How to Train Your Dragon

Hiccup is a young blacksmith whose father is the leader of an island full of dragon-slaying vikings. Slaying dragons is life on this island, and the dragons are becoming too much. The skinny, clumsy Hiccup hasn't quite caught on to dragon-slaying, much to the dismay of his demanding, cold father. But all is turned upside down when young Hiccup happens to catch the deadliest, elusive and most ruthless dragon of all, the Night Flurry.

Bravo, Dreamworks bravo! This in my opinion is Dreamworks best animated film they've ever done. It really has a lot of heart to it, something Pixar nails every time and Dreamworks has been hit and miss with. This is better than Over the Hedge, Shrek and Kung Fu Panda, which in my opinion have been Dreamworks best efforts to date. The characters are very lovable in this movie, especially the lead dragon character "Toothless". The animation is well crafted, clever and full of so much character, you immediately love the dragon. I'd say it's right up there with other great speechless-creature performances such as E.T., King Kong and Walle. The animators obviously studied a lot of animals (particularly their house cats) to bring him to life, just a lot of fun too watch. The human characters are also well crafted, very likable and fun to watch. The production quality is as high as any CGI film to date. The detail and artistry in the characters, sets and overall design is just awesome. The musical score is also very good. I really enjoyed this movie, it's what animation is all about; bringing fantastical characters, stories and places to life in an entertaining and engaging way. Fun stuff.

**** out of 4 - Must See (PG for some violence)