Year: 2019
Director: Dean DeBlois
Starring: Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, F. Murray Abraham, Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler, and Craig Ferguson
Tagline: Their Final Quest
Starring: Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, F. Murray Abraham, Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler, and Craig Ferguson
Tagline: Their Final Quest
Synopsis: Although Hiccup has succeeded in making Berk a dragon/viking utopia, a new threat emerges to threaten all of them and their way of life.
Review
It is no easy feat to tie up a trilogy. Some do it well (LOTR, Toy Story, the original Star Wars). Others ... not so much (Pirates of the Caribbean, Shrek, Spider-Man). I'm pleased to say that The Hidden World is an enjoyable, fitting, and emotionally satisfying conclusion to a great trilogy.
I really liked the movie. And if you liked the previous installments, you should definitely go see it. Take the family and see it. Enjoy one more flight with Hiccup and Toothless.
That said, the movie has its flaws. And there were a few things that were disappointing. Let's get those out of the way so we can get back to what was good.
I like all three How to Train Your Dragon movies. But let's face it, they all have a rather similar plot: someone wants to kill/enslave dragons, Hiccup tries to stop them, Hiccup fails, Toothless is captured, Hiccup goes through character growth in order to save Toothless and everybody else, Toothless does something awesome, the enemy is thwarted. Yes, there are variations. But that sums up all three movies.
I've never understood the point of characters who are purposefully annoying. Snotlout, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut are actually more annoying in this film (Fishlegs is fine and likable). The trilogy has covered six years; how have none of them matured even the slightest bit? Ruffnut and his beard and advice get old really quickly. And I'm not entirely sure what was up between Snotlout, Eret, and Valka.
Which leads me to another point. We get a lot of Hiccup's peers, but not very much of Eret or Valka, both of whom are far more interesting. Eret is basically in the movie for two reasons: 1) to offer backstory for the villain, and 2) because he is voiced by Kit Harrington who is now fairly famous thanks to his role in Game of Thrones. Valka at least has a bit more to do, and it does make sense for her to still be rather awkward in her relationship with Hiccup.
My biggest grievance with the film was the music. The first movie has an amazing soundtrack with all sorts of epic and exciting themes. The second movie carried those over. I kept waiting for them in the third movie ... and they kept not coming. The music isn't bad, but it isn't the epic music I wanted. It seemed like only one theme was reused, and not until the third act. Why?!
Sorry, enough complaints.
One thing I really liked in this film was Grimmel, the dragon hunter. Visually, he is a total opposite of Stoick and Drago. They were massive and dark-haired where Grimmel is skinny and light-haired. Where the previous antagonists were the kind to barrel in with brute force, Grimmel is calm and calculating. He uses ingenuity rather than force. And he always seems to be one step ahead of everyone else. He was a fitting villain for this final chapter.
The highlight of all three films is the relationship between Hiccup and Toothless. That is no different this time. Their playful banter is the heart of the film. And Toothless is as endearing as ever, especially when he is trying so hard to woo the Light Fury. She is an interesting character, although we never get much of her personality.
Also good is the continuing relationship between Hiccup and Astrid. Gobber awkwardly tries to move them along toward matrimony. Valka wisely encourages Astrid to help and stand by Hiccup when all is going wrong.
Lastly, The Hidden World is beautiful. The visuals in this one are simply amazing. Whether we are in the midst of a fight or other action scene or flying through the hidden world, the details are incredible. And the world is so rich with details, many of which are the "blink and you'll miss it" kind. It's definitely a film to experience on the big screen.
I won't spoil the ending (although if you watch the trailers, you can figure out what is bound to happen). Suffice it to say, the ending is perfect. Completely perfect.
The film is rated PG for pretty much the same reasons as the previous one.
How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is a fun, beautiful, and exciting film. And although it isn't perfect, it is still a fitting finale to a beloved trilogy. I definitely recommend it. And stay through the credits. The first part has scenes from Hiccup and Toothless' friendship from all three movies. Then the scrolling credits have fun animated drawings that fit with each department (e.g., I roughly drawn viking painting a landscape for the Backgrounds crew). There isn't a scene at the end; the credits are just fun.
*** Spoiler Section ***
From the first scene on Berk, we quickly realize that Hiccup has created an enjoyable, but ultimately unsustainable society. There are dragons everywhere. Big dragons knocking over buildings. Small dragons getting in the stew. Happy as the Berk vikings may be, their way of life cannot continue on its current trajectory. It's a good setup, one that makes the ending -- though heartbreaking -- unavoidable.
I wish the trailers hadn't made the ending so clear. They made it fairly obvious that the trilogy would end with Hiccup and Toothless having to part ways. While the ending still tugs at the heartstrings and gets some eye allergies going, it lost some of its impact by being a foregone confusion before even the previews roll. Perhaps it was meant to soften the blow? I think audiences can be trusted more than that.
Apparently, Drago (the villain from the second film) was supposed to return for this film. He was decidedly not killed off at the end of the movie; he simply disappeared. (Although we know where his alpha dragon went, which was a nice touch.) Drago would have returned and ultimately have been redeemed. But, the studio decided that would take too much additional time and the story line was scrapped. Too bad.
Even without that, the finale of The Hidden World is perfect. It is then wonderful to see (new) Berk rebuilt with buildings paying homage to their dragons. It's also fun to see Hiccup and Astrid finish growing up and get married. And it's awesome to see them, years later, take their children to reconnect with Toothless and his family. I cannot think of a better way to end the trilogy.
