BANGALORE: How to Train Your Dragon 2 sees protagonist Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) and his companion dragon Toothless growing up and what is great about this sequel is that there’s a sense of purpose to the story line. It’s a sequel that needed to be made. Director Dean DeBlois along with his stunning cast have delivered yet another visually and emotionally stimulating experience that will stay with the audience for quite some time.
For its second outing, we see How To Train Your Dragon 2 visiting good old Berk, but the Viking village is a little different now. Every house has a domesticated dragon sleeping by its hearth or playing out in the yard with the kids. Vikings and dragons are finally learning to live together peacefully and Hiccup and Toothless couldn’t be happier.
But not all’s well with Hiccup. As pressure mounts for him to take up the village chieftain’s mantle from his father Stoick the Vast (Gerard Butler), Hiccup is still unsure of his true destiny and is as flighty as ever, quite literally. And while Hiccup and Toothless make their way to uncharted islands, they stumble upon a part of Hiccup’s past he never thought he would re-visit again. Re-united with his mother Valka (Cate Blanchett) after 20 years, Hiccup must now decide who he wants to be.
It’s a battle between war and peace, diplomacy and rage, love and unmasked hatred - and Hiccup and Toothless hold the key to unravel it all. A peace keeper at heart, Hiccup must protect his village against the evil dragon slave-master Dragon Bludvist (Djimon Hounsou), who will stop at nothing until he has brought every dragon under his command and slayed every dragon rider.
The introduction of new character Eret, played by Kit Harrington, most famous for his role of Jon Snow in the Game of Throne series, was no doubt a smart move as well and Harrington displays his lighter side with ease. The movie provides sparkling animation that will have you gaping in awe and a mature emotional undercurrent that gives the movie its depth and a sense of overwhelming connect with the characters. Undoubtedly, the sequel is darker and while the characters have grown older, the director has matured too. There’s a surprisingly tender moment of romance that will have even the most stone-hearted of audiences catching their breath, even if it is for a short moment. There’s a lot of wit and light-hearted moments to go around too.
Verdict: How To Train Your Dragon 2 will have you wishing for sequels 3 and 4, before this one is even done.
Movie: How To Train Your Dragon 2
Director: Dean DeBlois
Cast: Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Cate Blanchett, Djimon Hounsou, Kit Harrington