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Manila Bulletin devider Entertainment devider Movies and TV devider That's for everything else! A review of 'How To Train Your Dragon (2025)

That's for everything else! A review of 'How To Train Your Dragon (2025)

Published Jun 9, 2025 07:08 am
A scene from 'How To Train Your Dragon 2025)'
A scene from 'How To Train Your Dragon 2025)'
A line inspires the title for this review. Astrid says to Hiccup twice in this film, and it encapsulates why this live-action remake works wonderfully for fans of the original 2010 animated film, while also providing a pleasurable viewing experience for new audiences.
It avoids the numerous pitfalls of these live-action remakes, and as directed by the same Dean DeBlois who did the animated film, can even boast of Gerard Butler reprising his role as Stoick the Vast, Hiccup’s warrior king father.
If you have the chance, watch this on an IMAX screen with 3-D glasses - you won’t regret the decision or the added investment. 
For those who have never seen the original animated film, it’s set on the island of Berk, during the time of the Vikings. On the island, Stoick rules the tribe, and their constant battle is with the dragons that descend on the island - the back story being how a dragon killed Stoick’s wife.
There’s Hiccup, the introspective son of Stoick, and he works with Gobber, the local blacksmith and weapons maker, who has lost some of his limbs to dragons. Against this setting, we’re given a beautiful tale of friendship between species - between man and dragon, of father issues and identity, and of how the path you take in your life doesn’t have to be the expected or ordained.
The dragon named Toothless is Hiccup’s passport to understanding more about co-existence and survival, a precious lesson he, in turn, has to impart to his people, and especially to his father. 
Mason Thames is Hiccup, Nico Parker is Astrid (and she’s the younger daughter of Thandiwe Newton), and there’s Nick Frost as Gobber. Standouts in the support cast are Julian Dennison as Fishlegs (he was the young boy in Hunt for the Wilderpeople, written and directed by Taika Waititi), and the father-son team of Peter Serafinowicz as Spitelout and Gabriel Howell as Snotlout.
The running gag between these two is just one of the new elements of this live-action version.They’ve also expanded the role of Astrid, so she has more of an arc. At the outset, she’s ambitious, hoping to be chief of the island one day by proving her mettle as a warrior princess.
That she gets swayed by Hiccup’s stance on dragons is part of this more defined arc.If you observe live-action remakes, most of the source material will have some element of fantasy, myth-making, or magic.
Therefore, the suspension of disbelief is crucial in making these live-action films worthwhile. I personally like The Lion King, and the talking animals in animation work fine; while converting it to live action is pointless, as we don’t buy into these talking CGI animals.
With due credit to Train Your Dragon, we do suspend disbelief while watching the live-action film. We can believe dragons exist and can fly, and we love the idea of a human being able to train the dragon, even if just for the duration of the film. Mason Thames and the cast do a good job of interacting with the dragons/green screen, and this goes a long way in making us enjoy the remake.
We get more involved, and it is more immersive. And don’t think it’s that easy to act in front of a green screen - see how bad Gal Gadot was in Snow White, where the mirror had more depth and emotion. I’m happy to read that Train Your Dragon 2 has been green-lit for a 2027 release. 

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How to Train Your Dragon (2025)
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