The reviews are in!
The new live-action remake of “How to Train Your Dragon” has arrived; we asked the real experts, kids, what they think about it.
The film, which stars Mason Thames as Hiccup, Nico Parker as Astrid and Gerard Butler as Stoick, hit theaters on June 13.
In an interview with TODAY.com, Butler talked about the movie and revealed how it paid homage to the 2010 animated version, which was inspired by the best-selling book series of the same name.
Butler said “a fine line had to be tread to pay homage to the original to keep the essence of the story.” However, with director Dean DeBlois at the helm, he said that the cast was able to “bring something that felt real fresh and original” to the film.
What are kids saying about the movie?
TODAY.com spoke with kids about the movie, and the reviews were generally positive. Joseph, 12, who adored the movie, says he thinks the remake is “an amazing movie for all ages.”
“I thought it was awesome. It had good graphics. It looked like real dragons, and I think it moved nicely,” he says.
Wylie, also 12, agrees.
“I thought it was really good. A lot of time when they remake old movies, they change the story or something like that. They didn’t do that here at all. The movie itself looked great. Everything was well paced,” he says.
Any suggestions for improvement? Ruby, 9, thought that the movie could’ve been better if it had no intimate scenes.
“I hate the kissing,” she says. On the other hand, Clara, 9, says that she wanted “more kissing.”
(For the record, the kissing scene between the two young lead actors is quite minimal and chaste.)
Wylie, a huge fan of the original series, says the film did a good job representing all the characters, both human and dragon.
But Ruby and Jane, 7, say they were displeased with how the movie brought Gronckle, the most ferocious dragon in the film, to life, as well as some of the other beasts.
“The Gronckle looks weird,” Ruby tells TODAY.com.
“One thing I would change about the movie is Gronckle because it doesn’t look like the cartoon,” Jane adds. “The Hideous Zippleback, the Gronckle and the Monstrous Nightmare don’t look anything like the cartoon.”
When asked if the remake was better than the cartoon, Jane declares, “It’s a tie.”
Emma, 8, said the remake met all of her expectations.
“I love it so much. I love it. I love everything,” she said. “But I’m so sad that Hiccup had to lose his leg, even though it’s necessary. I cried like, maybe twice, maybe even three times. And it’s a great movie. I really, really recommend it.”
What are parents saying about the movie?
TODAY Digital reporter Rosie Colosi McDevitt saw the film with her daughters, Ruby and Jane, their friends, and her husband, Ryan.
She said if other parents plan to take their kids to see “How to Train Your Dragon,” then there’s some things they should look out for, like the jump scares in the movie and how real the monstrous beasts looked.
“They looked as real and scary as the dinosaurs in ‘Jurassic Park,'” she said. “There were even a handful of jump scares. The sweet 7-year-old on my left clutched my arm and said, ‘I’m scared!’ five different times, but the 4-year-old on my right was having a grand old time.”
As for Ryan, he says “How to Train Your Dragon” has a questionable moral lesson, from an adult perspective. He says he also realized that the film is “a lot harsher” than the animated version.
“It’s a little bit more graphic … I don’t know if I would change this, but kids are supposed to listen to their parents. In this case, Hiccup didn’t listen to his father, but he turned out to be right, so that means the message is … don’t listen to your parents?” he wondered.
What is ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ about?
“How to Train Your Dragon” focuses on the friendship between Hiccup, a young Viking lad, and his dragon, Toothless. Although his Viking village and the dragons are bitter historical enemies, Hiccup and Toothless must come together to save their family and friends against a greater threat.
What is ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ rated?
The movie is rated PG, which stands for parental guidance. This means that some material in the movie may not be suitable for young kids and parents should decide whether or not the film is appropriate for their kids to watch
How is ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ different from the original?
Bringing animated characters to life was no easy task. Butler said that he and the cast knew that they had some big shoes to fill for their roles, so they always thought about how they could make things “more richer and more nuanced” for the remake.
“This just sucks you in and it becomes its own story,” he says of the remake. “How could anyone who’s seeing this movie for the first time not be blown away or really enthralled and thrilled?”
Other than the effects, which brings the animated film to life, Butler said nothing comes close to the feeling that viewers will get from watching real actors play the roles.
“The ability to see actual sadness, anger, fear, whatever that is, it makes it ultimately, a more powerful, emotional, relatable experience,” he said.
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