How to Train Your Dragon (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo)

How To Train Your Dragon is most definitely one of the biggest sleeper hits in recent memory. While the film got great reviews from critics, audiences never really paid it much mind, forgetting it quickly in exchange for more "toddler" oriented animated movies, such as Tangled, Rio, or 3D remade family classics such as The Lion King, and Beauty and the Beast. 'Dragon' being a PG animated film tailors towards older kids, but will be just as adored by adults for its epic action and deep and heartfelt characters. So no, this is a not a film made for 3 and 4 year old toddlers who just wanna go and see a cute animals make funny faces. Some dragons can be a bit scary for them, not to also mention the fiery action, so I'd recommend this for at least 6 years and up.The story takes place during the Viking era and stars Hiccup, a small and skinny Viking son of a much bigger, manlier, and grander dragon-slaying father. Hiccup must compete with other kids his age in order to train to be dragon killers, yet this is the classic story of a kid who simply feels different from the others, and figures out a truth about the dragons that no one else knows - that they can live in a good peaceful coexistence. Hiccup stumbles upon a dragon himself, trains with him and soon learns many life lessons using his brain instead of his brawn in order to humble the dragons, in the hopes of proving all the others wrong.The best thing about 'Dragon' is its attention to the characters - there is much time taken to build up the relationship between Hiccup and his black sheep dragon named Toothless. Lots of quiet moments are granted to us making this a very unique film about characters and how relationships grow despite cultural obstacles, really making this a parallel on society in a strange way. This is way different than the usual loud and obnoxious animated family films that rely way too much on impressing the audience with crazy special effects instead of giving them a good story. 'Dragon' does have much action and great effects on its own, but what makes this film work is that the effects are used to guide the story, not tell it. Hence, we get a great character story ALONG WITH all the great epic action to accompany it. 2 for 1, can't go wrong with it. 'Dragon' does not disappoint in all regards; it's definitely apparent the filmmakers put lots of effort into a well-told story as well as good special effects and animation. Moreover, we must understand that this story is not anything we haven't already seen before in a different setting, but the simplicity of the story and its reliance on character actions instead of constant monologues and dialogues granted by movies that simply talk too much and do very little.Some people may be disappointed that the comedy aspect of this film isn't at the forefront. This is more of an action/adventure with some comedic elements simply SPRINKLED upon the film, but the movie is not made to be a comedy. The beauty here is that the story is so good, it doesn't ever matter to the viewer. You'll be too busy "whoah'ing to ever care to chuckle a cheap 'haha.' So no, 'Dragon' won't pull out any dumb and overused pop culture trendy lines in order to be loved by the latest Entertainment Weekly subscriber a la Shrek, nor will you find any sort of product placement nonsense. The filmmakers are here to give you an epic adventure, and on honing in on this goal it is then done incredibly well, you won't really care about anything else. The story may be simple, but since it's told so fantastically, you appreciate it anyhow.This all leads up to an epic dragon battle finale which contains some of the best special effects editing and shot in recent animated film history, and I would have to say on a personal note that seeing action this intense and well directed is not something you'll probably find in any other family film out there. So if you're tired of just being fed little kiddie stories about cute animals walking around in colorful little worlds, check out 'Dragon' for some more intense action that dares to walk on a slightly grittier terrain. With a story full of dragons, Vikings and epic longships, you will not be disappointed.On a technical side, and this is a pretty big point and one of the main reasons that make the Blu-ray copy of this film so appealing. That the film, in a nutshell, looks ABSOLUTELY IMMACULATE. The detail found on this Blu-ray transfer is simply stunning and jaw-droppingly GORGEOUS to any fan of High Definition video. Landscapes are clean and fully detailed, edges are sharp, colors are extravagant, smoke and light are eye-poppingly smooth, motion is flawless. Out of my collection of 130 Blu-ray titles, this would have to be on my top three in terms of visual detail, perhaps tying first place with Tron:Legacy, another epically gorgeous-looking film. I simply cannot say enough good things about how incredibly perfect the video detail looks on this blu-ray, and is way ahead of the visuals I saw in the movie theaters for this film.Now to make matters even better, the film also contains one of the crispest, cleanest, most flawless audio soundtracks I've ever heard. The film runs on the latest TrueHD Dolby sound, and it is well noticed (even though other soundtracks that run on the same system don't sound nearly as good). Every sound is not only audible, from the voices to wind and fire battles, but every single sound is even, smooth and incredibly clean. The music in the film itself ever even borders on overtaking the film, and while the soundtrack score to the movie is great, the general volume level of it is kept at a respectable distance, guiding the film's entire feel, giving the viewer an almost subconscious trip into the world of the Vikings because it never boasts saying "hey, listen to me, i sound really good at the expense of the voices and other things." No, the soundtrack knows its place, as well as all the other sounds; nothing is ever too loud or too low, but there's other way to say it - it's juuuuust right. So just as the video is one of the absolute best I've ever seen, the audio soundtrack is one of the absolute best I've ever heard. It amazes me just how much work was put into making this blu-ray transfer this good.In closing, in terms of blu-ray performance, I believe 'Dragon' should be playing on all retail store tv displays, if only to show the absolute maximum capacity of every television unit they are selling. Yup, it looks THAT good. My hat goes off to the transfer team to showing us exactly what the power of blu-ray can do. Hence a great story, great characters, and stunning presentation make this an easy pick for any movie fan.

