How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

Seen on November 20th, 2010

A young Viking who aspires to hunt dragons becomes the unlikely friend of a young dragon himself, and learns there may be more to the creatures than he assumed. [imdb]

Nominated for 2 Oscars:

Best Animated Feature
Best Original Score

2010 seemed to be another good year for animated, at least on a nominee level. I was a bit skeptical while approaching Dragon, because I suspected (and I was right) that the story was gonna be rather predictable, at least on the humans level of the screenplay. But even so: the writing was never meant to be its strength; the success of the film is mostly due to the incredible visual effects.

As much as I adore Toy Story 3, nothing can compete with the visuals from Dragon, which are simply spectacular: those scenes with the flying and big battle scene make for some of the year's best film moments. The direction is great, the film is well-balanced, with mostly just the right amount of cheesy. It's a worthy nominee in the animated category and the score nom is a nice touch, even though it has no chance of winning for either.

My rating for the film: 8/10. An entertaining film experience.