#how to train your dragon film review

[meditando-en-paris]

𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒖𝒍 𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝑰 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 (HTTYD2)

Explanation on why the 💞"𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒖𝒍 𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝑰 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖"💞 scene is so important in How To Train Your Dragon 2 (HTTYD2) by Dreamworks.

Valka at the beginning of HTTYD2

Let's start by talking about Valka.

Throughout the film, it is explained how in the past she felt uncomfortable and strange in the human world, as its static norms clashed with her ideals, which is why she ends up abandoning her family.

So she achieves his dream of living in peace and harmony with the dragons, learning everything from them. However, she has paid the price of giving up her "human side" and with it her family.

That she chose to live among dragons rather than remain with her own reveals two things: Confidence and courage in pursuing her dream, but also her fear and lack of trust in others.

She does not feel supported and listened to by her people, but neither does Stoick. She feels caged, so when she gets the chance, she escapes.

The fact that Valka renounces her family is also a reflection of the problems within their marriage. Valka and Stoick had opposing beliefs towards dragons, which would obviously create fights and reinforce Valka's idea that this was not her place. Furthermore, this shows that Valka was extremely afraid of being rejected by Stoick for who she really was, and that this probably led her to show herself to him in a way that she was not in order to protect herself. Not to mention that, being seen as an outcast in Mema for opposing the war and that her love of dragons almost killed her family, she believed she was protecting her son.

Thus, at the beginning of HTTYD2 we find a strong and confident Valka within the world of dragons, but very distrustful and distanced from the world of humans. This is reinforced at the beginning when she walks crouching, imitating the dragons.

Later on, once she establishes a bond with Hiccup through the dragons (but note: through the dragons, not because he is her child. Although this changes later on), she begins to walk upright and behave in a more "human" way.

Meeting with Stoick

Valka's real growth comes when she and Stoick meet again.

It is amazing how Valka crumbles in a few seconds. She goes from a powerful woman who believes in herself to a frightened person, full of remorse and anguish.

After meeting Hiccup, she regrets abandoning them. She regrets choosing the easy way out, but as she says: "Well, what sign did I have that you could change, Stoick? That anyone in Mema could do it? Did anyone listen to me?".

Her body language shows that she is extremely afraid (she backs away until she hits the wall), showing once again the fear she has of being rejected by Stoic, the person she loves, and whom she has to finally confront.

It's funny how Valka is unable to understand his reaction. Anyone else would be filled with anger and frustration, but Stoic's response is ✨sublime✨. He says nothing until he is at her level, while she says everything on the verge of tears. Then he strokes her cheek and says, "You are as beautiful as the day I lost you."

FRIENDS, are you aware of what a LOVE DECLARATION this man makes? This man has told her: Everything is fine. I accept and understand your decisions, even though they were not the best. I forgive you and I love you💞.

I think Valka cries not only from the stress and emotion of the whole situation, but also that she finally sees that her husband accepts her for who she is and loves her that way.

💞💚💜✨THIS MOMENT IS PERFECT✨💜💚💞.

Little by little, Valka opens up to her human side, which she had repressed, while Stoick supports her in her development with small gestures (this is especially noticeable in their body language). In this way, Valka realises that she had made a mistake. Everyone can change, even her.

In conclusion, Valka from this moment onwards will begin to understand that her family does not make her more vulnerable, that her quirks are impossible to accept or unforgivable. That is why she wants to return to Mema happy to be reunited with her people and family and, therefore, happy to be reunited with her human side.

What do you think of this scene?

I hope you liked the analysis✨.

𝑺𝒆𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒆𝒙𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘!

[moviewarfare]

A Review of “Kung Fu Panda 4 (2024)”

I love the Kung Fu Panda trilogy! The 3rd movie felt like a nice wrap-up for the series. However, modern movie studios just can't give up on milking a franchise. Now we have a 4th entry in the series. Is this movie justified, or is it just another cash grab?

Jack Black is still great as Po. He still hasn't lost his charm and continues to deliver a hilarious and charismatic, vocal performance. I also love that his character Po is still a badass dragon warrior. He is always the most skilled fighter in the room and I am glad they didn't make him weaker for the sake of it. Awkwafina is again voicing another sidekick character. She is fine but that is mostly because her character isn't written to be unbearable and that makes Awkwafina bearable. Their characters do have a fun buddy dynamic throughout. Speaking of buddy dynamics, it was nice to see James Hong and Bryan Cranston return as Ping the Geese and Shan the Panda again. Po's fathers have their own, fun mini-adventure in the movie.