This movie was spot on perfect. The voice acting, the animation, and the characters were all amazing. From the moment Toothless appeared onscreen, I was mesmerized.When it all comes to a head, though? That's cinematic history in the making. The final battle between the Vikings and the big bad was pitifully one-sided. It wasn't until our heroes burst onto the scene to save everyone and teach them that the things they've feared for so long are responsible for saving all their lives.Hiccup and Toothless? They're willing to sacrifice everything and they very nearly do.If you've seen it, watch it again. If you haven't, don't wait.

Beforehand, I had not been impressed with previous DreamWorks Animation films. This film then completely changed my mind about DreamWorks. It was a great movie that I admit is a must-see for kids who like Power Rangers, superhero movies, etc.Hiccup is a Viking who wants to be like his dragon-killing father Stoic. In the beginning, he actually shoots down the most feared dragon of them all, the Night Fury. No one believes Hiccup since no one saw him shoot the dragon down. But, they do see him run away from another dragon. Hiccup ends up running away. While running, Hiccup finds the Night Fury and instead of killing it, he decides to let it go due to feeling bad for it. The dragon almost goes for the kill, but in return for his release only roars in Hiccup's face. Apparently, the Night Fury lost a little bit of his tail wing from the crash during Hiccup's attempted capture. Scared, Hiccup runs home and his father decides to let him train to fight dragons, only Hiccup now feels that he shouldn't. Hiccup joins some other Vikings including his secret crush, Astrid, to begin training. Taught by his lifelong teacher Gobber, Hiccup doesn't do so well in dragon training. He finds the Night Fury again at a secret cliff. After a few close encounters, Hiccup becomes friendly toward the dragon and he begins to invent a prosthetic replacement for his injured tail as well as inventing a saddle to fly on him. He even names the dragon Toothless and later discovers secrets on how to get a dragon calm. He uses those 'secrets' in dragon training, soon stealing all the attention from Astrid, who soon grows jealous, especially after it is decided that Hiccup would get to kill a dragon. One day, Astrid follows him into the woods and discovers Toothless after having a pep talk with Hiccup. Toothless responds negatively to Astrid when he first sees her, and ends up taking her up on the saddle and ignoring Hiccup's commands, even making him say, "Thanks a lot, you useless reptile!" Astrid then apologizes during a sickening spin, and Toothless begins calmly flying. Astrid then begins to like the experience of flying on a dragon. But when she reminds Hiccup that he has to kill a dragon, Toothless overhears and flies at fast speed toward a secret location. They run into other dragons and go into a cave where they see the dragons tossing their food down into a fiery pit, which later is revealed to be a tyrannosaurus rex-type dragon who eats dragons that don't give it what it wants. Realizing they had found the "nest" that his father had been looking for, Hiccup tells Astrid not to tell anyone. The next day, Hiccup's father returns to the village to hear from his fellow Vikings that stayed behind that Hiccup had become top student in dragon training. Stoic is proud and gives Hiccup a Viking helmet made of his late mothers' breastplate. Hiccup comes up with an idea to convince everyone of the truth about dragons. The