What makes the perfect How to Train Your Dragon Movie?
Posted: 29 Oct 2014, 18:21
Keep in mind that everything I say here is my opinion, feel free to counterargue - it'll spark a good discussion!
I've been wondering about this topic for a while now, and for me, the perfect HTTYD movie would possess the following triangle of characteristics:
- Simplicity
- Emotion conveyed through music and subtlety (i.e. no need for dialogue, relates to simplicity).
- Ambition grounded in a serious nature, and courage on the director's part to make certain decisions .
I find that the above covers the best parts of HTTYD 1 and 2.
For example, I found HTTYD 1 to be, in its essence, a very simple movie - less so than it's successor. The key issue was compelling, quite fundamental, yet focussed: Hiccup going against his society by befriending the dragons.
I felt that the best scenes in HTTYD 1 were the simple and 'clean' ones, such as the forbidden friendship scene, test drive, romantic flight, the final fight. It was focused, music-driven, but was not cluttered by dialogue or cheesy one liners from the other teenagers. It also makes the movie a lot more immersive, something that I find HTTYD to do very well.
The concept of simplicity also applies to character interactions. For me, an ideal HTTYD movie would only have Hiccup, Toothles,Stoick, Gobber and Astrid. Now that
HTTYD 2 did well in the ambition sector - though I want to clarify that ambition does not necessarily refer to the scale of things (i.e. thousands vs thousands of dragons). In a way, I felt that the key theme of HTTYD 1 was more ambitious than that of HTTYD 2 (opposing society's beliefs > rise to chieftainship and coming of age). However, what makes HTTYD distinct from many animated movies is its seriousness at times. It can be serious; I just wish they would let it be more consistent. Too often are serious and well constructed scenes ruined by a cringe-worthy comment from a supporting character.
HTTYD 2 had some beautiful shots; such as when we see Hiccup and Toothless falling, with the Bewilderbeast by their side, at dawn. Now this is where director's decision making can come in. Often I find when the directors make new styles for camera shots, that the movie comes off more original (take Tarantino for example). Examples I can find here are to just let scenes come to life on their own, no need to constantly keep switching. This sounds vague, but to give an example, when Toothless and Hiccup are flying through the sky in the link below:
http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb2014 ... _below.png
Why not extend those shots for another 10 seconds, and not let those beautiful angles go to waste? It's more of a little nit pick of mine (another one being we need more night scenes!) Another example of
In essence, we just need to 'clear the junk' - make it simple, extract the most that you can out of a scene, and make it powerful! We also need the director to make big and difficult decisions: such as cutting out unnecessary characters, and sacrificing humour for an emotional scene instead. Also the director could take a Game of Thrones approach, with the 'villain' as such not being entirely clear, and up for interpretation (I think the first movie did that better than the second).
It's a shame that these decisions will likely be hindered by economic factors, because 'kids' like cheesy humour, and it sells better. I just hope that someday HTTYD can have the courage to step outside these boundaries, and solidly place its mark in movie history. If there was any way we could directly communicate to the director, please do tell, no matter how unlikely doing so will successfully change a movie's production. Perhaps it's too late for HTTYD 3... perhaps they will consider remaking these movies in 20 years or so... who knows?
I've been wondering about this topic for a while now, and for me, the perfect HTTYD movie would possess the following triangle of characteristics:
- Simplicity
- Emotion conveyed through music and subtlety (i.e. no need for dialogue, relates to simplicity).
- Ambition grounded in a serious nature, and courage on the director's part to make certain decisions .
I find that the above covers the best parts of HTTYD 1 and 2.
For example, I found HTTYD 1 to be, in its essence, a very simple movie - less so than it's successor. The key issue was compelling, quite fundamental, yet focussed: Hiccup going against his society by befriending the dragons.
I felt that the best scenes in HTTYD 1 were the simple and 'clean' ones, such as the forbidden friendship scene, test drive, romantic flight, the final fight. It was focused, music-driven, but was not cluttered by dialogue or cheesy one liners from the other teenagers. It also makes the movie a lot more immersive, something that I find HTTYD to do very well.
The concept of simplicity also applies to character interactions. For me, an ideal HTTYD movie would only have Hiccup, Toothles,Stoick, Gobber and Astrid. Now that
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, this causes a little concern for me. Removing the twins, Snotlout and Fishlegs, would eliminate pretty much the entirety of these problems for me. Think about it, what use do they serve in the film other than comic relief (which many find cheesy at times)?HTTYD 2 did well in the ambition sector - though I want to clarify that ambition does not necessarily refer to the scale of things (i.e. thousands vs thousands of dragons). In a way, I felt that the key theme of HTTYD 1 was more ambitious than that of HTTYD 2 (opposing society's beliefs > rise to chieftainship and coming of age). However, what makes HTTYD distinct from many animated movies is its seriousness at times. It can be serious; I just wish they would let it be more consistent. Too often are serious and well constructed scenes ruined by a cringe-worthy comment from a supporting character.
HTTYD 2 had some beautiful shots; such as when we see Hiccup and Toothless falling, with the Bewilderbeast by their side, at dawn. Now this is where director's decision making can come in. Often I find when the directors make new styles for camera shots, that the movie comes off more original (take Tarantino for example). Examples I can find here are to just let scenes come to life on their own, no need to constantly keep switching. This sounds vague, but to give an example, when Toothless and Hiccup are flying through the sky in the link below:
http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb2014 ... _below.png
Why not extend those shots for another 10 seconds, and not let those beautiful angles go to waste? It's more of a little nit pick of mine (another one being we need more night scenes!) Another example of
In essence, we just need to 'clear the junk' - make it simple, extract the most that you can out of a scene, and make it powerful! We also need the director to make big and difficult decisions: such as cutting out unnecessary characters, and sacrificing humour for an emotional scene instead. Also the director could take a Game of Thrones approach, with the 'villain' as such not being entirely clear, and up for interpretation (I think the first movie did that better than the second).
It's a shame that these decisions will likely be hindered by economic factors, because 'kids' like cheesy humour, and it sells better. I just hope that someday HTTYD can have the courage to step outside these boundaries, and solidly place its mark in movie history. If there was any way we could directly communicate to the director, please do tell, no matter how unlikely doing so will successfully change a movie's production. Perhaps it's too late for HTTYD 3... perhaps they will consider remaking these movies in 20 years or so... who knows?