔. But also, as a busy working parent, is there greater joy than getting two hours to turn off your phone and put up your feet while your child is fully entertained?!
So that's what this is — one entertainment reporter + her 10-year-old child + usually friends seeing family-friendly fare, indulging in film-themed treats and replying all, to you, about the experience. Welcome to kids' movie club.
It turns out that carrying a Toothless pillow at a How to Train Your Dragon screening is an excellent icebreaker.
It made us appear to be experts to a woman in the bathroom who was unfamiliar with the franchise's expanse. It got us back inside the theater after a pre-movie restroom run. ('Why, yes, we are the pillow people,' we told the ticket taker.) It made strangers feel comfortable telling us which parts of the movie made them cry as we left.
That alone made it worth the effort of schlepping it on a train and two subways to get there, not to mention how handy it came in when we reversed course and my young movie buddy fell asleep on the way home. The PG-rated film — which is dominating at the box office — gave much to dream about, after all: Hiccup the sensitive hero, magical Toothless and those captivating eyes and what may be living in those Vikings' ragged beards. (Am I the only one who felt the urge to Nix comb all the facial hair?)
For our journey to Berk, seeing the film in IMAX was the way to go because the fire-breathing dragons were right there, and the sound was so superb you could hear every wing flap. The theater was about 50-50 on the adult-to-kid ratio. My daughter was elated to be there on a school night. (Yes, school is still in session here.)
We attended a prerelease screening, so it was too early to get AMC's Dragon Tamer Snack Pack. (The popcorn bucket at Regal is on another level.) Instead, we went with classic popcorn and Icees. My daughter mixed blue raspberry, the Lilo & Stitch flavor, with watermelon. I was a watermelon purist.
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I loved all things Toothless. The Night Fury, with his retractable chompers, is such a striking creature and watching him learn to trust sweet misfit Hiccup (who was the cause of it losing its tail fin) is a good example of forgiveness.
I loved the moment they first connected, Toothless letting Hiccup (Mason Thames) touch him on the nose. The regurgitated fish scene made me laugh/nauseous, and it hurt my heart to see Toothless muzzled and chained.
Casting humans based on animated characters is tricky, but the filmmakers did well all around. I especially appreciate that voice actors from the 2010 animated film were cast, including Gerard Butler as Hiccup's dad, Stoick — even if he was too hard on his son until he came around at the end.
I have zero time for the backlash over Nico Parker playing Astrid. She was great as Hiccup's rival turned love interest.
As the credits rolled, my daughter said, 'Heck yeah,' so I feel like the night was a win.
'I loved how two of the trainee dragon slayers were siblings' — Ruffnut and Tuffnut — 'and during training, they always humiliated each other,' my daughter says. 'It was so funny when Tuffnut got bit on the nose by the little dragon and said something like: I'm totally not OK. I also loved Toothless and how cute he was. When he got stuck in the water, I almost cried😭. All the actors were perfect for their parts. Hiccup was really funny! I loved when he used all the dragon secrets he learned with Toothless to beat the others in their training.'
Bottom line: 'No need to be a dragon lover to … well … LOVE IT!!!'
My kiddo recommends the film for ages 6 and up. There are intense battles and realistic dragons. There's no onscreen bloodshed, but there are injuries, including Hiccup joining many of his Viking peers losing a limb. No bad words stood out.
Yes, Hiccup's mom. The backstory is that she was killed by a dragon, fueling Stoick's drive to extinguish them.
We didn't cry, but a mother-adult daughter we talked to as we waited for the credits to roll said they did when they didn't think Toothless would make it.
Hiccup's remark to Stoick about the Vikings being overweight. It was in the original film and was repeated in this. It's dated.
I liked Hiccup and Astrid's friendship and their 'give peace a chance' vision. They shared a kiss or two — actually a punch-kiss, which she initiates — but it was more about them working together, and the romance was not a distraction.
My daughter's take? 'Cute.' No further notes.
No. We waited (and waited!) for some fun post-credit moment, but there was only a one-second flash of Hiccup's drawing of Toothless. I guess it's a tease that the story continues (a sequel was previously announced for June 11, 2027), but it was a non-moment.
We watched the original animated film again after the new one, and it's remarkable how true to the 2010 film this is, including most of the dialogue. That's because Dean DeBlois directed and wrote the live-action movie after codirecting and cowriting the original and then helming the second and third animated films.
'I said, 'If you're going to do it, please consider me as the writer and director,'' DeBlois told the studio, according to Variety. 'I do know where the heart is, and I know this world. I know these characters.'
My daughter received two additional invites from friends to see the film in the theater over the weekend. We said yes to one. The feedback was: 'I noticed even more small differences between the original and this one.'
But it was mostly about the food: 'Mom, they accidentally brought us two of everything we ordered, so we got an extra Oreo Shake, Icee, pizza, chicken tenders and popcorn. The food kept coming out. It was crazy.'
Watching the movie a second time offered a chance to see trailers (since none played during the initial screening). Let's just say my daughter was tickled green to see the Wicked: For Good trailer for the first time.
This movie may just set off a summer of dragons for your child. After you see the live-action, you may want to (like us!) revisit the original animated films: How to Train Your Dragon (2010), How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014) and How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019). There's also the Dragons TV series, which ran from 2012 to 2018 (first on Cartoon Network, then Netflix).
Even better? If your dragon lover is up for a reading adventure, the films are based on Cressida Cowell's children's book series, with 12 titles to dive into. Checking them out from your local library or scooping them up off your local Buy Nothing group will provide hours of non-screen time for your kid.
Bonus rec: It may also open the gates to other popular dragon reads like Wings of Fire and Dragon Masters, both of which are 🔥 right now.