The animation is beautiful. Not to the extent of other dreamwork animated movies such as How to Train Your Dragon or Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. However, it looks very appealing for the most part. The action scenes are still very entertaining with its well choreographed Kung-fu scenes. It was also nice to see Ian McShane return as Tai Lung even though it was clearly done for nostalgia bait.

Unfortunately, the story is predictable and boring. Po is required by Master Shifu to pick the next Dragon Warrior but Po doesn't want to and wants to remain the Dragon Warrior. This idea in itself, can be very interesting as he could potentially have to choose between his friends, The Furious Five. Sadly, they are not even in this movie so instead we get a new character in Zhen played by Awkwafina. Oh wow, I wonder who Po will pick…

Po and his dynamic with The Furious Five have always been a highlight but removing that, makes this less interesting. The villain, The Chameleon, is also extremely underwhelming. She can steal the Kung-Fu of martial artists, including previous movie villains. Her motives are weak and her presence is just not menacing enough. They try to say throughout that Po might finally meet his match but they don't do a good job of convincing us that this is true. If anything, the big final battle feels like the easiest fight that Po has ever had so far. How is The Chameleon a threat if the Furious Five weren't even needed?! Ke Huy Quan is also in the movie but his character has no depth at all so it feels like a glorified cameo. Additionally, many of the jokes didn't land. I hate that they leave awkward pauses cause they clearly thought we the audience would laugh.

Overall, this 4th movie had no reason to exist. The story is not meaningful enough to justify its existence. This will be the start of the second trilogy but the ending itself doesn't do much to make me interested in more. The ending is a fine ending to wrap up the series (again). Hopefully, the 5th entry is a lot better and this time, make sure The Furious Five are actually in the movie!

For more reviews like this visit:

https://moviewarfarereviews.blogspot.com/

[adamwatchesmovies]

How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

It’s been over 10 years since the release of How to Train Your Dragon. Unfortunately, this means you can’t catch it the way it was meant to be seen - on the big screen and in 3D - but it still dazzles. This animated film has it all. A great story of friendship, stunning visuals, memorable character designs, an instantly memorable score, terrific voice acting and a great message. It doesn’t matter how old you are, it becomes an instant favorite.

Much to his father’s disappointment, teenaged Viking Hiccup (perfectly voiced by Jay Baruchel) is hardly the dragon killer his village needs him to be. When Hiccup knocks down a Night Fury - the most elusive and deadly of all dragon species - he finds that he cannot kill it, and instead befriends "Toothless".

We've seen stories about sons rebelling against their parents because they would rather dance ballet, sing, or do anything other than do what they're expected to do before. How to Train Your Dragon differentiates itself first and foremost with its visuals. No dragon we've ever seen looks like the ones in this film. Taking inspiration from the book of the same name by Cressida Cowell, the animators went to town on the creature designs, which range from the two-headed Hideous Zippleback - one head spews flammable gas, the other, sparks - to the bumblebee-like Gronckle. All of them are memorable, as are Hiccups classmates. You’re like the overenthusiastic Fishlegs (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), excitedly looking at these beasts and trying to figure out what makes them tick. I predict in about five to ten years, we’ll be seeing highly detailed and articulated action figures of the creatures in this film sold to adults who grew up with this franchise. That’s how iconic they are.

As you can deduce from the title, Hiccup and Toothless eventually form a close bond and our hero becomes the first dragon rider. The first scene in which they take flight together is pure movie magic. The emotions bubble up inside as if it’s you soaring through the air for the first time. Even on a flat screen, the way they zip alongside cliffs, through rocky formations and above the water is so exciting - particularly with the score by John Powell - it threatens to bring tears to your eyes. You recognize the emotional weight of this moment and the visuals are incredible.

The emotional power of Hiccup and Toothless' flight comes from the character work. Directors Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois have made the genius choice to give a lot of cat-lie attributes to Toothless. He’s effortlessly loveable but also a little wild - if you’ve ever owned a cat, you know what I mean. You’ve seen how Hiccup and his father are. It’s not that Stoick the Vast (Gerard Butler) is a bad father, it’s that they just have nothing in common, whereas Hiccup and Toothless? they get along but they do so well. It breaks your heart knowing they’re from two worlds and that there’s no way this is going to work out. Training with Toothless means Hiccup becomes more knowledgeable about dragons than any other Viking. At his school, he’s acing every course, which breaks down the barrier between him and his father. It raises your spirits but creates a dark cloud on the horizon.

