New to theaters: ‘How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World’
Astrid and Hiccup along with Toothless in "How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World"
Hiccup leads his friends in "How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World."
Nearly 10 years after Universal Picture’s animated film “How to Train Your Dragon” hit the big screen, the conclusion of the trilogy will make its way to the big screen this weekend.
And critics and fans alike are excited to see what lies ahead for Hiccup and his Light Fury Toothless.
The first film told the story of Hiccup, who by all accounts did not look the part of the intimidating Viking that his father wanted him to become.
Instead, ignoring the Viking tradition of fighting any dragons that came their way, Hiccup befriends a Light Fury he names Toothless, and in the end manages to heal the decades-old rift between Vikings and dragons.
In the second film, “How to Train Your Dragon 2,” released in 2014, Hiccup is now 20 and set five years after the events of the original film, Hiccup is forced to take on the mantle of chief by his father, he fights to overcome a group of dragon trappers and he finds his mother whom he always thought was dead.
The last film in the trilogy takes place just one year after the previous film where Toothless and Hiccup, along with their fellow dragon riders and friends, continue to rescue captured dragons in order to bring them back to Berk and create a bustling dragon and human utopia.
But rescuing all of the dragons has caused overcrowding in Berk, which motivates Hiccup to search for the hidden world, which his dad told him about that is a safe haven for dragons.
Stars in the film include Jay Baruchel (“Goon” and “This is The End”) as Hiccup, America Ferrera (“Ugly Betty” and “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants”) as Astrid, F. Murray Abraham (“The Grand Budapest Hotel” and “Finding Forrester”) as Grimmel, Cate Blanchett (“Carol” and “The Aviator”) as Valka, Craig Ferguson (“The Late Late Show” and “I’ll Be There”) as Gobber, Jonah Hill (“21 Jump Street” and “Moneyball”) as Snotlout, Kristen Wiig (“Bridesmaids” and “Ghostbusters”) as Ruffnut and Kit Harington (“Game of Thrones” and “Pompeii”) as Eret.
Movie Aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes scores the film at 96 percent on the critic review tomatometer.
The critics consensus there is, “The rare trilogy capper that really works, “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” brings its saga to a visually dazzling and emotionally affecting conclusion.”
Directed by Dean DeBlois, the film is rated PG for adventure action and some mild rude humor.
Other films hitting the big screen this weekend include:
n “Run the Race,” directed by Chris Dowling and starring Tanner Stine, Kristoffer Polaha, Evan Hofer and Kelsey Reinhardt. Reeling from his mother’s death and his father’s abandonment, Zach, an All-State athlete, finds glory on the football field, working to earn a college scholarship and the brothers’ ticket out of town. When a devastating injury puts Zach-and his dreams-on the sidelines, David laces up his track cleats to salvage their future and point Zach toward hope.
This film is rated {span}PG for thematic content and some teen partying.{/span}
n “The Changeover,” directed by Stuart McKenzie and Miranda Harcourt and starring Timothy Spall, Melanie Lynskey, Lucy Lawless and Nicholas Galitzine. Sixteen year-old Laura Chant lives with her mother and four-year-old brother Jacko in a poor new suburb on the edge of a partially demolished Christchurch, New Zealand. Laura is drawn into a supernatural battle with an ancient spirit who attacks Jacko and slowly drains the life out of him as the spirit becomes ever younger. Laura discovers her true identity and the supernatural ability within her, and must harness it to save her brother’s life.
This film as an NR rating.
The synopsis for films in this article are taken from rottentomatoes.com.