next day is the match where Hiccup is supposed to kill his first dragon, and he drops his weapons to try and be nice to it. But his father then gets enraged and the dragon gets spooked, causing the plan to fail. Hearing Hiccup's scream, Toothless comes into the field and fights the dragon off. However, he is later kidnapped by the Vikings and Stoic is angry at his son. Hiccup accidentally then reveals to him that he found the nest and Stoic goes out ignoring his son's warning. Stoic gathers a band of Vikings to go out with Toothless tied up on their boat. Stoic orders him to lead them to the nest. Toothless leads the Vikings to the nest, and meanwhile, Hiccup debates with himself on why he didn't kill Toothless in the first place. Astrid then reminds him that he was the first Viking to ride a dragon, and it makes him come up with an idea. Hiccup then convinces Snotlout, Fishlegs, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut about the truth on dragons. They then fly to the island where his father and fellow Vikings have already arrived, and they blast the cave open, scaring away all the dragons inside it. Following that, the tyrannosaurus dragon comes up from the ground enraged and tries to do away with the Vikings. Hiccup and company arrive and set up a plan to trap and kill the monster. Most of the Vikings are unsuccessful upon their jobs, but upon seeing that his son was right, Stoic saves him and Toothless while Hiccup was trying to save Toothless after the ship sunk from a fire blast by the dragon. Hiccup and Toothless fly into the sky and lure the tyrannosaurus dragon to fly up with it. After hiding from it in the sky, it fires at it into the mouth and causes it to fall. Unfortunately, during the blast to destroy it, Toothless crashes into the tail and causes him and Hiccup to fall into the flames. Toothless manages to rescue Hiccup alive, and his father finds them. He ends up losing one of his legs (though he isn't shown without his leg) and is replaced by a prosthetic leg invented by Gobber. Hiccup then wakes up to see his people riding dragons. Hiccup is convinced by his father that they have realized the truth about dragons. Hiccup continues flying with his dragon and even gets a kiss from Astrid, as he would say, "I could get used to it".The animation is absolutely breathtaking, and it seems like the most realistic animation of 2010 (ranking alongside Tangled and Legend of the Guardians). The action and peril seen is somewhat intense, though it isn't necessarily violent and it flies clear of bloodshed. The character Toothless is more adorable than menacing, and a character design that resembles closely to Stitch from Lilo & Stitch (probably because How To Train Your Dragon was directed by Lilo & Stitch's directors Dean DuBlois and Chris Sanders). There's also a few funny parts, particularly with Snotlout, Fishlegs, and Ruffnut and Tuffnut. It's comedy relief from some of the most dramatic parts.Getting into further detail, I do have to say that there may be a few dragons that might scare young children, particularly under the age of 6. But, the combination of great action and pure heart make this movie a winner. The best release yet for DreamWorks Animation, and I am honestly looking forward to a sequel.

One of my favorite animated movie series ever! Hiccup and Toothless are timeless. Animated is not just for kids.

This is a cute movie. Great to watch with family, took a minute for me to get into but then was absolutely adorable and heart warming. A great story about believing in yourself!