In the end, the screenplay by the directors (who co-wrote with Will Davies) finds a surprisingly elegant way to give the audience the happy ending they want and deliver a big action scene that brings together everything we’ve learned about dragons. It’s revealed that every dragon has been stealing food for the biggest dragon of all, a Godzilla-sized mega beast that will eat anything. The genius of this revelation is that it recontextualizes every dragon attack. If only this big bully were gone, then everyone could live harmoniously. In Independence Day: Resurgence, The Great Wall and similar films, this “Queen” that can be defeated to save the day feels artificial. Not here. In hindsight, it all makes sense.

It's one of the best cast animated pictures in recent memory. Christopher Mintz-Plasse as the big, but squeaky-voiced dragon nerd Fishlegs, America Ferrera as Astrid, Hiccup’s rival and possible romantic interest and the other Vikings are terrific. Even these secondary characters are memorable, making you eager to see more. Then we get to the ending, which is mature and somber. How to Train Your Dragon is much more than the sum of its big, action-packed sequences of aerial pyrotechnics, dizzying flying scenes and narrow getaways. It's packed with emotion, action, and fun. I can’t recommend How to Train Your Dragon enough. (On Blu-ray, April 15, 2022)

[jasonsutekh]

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019)

The land where dragons and humans live together peacefully is under attack from a hunter who wants to cage and control all the dragons.

One of the key aspects was that the animation was consistent with the earlier films. It was good that it was able to demonstrate a little more variety with the new dragon breeds as well as the usual colour sequence. There were also some new powers, even though Toothless’ new one didn’t make so much sense since he shouldn’t have had to be taught an instinctive ability.

Since a dragon love interest is introduced it means that it forcibly debunks any homoerotic scaley subtext that previous installments had, which wasn’t always the best but was a staple of the story. Similarly, not all the characters seemed as familiar as they have been in the past, some changing slightly from age, but others appeared to now be practically strangers.

Some of the changes were welcome as they moved the story forward in the years between films, however this was mainly done through loss which didn’t seem to be felt as heavily as it should have been. Part of the new narrative was that change is to be embraced, although it takes things fairly far by having the entire village uprooted, especially since it’s to run away from a threat.

The ending was a little too sad and didn’t send a great message. All the dragons having to segregate due to mankind’s aggression doesn’t prepare the world for change, it gives in to the villains and deprives people of seeing differences as something people can live in harmony with. In this way the protagonists offer the villains even more power than they’d otherwise have.

4/10 -It’s below average, but only just!-

-Some months before the release of the film, Amazon and some other platforms released pages of the tie-in books that spoiled major plot points.

[athingofvikings]

Two More Stalkers

So I'm drafting this post on October 19, 2022, hoping that I won't have to use it, but getting it set up as a contingency. Just in case.

Lots of screenshots under the cut, but TL;DR:

I have two stalkers who feel entitled to my work and writing, and have been stalking me because I didn't write their historical blorbos to their personal satisfaction and because I haven't written queer characters to their exacting specifications (specifically, they want what amount to Gold Star Lesbians with modern-style adopted children). In the course of their stalking, they have made a hate-blog specifically to target me with insults, and when that failed to get a response, escalated to making a new AO3 account specifically to write hatefic of my work and "gift" it to me.

If you see this post having gone live, I ask you to please review it and reblog it, because I am preparing this contingency in case they escalate to the point of trying to publicly defame me, and if I've hit "post", that means they're actively trying to get people to hate me.

So, without further ado...

Here are screenshots of their intro posts (still available on my Discord server if anyone wishes to see the evidence). Essentially, they came because of their interest in the historical King Macbeth and the mid-11th century, which is where and when my story, A Thing Of Vikings, is set. The basic concept of the story is that the first How To Train Your Dragon film is dropped into Real Life history in the 1040s AD in the Scottish islands, and events ripple out from there, changing history as a result.

Some red flags began to wave in regards to these two, as nessie wanted to know what the status of his historical blorbos would be in my writing, and did not take it well that they would either A) be dead, B) be reduced to insignificance by changes in the historical timeline, C) be someplace else, or D) not exist at all, due to changes in the timeline. He ended up quietly leaving after the following discussion:

He then left a few days later on Aug 28th.

Fast forward to October 2nd.

the threat of tortellini starts a discussion as follows:

At the end of this exchange, the threat of tortellini leaves the ATOV Discord server. To sum up the above, they wanted for me to jettison the core conceit of a piece of writing that I have been working on for six years because they wished to see specific developments catering to their personal desires happen in the text. In short, "Screw your writing integrity, I want you to write it for meeeee!" and then stormed off the server when they were told no.

