I'm right there with you. It's been long enough I've managed to forget most of that first trailer… but I still feel like it gave away too much.
How to train your dragon
-
-
Early reviews are coming in with positive praise due to the movie’s early release in Australia.
That said, going to join the “avoid the internet” crowd to not get whiff of spoilers. This is gonna be tough.
-
Australia is getting it almost a full two months early? That's crazy.
And bad for the internet.
-
Two months? It's releasing this month in Brazil.
-
It doesn't hit the states till February 22. It's releasing almost everywhere else way earlier.
WTF.
-
Early reviews are coming in with positive praise due to the movie’s early release in Australia.
That said, going to join the “avoid the internet” crowd to not get whiff of spoilers. This is gonna be tough.
As someone who's often been spoiled by cartoon-content sites over the last few years, I appreciate this. Here's hoping we can all make it until February.
Oh, and I need to watch the first two movies. At this point, I really don't know why I have't gotten around to it.
-
Wow, Norway actually got this a month and a half before America? That's weird. That's very, very weird.
Anyway, saw the movie. The villain was super blah and the climax felt extremely similar to the last one's, but on the whole it was pretty damn excellent.
-
Not only did we (Norway) get it a month and a half before ya’ll, its dubbed even. Animated films usually come out much later because of that.
-
Something fishy is going on in the state of Dreamworks . . . .
-
The bright side is that if it did come out in the states right now, Into The Spider-Verse would have even more competition so it has some more leeway to get better financial success. If at least has some leeway until the Leg Movie 2.
-
and I need to watch the first two movies. At this point, I really don't know why I have't gotten around to it.
gaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAa
[inhales]
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
-
Huh, officially got tickets to see it February 2nd in an early showing.
woooooOOOOOOOO
two more weeks of internet silence
-
Watched it yesterday.
! It was above avarage at best. While it did gave it a proper finale, it felt like they really rushed the ending at the last third. The two previous movies ended with a giant dragon and this felt very underwhelming in comparassion.
! But I'll give credit when this movie made the other riders more like actual characters then they were in the previous movers. Snotlout having a crush on Valka and the Twin Brother suddenly becoming Hiccup's "Best Man" were highlights. And unpopular opinion but I did liked Grimmel, at least more than Malvo. Maybe it's because he is voiced by Brazilian James Woods down here.
! Overall, it felt this movie only existed to put an end of the trilogy. But it does a good job at that. -
Saw it. I could talk waaaaaay too much about it, but for now, I'll go spoiler-free.
So, I consider HTTYD1 an all-time great animated (and otherwise!) flick, with HTTYD2 still a very good but not nearly as transcendent movie, and HTTYD3 is right with the second, if maybe a tiny bit less good. But still, despite a weak villain, some baggage from previous movies (more on this later once I've processed), and a pretty big plot-hole I'm still trying to figure out, it still keeps true to its big ole goofy heart. And while a lot about the ending is predictable, it did right by its characters and its themes and all the things that made it good.
Thanks for the memories.
-
so, a few days later, stand by my "great-but-not-transcendent" rating. However, one small addendum to that. Key part of all these movies has always been John Powell's soundtracks, and at first listent, thought this was the weakest of the three. Have listened to it a bunch since the movie, though, and while I think it is a slow-burn, the dude sticks the hell out of the landing. His last track for the movie is absolutely phenomenal.
also, don't look at the soundtrack before the movie, because heavy spoiler song titles
-
Gonna watch this in 30 minutes. Expectations are leveled I think, not too high or low. Hoping this movie surprises me/hits me in the feels.
Probably should’ve tried watching the prior movies beforehand. Might watch them after I watch this.
–- Update From New Post Merge ---
Lots of thoughts. Doesn’t hit the emotional beats of 1 or even 2 but think it’s a solid film. It’s akin to Kung Fu Panda 3, a solid movie, though this was a better ending as a trilogy.
Like the new villain dragon (as it was one of the few if only fleshed our dragon this film) but doesn’t compare to the threat of the second film villain’s dragon. But I enjoyed the villain or thought he was much more effective than the 2nd film’s villain.
Side characters were treated better IMO, but felt like the relationship in the 3rd film felt weaker than 1 (2 barely touched upon it).
And glad the Vikings acted like Vikings and focused on that instead of them being just dragon riders.
The Toothless romance was really cute. The highlight.
-
Thoughts on How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
! It was a good. It doesn't really throw any surprises at you and things go pretty much how you expect they would, but it's a nice satisfying conclusion to the trilogy.