This was a very good film. And if I sound surprised, it's because I am. I can't say I heard much about it when it was released at the cinema or afterwards on its DVD release and I mistakenly put that down to it being a very average film in a market with an over-abundance of very average films. Plus, whisper it, Pixar do tend to have the upper hand on Dreamworks. Oh, how wrong I was.How To Train Your Dragon is a funny and well made film about Vikings (why aren't there more Vikings in films? I loved Vikings as a kid) and their ongoing battles with the dragons in the area. The story is simple and follows Hiccup as he tries to gain the respect of his father, the village leader, but simple does not equate to dull. There is a blend of visual and verbal gags that took me a couple of watches to pick up on, so it does stand up to a rewatch or two.I sometimes think animated characters tend to blend into one, with nothing really to separate them. Here, each character is an individual, all have distinct personalities and all of them are a joy. Even the dragons have great characterisation.The animation is brilliant, with extra points going to the dragons, obviously, but, perhaps not so obviously, the backgrounds and scenery. When Toothless is flying, it's thrilling to watch.I sat and watched this with a huge grin of my face and it's a film that can be enjoyed by anyone (no kids in my household, just four adults and we all liked it a lot). Even the fact that the adults were Scottish and the kids American (Scottish Vikings being a bit historically inaccurate, to say the least) didn't bother me all that much.Finally, one last point, can I have my very own Toothless please? He's just adorable.

This is the story of village wimp Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) and his quest to be like his beefy father (Gerard Butler) and the rest of the villagers. The village in question is a lonely Viking outpost plagued by bad weather and regular dragon attacks. Because Hiccup is a weedy individual with poor coordination and a talent for getting into scrapes he has to rely on technology in his attempts to be like his dragon slaying compatriots. Hiccup is the apprentice to the village blacksmith (Craig Ferguson) which gives him access to the materials to make various dragon busting weapons which have serially failed to work at the crucial moment. To add to his woes he is suffering a bad case of unrequited love for Astrid (America Ferrara), a teenage beauty proficient in fighting and use of weapons.Early in the film Hiccup scores a rare success and hits a fabled Night Fury dragon with one of his weapons. No one believes him and he ventures alone into the woods to find the downed dragon. When he finds it he tries to kill it but realises he can't when he sees the fear in its eyes. Thus begins an uneasy truce between them which develops into trust and friendship. He even names the dragon Toothless (it has retractable teeth). Hiccup uses his inventing skills to devise a prosthetic tail fin for the crippled dragon and together they take to the skies to perfect it. While the bond twixt boy and dragon strengthens the villagers are planning an expedition to the dragons' secret home island to exact revenge for all the raids.The blacksmith is tasked with training the village youngsters in the art of dragon killing. Hiccup's father expressly orders Hiccup to participate in this. For a while this goes well as Hiccup has learned all the dragons' weak spots and uses his knowledge to pacify the training dragons without killing them. When Hiccup is rumbled by a suspicious Astrid, he and Toothless kidnap her and take her on an airborne joyride to convince her that dragons are inherently good. Whilst on this joyride they stumble into the flight path of a group of dragons and follow them to the dragons' home island. Once there they discover that the dragons are hostage to an enormous uber-dragon which forces them to raid other islands and bring food back to drop in its enormous gaping maw. Hiccup returns determined to show the villagers that the dragons could be their friends.It all goes pear shaped when the villagers' expedition returns empty handed to find Hiccup is the village hero. Impressed, his father insists on watching the final trial but scuppers things when he alarms the dragon Hiccup is attempting to charm. This leads to a life or death confrontation between Hiccup and the angry dragon which ends when Toothless comes to the rescue and fights off the other dragon. Unfortunately Toothless is captured and tied to a boat to provide unwilling guidance to the dragons' island.The film climaxes with the villagers' discovery of the dragons' island and a showdown with the giant dragon. Hiccup and the village youngsters ride in to the rescue on the training dragons and free Toothless from his bonds. Hiccup and Toothless go head to head with the giant dragon and defeat it although at some cost to Hiccup who does not escape unscathed. The film ends with the villagers and dragons living together in harmony and all's well with the world.This is a great little film, competently animated to Dreamworks high (but not Pixar high) standards. Most of the animation effort seems to have gone into Toothless. A great design, he moves very convincingly and conveys just the right amount of expression given that his head isn't really designed for facial movement. By comparison the other dragons look like comedy cartoon dragons.For me the best bits of the film are the scenes where boy and dragon learn about each other, bonding in the process. Toothless's behaviour is clearly modelled on domestic cats and dogs which makes him a very engaging character. Hiccup too is an engaging character. A nerd in a hero's world we sympathise with him because he is more like most of us than the rest of the villagers.Bugbears are few with this film. Why do the Viking villagers all have Scottish accents? Why do their kids have American accents? Why are the dragons beholden to the big dragon when they could a) fly away or b) gang up and char broil him? But this is a kids' film and it's best not to ask too many questions and just sit back and enjoy.