Two hours later, I am followed by @courtlycringe. Now, I vet my followers for personal safety reasons, due to having experienced harassment and stalking in the past, and immediately saw that this new follower was... unique.

For obvious reasons, I promptly blocked the two people in the notes for these posts, as well as the courtlycringe blog itself. The next morning, October 3rd, I remembered nessie's fixation, and promptly pulled on the threads with the intro posts, putting together that @themischiefoftad is the threat of tortellini and that @malcolm--of--scotland is nessie. (Note the dates on the posts, too; Nessie had this hate blog already going before his friend stormed off of the server)

Confirmation came after a few of my friends interacted with them:

(Although it should be noted that I don't believe that courtlycringe is/was run by anyone other than my two stalkers, given the timeline).

I do a little more work, track down their AO3 accounts, and block them. I expected that to be the end of it.

It wasn't.

In short, these two made a new AO3 account, MillieMilkTea, and wrote some extremely nasty hatefic using my characters and targeting my work. The Necessary Components For The Fall Of An Empire is a giant middle finger to me personally, with my male main characters being brutally and graphically murdered by the female characters (especially their personal blorbos) and having everyone cheering for the deaths, and the female characters going off to be good pure lesbians. Nothing more and nothing less.

I declined the "gift", and have reported them to AO3 Abuse as of the writing of this post on Oct 19.

However, given that they have written thirty-three thousand words of targeted hatefic, likely just in the past few weeks (the account itself was created Oct 11), I am sure that they will continue to escalate. I will keep this post updated and ready to post in case they shift from targeted harassment to defamation and libel.

[clairebishop6226]

It’s jus a opinion about the series 🦑

I'll be very honest, I don't really like the Trolls franchise series because I think the narrative forces yet another personality that Poppy and Branch don't have during the films, in almost every episode we see a more egocentric version of Branch that even though he is correct in many opinions, he is always branded as paranoid and too negative in his actions, almost like a version of the beginning of the film but more forced, Poppy is almost always treated as a perfect image that is never wrong and is always teaching Branch moral lessons, however throughout the films this is interpreted in a completely wrong way, as Branch represents a more realistic perspective on life who is always trying to keep up with Poppy's positive outlook, during In both films Poppy makes a lot more mistakes than Branch and learns from it, for her life is full of good things but as the narrative goes on she becomes more and more human along with Branch who learns that there needs to be balance between being positive with life and being realistic with it, they are inverse people who learn from their opposites, and another thing I hate about the series is that they add almost nothing about Broppy's relationship, during all the episodes despite there are easter eggs that give the idea that they have become a couple, they spend the entire story being addressed only as best friends, Branch and Poppy confessed at the end of World Tour and are confirmed as lovers in the Christmas special Holiday in Harmony, However, throughout the TrollsTopia series, they remain best friends, despite there being controversy over whether the series are canonical or not, it's something that should be worked on, I really wanted a series after Band Together to explore the brothers' relationship, but I I have a hard time when it comes to Dreamworks series (except the How To Train Your Dragon series, they are perfect).

Even though I liked how they changed Branch's personality a little in the Trollstopia series, I miss the protagonism he had since the series had to make more room for new characters.

This came to light when I was reviewing an episode where Branch makes a bet to do several fun activities in one day to become a "better Troll" and it all starts because he doesn't want to do a dramatic poetry performance and this is interpreted as something what a great strength of his abilities, I understand the difficult part of expressing himself in front of a lot of people but the part where he is completely oblivious to poetry contradicts the first film where he literally creates romantic poetry quickly for Bridget just based on the qualities of Poppy, even though he was the victim of a petty bet the entire episode, he's the one who has to apologize at the end just because Poppy was the one who was right, the only detail I like about this episode is the fact that Branch really put in the work to create a list of only fun things and it is revealed at the end that Poppy also has a list where Branch's happiness is one of the main goals.

[capsarcastica]

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire Review

Following so closely after the vastly superior Japanese reboot, it's clear that Warner Bros' run with Godzilla is all about spectacle over substance. It is undoubtedly the weakest entry in the franchise. While the stories in this universe have always been weak, this one is the thinnest. The plot comes across more like a child playing with action figures than something thought out for a multimillion dollar movie.

Godzilla has no story and little purpose, kept in merely because it's his universe. The writers add in some third-act monster reveal just to give him something to do, which ultimately is just a rehash of How to Train Your Dragon 2.

The good news is the story is so thin that for once the human element doesn't detract from the rest. Not that it serves much purpose anyways. The most interesting element of the film is linking Kong and Mothra's tribes together, though that's just to give the humans something to do.