I really liked the movie. And if you liked the previous installments, you should definitely go see it. Take the family and see it. Enjoy one more flight with Hiccup and Toothless.
That said, the movie has its flaws. And there were a few things that were disappointing. Let's get those out of the way so we can get back to what was good.
I like all three How to Train Your Dragon movies. But let's face it, they all have a rather similar plot: someone wants to kill/enslave dragons, Hiccup tries to stop them, Hiccup fails, Toothless is captured, Hiccup goes through character growth in order to save Toothless and everybody else, Toothless does something awesome, the enemy is thwarted. Yes, there are variations. But that sums up all three movies.
I've never understood the point of characters who are purposefully annoying. Snotlout, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut are actually more annoying in this film (Fishlegs is fine and likable). The trilogy has covered six years; how have none of them matured even the slightest bit? Ruffnut and his beard and advice get old really quickly. And I'm not entirely sure what was up between Snotlout, Eret, and Valka.
Which leads me to another point. We get a lot of Hiccup's peers, but not very much of Eret or Valka, both of whom are far more interesting. Eret is basically in the movie for two reasons: 1) to offer backstory for the villain, and 2) because he is voiced by Kit Harrington who is now fairly famous thanks to his role in Game of Thrones. Valka at least has a bit more to do, and it does make sense for her to still be rather awkward in her relationship with Hiccup.
My biggest grievance with the film was the music. The first movie has an amazing soundtrack with all sorts of epic and exciting themes. The second movie carried those over. I kept waiting for them in the third movie ... and they kept not coming. The music isn't bad, but it isn't the epic music I wanted. It seemed like only one theme was reused, and not until the third act. Why?!
Sorry, enough complaints.
One thing I really liked in this film was Grimmel, the dragon hunter. Visually, he is a total opposite of Stoick and Drago. They were massive and dark-haired where Grimmel is skinny and light-haired. Where the previous antagonists were the kind to barrel in with brute force, Grimmel is calm and calculating. He uses ingenuity rather than force. And he always seems to be one step ahead of everyone else. He was a fitting villain for this final chapter.
The highlight of all three films is the relationship between Hiccup and Toothless. That is no different this time. Their playful banter is the heart of the film. And Toothless is as endearing as ever, especially when he is trying so hard to woo the Light Fury. She is an interesting character, although we never get much of her personality.
Also good is the continuing relationship between Hiccup and Astrid. Gobber awkwardly tries to move them along toward matrimony. Valka wisely encourages Astrid to help and stand by Hiccup when all is going wrong.
Lastly, The Hidden World is beautiful. The visuals in this one are simply amazing. Whether we are in the midst of a fight or other action scene or flying through the hidden world, the details are incredible. And the world is so rich with details, many of which are the "blink and you'll miss it" kind. It's definitely a film to experience on the big screen.
I won't spoil the ending (although if you watch the trailers, you can figure out what is bound to happen). Suffice it to say, the ending is perfect. Completely perfect.
The film is rated PG for pretty much the same reasons as the previous one.
How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is a fun, beautiful, and exciting film. And although it isn't perfect, it is still a fitting finale to a beloved trilogy. I definitely recommend it. And stay through the credits. The first part has scenes from Hiccup and Toothless' friendship from all three movies. Then the scrolling credits have fun animated drawings that fit with each department (e.g., I roughly drawn viking painting a landscape for the Backgrounds crew). There isn't a scene at the end; the credits are just fun.
*** Spoiler Section ***
From the first scene on Berk, we quickly realize that Hiccup has created an enjoyable, but ultimately unsustainable society. There are dragons everywhere. Big dragons knocking over buildings. Small dragons getting in the stew. Happy as the Berk vikings may be, their way of life cannot continue on its current trajectory. It's a good setup, one that makes the ending -- though heartbreaking -- unavoidable.
I wish the trailers hadn't made the ending so clear. They made it fairly obvious that the trilogy would end with Hiccup and Toothless having to part ways. While the ending still tugs at the heartstrings and gets some eye allergies going, it lost some of its impact by being a foregone confusion before even the previews roll. Perhaps it was meant to soften the blow? I think audiences can be trusted more than that.
Apparently, Drago (the villain from the second film) was supposed to return for this film. He was decidedly not killed off at the end of the movie; he simply disappeared. (Although we know where his alpha dragon went, which was a nice touch.) Drago would have returned and ultimately have been redeemed. But, the studio decided that would take too much additional time and the story line was scrapped. Too bad.
Even without that, the finale of The Hidden World is perfect. It is then wonderful to see (new) Berk rebuilt with buildings paying homage to their dragons. It's also fun to see Hiccup and Astrid finish growing up and get married. And it's awesome to see them, years later, take their children to reconnect with Toothless and his family. I cannot think of a better way to end the trilogy.
Quotable Quotes
- "There were dragons, when I was a boy." -- Hiccup
- "It's you and me, bud. Always." -- Hiccup to Toothless
- "Not a word." -- Hiccup, after having been knocked off Toothless by the Light Fury
- "I feel like I'm always asking this, but is there an actual plan?" -- Gobber to Hiccup
- "You need to lose the limp." "I have a prosthetic leg!" -- Ruffnut and Hiccup
- "So, what are you going to do about it?" "Probably something stupid." "That's the Hiccup I know." -- Astrid and Hiccup
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