Simply put, this is an exceptional film. I was thoroughly surprised to find Dreamworks had entered the ring and finally thrown in a very strong contender for Disney Pixar. The film boasts a fantastic voice cast including Gerard Butler, America Ferrera and David Tennant as an assortment of burly vikings who must fight the fierce dragons threatening their village. The animation is simply superb throughout the film and stunning on blu-ray with a colourful variety of dragons to behold from the monstrous firebreathing Nightmare to the two-headed Zippleback. The film is exciting, funny and action-packed and Hiccup's friendship with the loveable Toothless is wonderful to watch. This is definitely a feel-good film for all the family and I'm certain anyone who watches it will want their own dragon like Toothless (I know I do!). As for special features the Blu-ray/DVD Double Play pack includes a filmmakers commentary, behind the scenes footage, interviews and a particularly interesting technical artistry feature showing how each dragon was created. I would definitely recommend this film and if you fall in love with Toothless you might like to also pick up Dreamworks Dragons: Gift of The Nightfury DVD for an additional dragon fix.

What an excellent movie. This time DreamWorks have really excelled in their story telling. The tale is told with skill and a pace that sucks the reader straight into a world that you quickly feel a part of. The characters are delightfully batty with a streak of realism in them (yes I sadly know people who could fit into the shoes of each person) portrayed through a script where the conversation grows and unfolds the complexities of each ego. You really get to know each personality but there isn't any time wasted on character relationships at the expense of storytelling. Right from the word go the Viking’s relationship with the dragons is quickly defined, the problems they all face, and the main character's disastrous role displayed amongst his own people. You get to feel his disconnection with them and how all of this changes when he discovers a knowledge of dragons that no-one else has.Again this age old tale of the "misunderstood outcast" or "runt of the pack" ducks and dives even until the very last scene where, even when you think that he's finally won through and everyone thinks he's a hero, he still has to face his own personal loss (having lost a limb). There's nothing in the film that seems out of character and there's so much that you can talk through with young kids - if you're into that sort of thing. Above all, however, it’s just great fun. The camera angles and computer graphic displays of the dragon's flight in and through the air are fabulous. Definitely a film I could watch again and again on a lazy Sunday afternoon when I want the world to go away and to have a little space to dream again. Well done DreamWorks - this dream of a film really works for me!

Basically, my cat looks like Toothless and that's one of my reasons for adoring this film.The other reasons are because of how much effort has gone into the animation on this. The detail is huge, and so so well done; if you pay close attention to it, you will be amazed.This is one of those lovely films you can show your kid and they'll enjoy it, but you can watch it and see all of the jokes that they don't, and you'll enjoy it too.Yes, it is a tried and tested story line (skinny/unpopular son of high-up person in society who doesn't want to follow the traditional way of things overcomes obstacles etc) but it's a new way of doing it, and when you see Toothless, you will think he's the cutest thing to walk the earth.It's good fun, and having it on DVD and Blu-Ray is brilliant, because it means I can watch it on my laptop as well as the PS3 :)Brilliant, buy it!