Kong is the only one worth following. His story feels like they were trying to copy Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. The main villain looks and acts just like Koba but without the interesting backstory. While this could never compare to that classic, it at least gives the audience something to follow along. It's a shame that the movie introduces two original villains, considering all the series' original villains are dull and boring, when there's so many iconic foes from Godzilla's long history to draw on.

The cast is fine. There's only three returning characters from the last one. Two are at least attempting to have an emotional arc while one is just there to be the audience surrogate for information dumps.

There's really only two new human characters. Alex Ferns as the soldier-guide is interesting at first but devolves into just another stereotypical movie jerk. Dan Stevens' Trapper seems to be the only one having fun and he definitely lightens things up whenever he's on screen.

What the previous movies lacked in story, they made up for in visual spectacle. Unfortunately, this movie doesn't deliver. Rarely do these feel like gigantic skyscrapper-sized creatures as it's often shot on their eye level making them seem like any human.

Considering how well Hong Kong was done in the last movie, it's a shame that this does little to integrate the actual cities the fights occur in. The Pyramids of Giza are the only iconic thing used, while Rome's Colosseum seems like someone was just using some stock photos. There's no reason the finale is set in Rio de Janeiro as whatever potential is completely wasted.

The greatest waste of potential is the fight without gravity. What should have been an interesting spin devolves into the usual slamming of creatures into one another.

The worst part of the movie is that it's just dull. It comes across as just content to fill space rather than something anyone really wanted. Elements like Godzilla's pink form and Kong's robot hand feel committee generated to revive toy sales. Mothra's return should be exciting given her legacy, but feels thrown in just to have another iconic character and a deus ex machina for a problem they couldn't solve.

Ultimately, it's just a popcorn movie. Something to enjoy for a few hours then immediately forget.

[minijenn]

Jen Tortures Herself With Every Dreamworks Animated Movie Ever: Mr. Peabody and Sherman

So let me start off by saying I have no prior knowledge of this... property? I honestly don't even know what Mr. Peabody and Sherman originally was, a show? A comic? I don't care enough to research it, because this movie was lame.

Yeah so I don't know if its because of my inpaitence for the movie I get to watch after this or because I was already in a bad mood from watching Turbo but Mr. Peabody and Sherman... just didn't do it for me, ya'll. And I think the fact that this is perhaps so very blatantly made for very small kids is a large part of the reason why.

We focus on Mr. Peabody, a genuis dog and his adopted son, Sherman, as they travel through time using the WABAC time machine and get up to shenanigans. Throw in Sherman's classmate, bully turned love interest Penny, and we get hijinks all around various times and locales such as ancient Egypt, renissance Italy, and more.

It's a pretty simple setup, and I'm not faulting it for that. What I am faulting this movie for is that it's just... god, it drags on. It doesn't help that the characters are... kind of fucking insufferable along the way. Mr. Peabody is... ok, kind of an annoying genuis know-it-all type but he sort of grew on me as the film went on. Sherman is an annoying kid, so I'm already not a fan of that. And Penny might just be the worst of the bunch, god I hated this annoying little bitch. Rare is it that I watch a movie and hope for a child character in it to rest in fucking pieces, but I was rooting for that to happen to Penny cause she is the worst.

The time travel hijinks are... fun, I guess? I mean, they travel to very well known points in history and make some cute references to real world events, but even then, they're just that. Cute. Because this is a movie for babies. It skews very young with its humor, its writing, its message, and yes, even its art style and animation. Because of that, I, a tired, bitter woman in her mid/late 20s, had almost nothing to connect with here. Try as the movie might to have its emotional moments and themes about family and love, I just... felt nothing.

As for the animation, at least this is a very nice movie to look at. The character designs are pretty fun and unique for Dreamworks, and it's boosted by a vibrant color palette that grabs the eye all the way through. The score also had some pretty fun jazzy moments in it, but even so, it was nothing really that special.

Really, that's what I can say about this movie as a whole. It's... nothing special. It didn't grab me, didn't captivate me in any meaningful way. I mean, it didn't offend me and it wasn't "bad" per say, it it was far from being anything resembling good. It's just... really, really damn mid.