! My biggest complaint though is probably the ending. Like, I get the idea of it that dragon's have to go into hiding because the human world is so bad (thus, also leaving open the possibility that this is ostensibly our world), but I'm not sure it was really earned. I mean, bittersweet endings are fine, but I never really got the sense that the human world was so bad that all the dragons had to go into hiding. Yes, there were those dragon hunters and slayers, but they felt like an isolated group and Hiccup and the others were able, so I'm not sure what the danger is now that they're gone.
! Also, considering The Hidden World is in the title, it's a real shame that we only get one scene of it (and it's beautiful). It really feels like that was something that could have been expanded on. And it's kind of random that Toothless is just suddenly the king of it.
! Otherwise, it's still a very nice and visually beautiful film. The characters are still their fun lovable selves (though some are a bit underutilized) and the romance between Toothless and the Light Fury is positively charming.
! And with that, I suppose this wraps up the HTTYD series, unless Dreamworks is stupid and decides to make an unnecessary sequel. I won't say that HTTYD is one of my all-time favorite film series, but it's still a very good one and I imagine I'll revisit the series again in the future. -
SIgh, I STILL haven't seen this. Been swamped with work.
Waited for four years, dodged all the trailers, and then it finally comes and…. ugh.
Rewatched the first two movies though. Still super love the first one, and the second is better than I remember. Still not as good as the first,but my expectations were sky high at the time... and well... better than I remember.
Hopefully get to see the third this week sometime.
-
! Also, considering The Hidden World is in the title, it's a real shame that we only get one scene if it (and it's beautiful). It really feels like that was something that could have been expanded on.
! Yep, this is the biggest problem for me. HTTYD 2 and 3 really have a villain problem more than anything, and in this case, it kind of splits the movie in two. Honestly, the Hidden World storyline has almost nothing to do with the Big Bad, and I could see a much better movie that focuses only on it and makes a villain an afterthought, like was the case in the first.
! And with that, I suppose this wraps up the HTTYD series, unless Dreamworks is stupid and decides to make an unnecessary sequel. I won't say that HTTYD is one of my all-time favorite film series, but it's still a very good one and I imagine I'll revisit the series again in the future.
! Dean Deblois has said he's open to other people coming in and doing spinoffs, but it would be without Hiccup/Toothless. I'd be…ok with this? There are some interesting things that could still be done in-universe, especially if you come back in to the series centuries down the road. But eh, I'm fine with that ending.
Also, having watched the first two again, it's worth noting that Hiccup is one of the great heroic arcs in recent film. Gets overshadowed by the dragons, but he's a damned good character.
-
FINALLY saw the movie.
It was good enough, a decent sendoff. NOT helped by the fact that the tv series has kind of dragged alot of these same beats and character bits out for over a hundred episodes. Some good character moments, some good comedy, Toothless was great, it made me sad in the right parts, and it had beautiful scenery and visuals in spots, and the music was good. I'm AMAZED the advertising and merchandising didn't completely blow that ending. It was the super obvious ending from like 5 minutes into the film, but I'm amazed the marketing didn't blow it all the same. Overall about on par with the second film, for whatever that's worth.
But… it still wasn't the first movie. I'll get the blu ray, I'll watch it again. But it wasn't the first movie, which I just rewatched in prep for this, and already feel like rewatching again.
Really wish Chris Sanders could have come back in and added his touch. I'm not entirely sure what that touch entails, since he couldn't make Croods works, but given that Lilo and Stich and the first HTTYD are among my favorite movies, and Mulan is one of the better Disney 90's films (and he worked on that) his track record is really solid and I have to wonder what difference his sensibilities would have made.
-
The very first ad showed Hiccup with a beard. After seeing the movie I was really mad they showed that.
-
So, the movie is up online now in certain places. I assume because it came out two months earlier in other territories, they get their dvds sooner too. I'll be picking up the bluray in a month, but in the meantime, I've been watching it again.
Much like the second film, its a little better the second time around. Not as amazing as the first movie is out the gate, but still solid. I'm able to actually see the timestamps and just how much the villain is actually in the film, and he could have been left out. They would have needed some other impetus for the overall plot, but I'm sure they could have come up with SOMETHING.
! The movie already had the overcrowding angle, and the continuous onslaught of trappers. They didn't need a big bad, the nastiest there ever was, taking up about 20 minutes of film. Character stuff could have carried it. And while the movie as a whole isn't amazing, there are scenes and moments that add up and are really good that I'll probably be able to watch lots of times… mostly the Toothless material.
! Anyway, this time, I'm picking up on some little nuances and moments, that now that I'm catching, will probably stick with me a little more. Like in the first film, when Hiccup holds his hand out for Toothless for the first time, Toothless sort of pushes his head forward in a wobble first, still deciding, before he actually moves forward. Brilliant little bit of character work.
