Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
Cast: Jay Baruchel, Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler, Kit Harrington, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Kristen Wiig, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, F. Murray Abraham, Olafur Darri Olafsson, Craig ferguson, Justin Rupple, A.J. Kane.
It never ceases to amaze just how animation can make you appreciate all that you may have once feared, how it can illuminate a moment into clarity in such a way that its more artistically speaking and human face can ever think of achieving.
Of course there will always be those who see animation as simplistic, an almost childlike pandering to story-telling, these same people look down upon the artistry of the graphic novel as naïve, objectionable, immature and lacking in the substance of true education. These people will never understand the lessons learned from animation and they are entitled to that long entrenched opinion but for the more enlightened it is a display of humanity at its finest, it is the ability to bring together creative passion in a unique way, far removed from the idea of enforced, Victorian era styled, learning.
How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is a case in point, the texture of artistry is enhanced by the subtly involved in the weaving together of the three stories that have combined to make up this much loved adaption of Cressida Cowell’s books.
It is no secret that the story of Hiccup and Toothless comes to an end in this final instalment of the trilogy but it is in the depth of animation and imagination that the cinema goer is treated to a beautifully detailed story, one that is gorgeously drawn, one that is undeterred by the thought and sounds of the naysayers who will see this and the forth coming ending to Toy Story as nothing but childish fancy. For what it is at its very core is the reminder that we as humans are not the only ones suffering by the crisis of our creation, that we have a duty of care to others, not just animals but those who are perceived as different, the disabled being one such group highlighted by both main heroes, that the care should not be condescending but nurturing, not with a whip but with a genuine sense of humanity.
How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is an astonishing portrayal of acceptance, fighting for what is right and the understanding that in the end we must let go of what we love in order for them to grow, in order for them to be their own person or dragon and with remarkable voice talent such as Kristen Wiig, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, America Ferrera and Jay Baruchel in the troupe, it should be assured that How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is a fitting and creative end to what has been a remarkable piece of film-making history.
Ian D. Hall