Overall Rating: 4/10

Verdict: Eat a TastyKake with Marie Antionette

Previous Review (Turbo)

Next Review (How To Train Your Dragon 2)

[kizzyedgelll]

2023 GIFS IN REVIEW

i was tagged by @alexcabotgf, @rachelsennot, @saw-x, @pascow and @tthrawn (thank you darlings <3) to post my most popular and favorite sets from each month

JANUARY most popular: The Love Witch + pink favorite: The Craft

FEBRUARY most popular: Pulp Fiction "dance scene" favorite: "girls crying in front of the mirror"

MARCH most popular: EEAAO's Jobu Tupaki + outfits favorite: Wallace & Gromit + my "faceless" series

APRIL most popular: The Grand Budapest Hotel favorite: horror movies + flowers

MAY most popular: The Grand Budapest Hotel favorite: HTTYD + my "faceless" series

JUNE most popular: How To Train Your Dragon favorite: ghibli + pride colors

JULY most popular: Beauty and the Beast + my "faceless" series favorite: BATB + my "ABC" series

AUGUST most popular: Matilda favorite: Zendaya + films

SEPTEMBER most popular and favorite: Howl's Moving Castle + my "faceless" series

OCTOBER most popular and favorite: iconic Disney villains

NOVEMBER most popular: Anatasia's Dimitri favorite: The Lion King + my "faceless" series

DECEMBER most popular: Barbie favorite: 2023 film releases

a lot of people have made this so idk who to tag asjksfhdf if you feel like doing it, feel free to say i tagged you <3

[scarareg]

hey! i'm sending an ask because you can't attach images in replies, but here's two images from the last episode of the PJO series that show luke's scar. i don't blame you for not realizing he had it because it's barely noticeable at all in most shots lol, it certainly doesn't seem like something he got from fighting a dragon.

i feel like with luke, both in the movie and here in the show, and zuko in both the new ATLA show and the 2010 movie as it also really downplayed his scar, they seem to have this idea that their cool "pretty boy" characters shouldn't look too imperfect or "ugly" so they either remove the scar (movie luke doesn't have it at all) or make it as subtle as they can possibly get away with even though it being jarring for them to have scars like that is the point, and like you said in your PJO show review, it's incredibly important to both of their characters as a symbol of the suffering they've been through and a constant reminder of their fathers. it shouldn't be something you can hardly even see.

Ah thank you! Now I see it! It is super thin and the fact that the scene was filmed at night dies not help at all.

Agree completely with you. Hollywood should stop being afraid of giving decent scars to their characters. They are crucial part of their stories and who they become. Another example is Tyrion Lannister. In the show he gets a scar that at least we can see,I guess. In the books he lost part of his nose tho,so...

About fighting dragons, Luke's scar really is small, it must have been a tiny dragon lmao. Let's pray that in the How To Train Your Dragon live action they are not afraid to give the Vikings all kind of scars. And of course at the end give Hiccup his prosthetic.

Thanks again for sending me the images! You are super kind!🩷

[moviemunchies]

WHAT

There is absolutely NO REASON that a sequel to a movie from over a decade ago, which itself was a spin-off of the Shrek movies, should be THIS GOOD, and yet…???

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish goes like this: Puss in Boots, the outlaw hero, is happy to celebrate his skillz and invincibility after once again winning. However, he gets killed in the ensuing revelry. Not a problem! He’s a cat, after all, and he’s got nine lives. Except it turns out that right now he’s on his last life after blowing through his previous eight, and after a close brush with a seemingly invincible enemy, he decides to lay low and give up the life of an adventurer. Until he hears about a quest for the Wishing Star, which will grant a wish to whoever claims it. Puss plans to use the Star to get his lives back. But he’s far from the only one who is after the Wishing Star: along with his old flame Kitty Softpaws, Big Jack Horner, and Goldilocks and the Three Bears are after it for their own reasons.

Also, he’s joined by a therapy dog.

Like many others, I had absolutely no intention of seeing this film when the trailer was released online. I have seen only the first Shrek all the way through (though I have seen lots of the second and third one on TV), and never seen the first Puss in Boots. Dreamworks also hasn’t been at the top of its game in the past few years. Look, How to Train Your Dragon 3 wasn’t *bad* but it was also lacking in that spark, in part because the whole ‘The thing you liked about this series has to go away now’ was a running theme in animated movies for a couple of years and it was old. I didn’t bother with The Boss Baby. I hadn’t seen The Bad Guys but it didn’t particularly interest me, though it seemed like it did fine enough. I saw this one getting good reviews and was confused, but moved on. It wasn’t until I kept seeing rave reviews, and people I knew telling me it was fantastic, that I said, “Okay, let me look into this.”

What. The actual fudge.

This is one of the best things I’ve seen from Dreamworks. This movie is an absolute triumph. This is, in fact, astonishing in its storybook imagery animation, its thrilling action sequences, its complex character development, and dark themes. It’s amazing.