! And there's stuff like that in this movie too. In particular, there's a scene with Hiccup and Astrid are in hidden world, looking at a bunch of dragons, and Astrid's face is delighted and happy... while Hiccup's face is just... all sorts of emotions. It plays as a moment when you're watching it... but watching it a second time, the nuance, and the counterbalance between the two... it's really nice. Also just some nice subtle bodylanguage bits that aren't drawn any attention to, like Hiccup just casually grazing Astrid's hand for support. Not like a fully drawn out hand hold with camera focused on it... just a tiny subtle bit of fantastic character animation.
! Also, tucked away in the background of a couple shot, there's a few more Lightfuries, so Toothless and his girlfriend aren't the last of their kind. So that's nice.
! The stuff with the secondary cast is nice growth too. None of the kids gets to do much more than a scene apiece, I guess you have the tv show for that, but stuff like Tuff having turned into Hiccup's best bro/adviser and constant "I'm with him, who else?" is such a nice subtle growth from the start of the franchise. Also Fishlegs is carrying around a little baby dragon plushie at the end after the dragons leave.
! The ending is maybe a little bit nicer this time around, but the shoehorned villain makes it all feel a little shallow. Like "the dragons can't stay here because they'll keep being hunted." Except, by making a big prominent famous nasty the big bad.... and also specifically namedropping the villain of the previous movie it's kind of like... well... there were three super famous dragon hunters, if you count Stoic, and they're all dead now. ANyone else is easily taken care of by Hiccup's crew. So it rings false as an impetus. I dunno what they should have done differently, but... something?
! The epilogue kids are cute though.
! Also, sidenote I didn't mention in my earlier review since everyone else had seen it long before I did.... Even the first time watching the movie, I found myself wondering "Why doesn't Hiccup pull out his flight suit from the second movie? That would be reeeeally helpful at this point." Because.... that was supposed to be a big moment reveal 20 minutes later, that's why! -
! The ending is maybe a little bit nicer this time around, but the shoehorned villain makes it all feel a little shallow. Like "the dragons can't stay here because they'll keep being hunted." Except, by making a big prominent famous nasty the big bad…. and also specifically namedropping the villain of the previous movie it's kind of like... well... there were three super famous dragon hunters, if you count Stoic, and they're all dead now. ANyone else is easily taken care of by Hiccup's crew. So it rings false as an impetus. I dunno what they should have done differently, but... something?
! Yeah, this is a problem I had with the movie too. And…well, while I generally don't like to do the whole here's-how-I-would've-written-it thing, since I don't claim to know how to write for a big budget Hollywood movie and it opens my own ideas up to scrutiny and criticism, well...here's how I MIGHT have written it:
! So the first ten or so minutes are the same with Hiccup's village having the dragon overcrowding problem. To solve this issue, many of the dragons agree to depart and settle down in other lands. However, the dragons end up settling down in other various kingdoms that are unfamiliar with them and, as a result, the populace becomes terrified and the governments quickly act, many arguing to expel or even eradicate them. During a conference of the multiple kingdoms (get some nice world-building going) wherein they decide how to deal with the dragon "problem" Hiccup arrives to state his case that the dragon's are harmless and only want a place to live in peace. However, dragon trapper guy, who is well-known and respected amongst the kingdoms, also comes to state his case, arguing that the dragons are dangerous.
! And of course the stuff with the light fury and the hidden world can also be going on parallel to this.
! The debate continues for a while and appears that Hiccup may actually persuade the kingdoms to let the dragons stay, but then dragon trapper guy enacts some plan that makes the dragons look really bad and, thus, the kingdoms decide to allow him to eradicate the dragons. Dragon trapper guy proceeds to capture the dragons, with the big battle and climax more-or-less playing out how it did in the actual movie. Once trapper guy is defeated, the dragons are all freed, but now they know they can't stay in the human world any more since they know the kingdoms will just send more people to destroy them. Thus, they all make the heart-breaking decision to part ways and live in the hidden world.
! But that's just one casual watcher's idea. -
-
Kinda telling how there’s no HTTYD3 music in there.
Been meaning to watch it again now that I own it on dvd. Can’t decide whether to marathon or just watch on its own.
-
Kinda telling how there’s no HTTYD3 music in there.
It'd be pretty amazing if there was considering the video was made four years ago.
-
-
Another Christmas special, don't really care.
The real take away from this is that Toothless' children are called the "Night-lights".
-
-
Nothing in the franchise has impressed me outside of the movies, and even there only the first one really truly does it for me.
I think I'm good skipping this.
-
No other soundtrack just kills me EVERY TIME. I don't know what it is but… it's something.