The Shrek spin-off did a story about a hero coming to terms with his own mortality.

[throws up hands in confused but impressed gestures]

HOW???

Aiding this movie is its amazing animation. In the days when Disney has sort of settled on an animation style in their CGI films, and yet is still dominating the market, it’s really cool to see a movie that is playing with how animation. The style of this movie is meant to look much more like the art you’d find in a storybook. It reminds me (and I’m far from the only one to remark this) of Into the Spider-Verse in that it’s trying to copy a specific type of artwork, and there are interesting little tidbits that are really cool if you pay close attention. Puss’s sword has a little impact mark when it hits against other blades, for instance. It feels as if someone has taken colorful pieces of concept art and brought them to life, and given how much I love concept art, I very much enjoyed this animation style.

Building on that animation point: the action scenes in this film are top-notch? The final duel between Puss and the Wolf is one of the best sword fight scenes I’ve seen in years, especially out of a new movie. Many movies don’t seem to know or care how to do a great, fast-paced sword fight, and it’s rare to see it in an animated movie either. This movie somehow managed it. In fact just about ALL the fight scenes are fantastic to watch, with the sheer amount of energy they have in them.

The performances in the film are pretty great? Antonio Banderas is playing a cartoon cat, and yet he still manages to imbue him with a lot of character? Not only is Puss in Boots an arrogant braggart at the beginning of the story, but he’s forcibly humbled, and he goes through the wringer, and Banderas’s performance reflects that pretty well. When Puss is having panic attacks at the sound of the Wolf’s creepy whistle, it’s surprisingly effective how much you feel his terror.

I also don’t think that a couple of the other performers sounded like themselves? That sounds like a dumb thing to say, but with celebrity voice actors, they’re sometimes directed to just talk into the microphone without doing anything with their voices. But I didn’t find that Kitty Softpaws sounded too much like normal Salma Hayek or that Goldilocks sounded much like Florence Pugh. Then again, I’m not overly familiar with their voices so maybe I’m wrong on that count.

That being said, I ‘ve see quite a lot of people claiming that John Mulaney’s turn as the villain Big Jack Horner was especially amazing, and while he does well, and he makes an entertaining villain, I didn’t find his work to be something particularly incredible. I wasn’t blown out of the water by his performance, is all I’m saying.

Also this movie’s hilarious. I haven’t emphasized that enough, but it is a really funny movie. Some of the humor in the film was surprisingly dark? I know that animated films sometimes can have dark humor, but there’s a lot of it here, and most of it lands. The humor fits the tone of the movie, I suppose, but it threw me off how many of the gags in the film involved things like murder and casual violence.

I fully expected Dreamworks to crank out a cookie-cutter sequel, and I should have known better. When Dreamworks is trying, really trying, they knock it out of the park. They probably knew they had to if they wanted to release a sequel to a movie from over a decade ago and make it land with audiences. It would probably have been better had I seen the previous Shrek and Puss in Boots movies, but it’s not strictly necessary, as this entry has enough explanation of past events that you won’t need it.

[kylesvariouslistsandstuff]

Here we are... Best Animated Feature noms...

My predictions were 4-out-of-5...

THE BOY AND THE HERON, NIMONA, ROBOT DREAMS, and SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE all got in...

The one I got wrong was TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM, which to be fair, I did say in my previous post that that one was the wild card out of my predictions. Despite the high praise and tons of nominations TMNT:MM got elsewhere, in addition to a single win, I guess those who were nominating it for the Oscar just didn't think the oozy gross-out turtle action-superhero movie cut it.

Instead, we have ELEMENTAL, so Disney Pictures gets at least one slot this year. The last time they were shut out entirely was for the features of 2011, the year they released the critical dud CARS 2 and the completely dumped WINNIE THE POOH. I was pretty sure that this year, they also wouldn't make it. ELEMENTAL's critical reception was fine at best, nowhere near the acclaim MUTANT MAYHEM got. WISH was both a critical and commercial dud, so that had no chance, only ELEMENTAL did... Maybe the Academy just didn't feel like pulling a 2018 and nominating two superhero action animated movies. Maybe they decided to have just one IP-based movie in the race, and opted for an original story. (As NIMONA and ROBOT DREAMS are based on pre-existing source material, BOY AND THE HERON references a novel that plays a part in its story.) Maybe something else about it wasn't all to their liking. Maybe Disney is just that powerful that they got themselves a slot.

I still think this is a strong line-up, and again, it speaks to how robust this year was for features both mainstream and independent.

And I will admit, even though I wasn't in love with the movie, ELEMENTAL getting into the race is very nice, I feel. Director Peter Sohn's first Pixar feature, THE GOOD DINOSAUR, was both a box office flop and didn't get a nominated for the Oscar (it shared the year with sister Pixar movie INSIDE OUT). It was also a film that he inherited after its original director got removed from it. ELEMENTAL was his personal project from the ground-up, and after a rough opening and all the press jeering that it was going to be this big flopperooni, it had excellent legs at the box office... and now... It has a Best Animated Feature nom. Talk about staying power! Maybe Pete Docter should think twice about that statement he made back in the summer, about trying to go back to Pixar's "roots" in trying to figure out what audiences supposedly want from this studio.

Anyways, Pixar usually gets a nom every year. For 2022's animated features, TURNING RED was in the running. 2021, LUCA. 2020, SOUL, which won for that year. Last time Pixar didn't get a nom at all was for 2016, their sole feature that year was FINDING DORY. Got good reviews and made beaucoup bucks, but it shared a year with Disney Animation's ZOOTOPIA and MOANA, two heavy hitters which ended up getting the noms. So, outside of FINDING DORY, MONSTERS UNIVERSITY, and CARS 2, Pixar usually never misses a nom whenever they release a single movie in a calendar year.

Most of Paramount's Oscar noms in animation were for DreamWorks movies they released circa 2006-2012, which are all now Universal movies since Comcast owns all of DreamWorks Animation outright. Funnily enough, the inaugural Best Animated Feature nominations included Paramount's JIMMY NEUTRON: BOY GENIUS, which was up against eventual winner SHREK, and MONSTERS, INC. Paramount then began distributing DreamWorks movies in 2006, and scored nominations with KUNG FU PANDA, HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON, KUNG FU PANDA 2, and PUSS IN BOOTS. For a non-DreamWorks nom, there was RANGO, which won for Best Animated Feature of 2011... Ever since then? Only one movie, ANOMALISA. The films they released from 2015 to now just never made it: SHERLOCK GNOMES, WONDER PARK, SPONGEBOB 3, RUMBLE, etc. MUTANT MAYHEM really had a good shot at getting in... Maybe TRANSFORMERS: ONE surprises later this year, I don't know. Paramount's animation history post-80s is so weird...

Anyways, congrats to everyone. I'm personally rooting for either BOY AND THE HERON, or NIMONA.

[moviewarfare]

A “QUICK!” Review of “Kandahar (2023)”

This is a 2023 action movie about a US operative having to fight his way out of Afghanistan with his interpreter while being hunted.

Wait isn't that the same plot as Guy Ritchie's The Covenant?

It's a little weird that this movie came out just a month after The Covenant with almost the same plot. The 3rd act and the ending is also VERY similar. The difference comes in execution and unfortunately, Kandahar isn't as good.

The first hour is incredibly slow as it setups the whole plot but it takes ages. The relationship between the main lead and the interpreter isn't that strong. The message isn't delivered in a very meaningful way. There is also not a lot of action set pieces even though there is a stellar night sequence in this one.

It's just another passable movie starring Gerald Butler.

For more reviews like this visit:

https://moviewarfarereviews.blogspot.com/

[adamwatchesmovies]

How To Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)

If How to Train Your Dragon 2 isn’t as good as the first, it’s only because the original offered the kind of first-time visual spectacle that could never quite be duplicated. This is a more mature film whose evolving relationships enrich the vivid world that’s quickly becoming a favorite. It’s got plenty of adventure, plenty of laughs - and a surprising amount of romance too.

Set 5 years after Hiccup (voiced by Jay Baruchel) and Toothless met, dragons have become as much a part of Berk as its human villagers. While exploring and charting unexplored islands, our hero encounters Drago Bludvist (Dimon Hounson), a warlord who is building an army of dragons.

If the first movie was about showing us how different Hiccup was from his father, Stoick the Vast (Gerard Butler), this sequel is about how much he resembles his mother, Valka (Cate Blanchett), who we meet for the first time in this film. Then, the story takes him further by showing us how he is his own person. At this point in his life, Hiccup is no longer a boy. He’s an adult who hasn’t quite accepted all the responsibilities that come with being the son of the village chief. It’s clear that someday, he will lead Burke. He single-handedly changed human-dragon relationships completely through his willingness to listen and empathize. We can see those qualities, as well as Hiccup’s understanding of the fire-breathing reptiles in his mom. What ultimately makes him grow into his own is the villain, a man who actually has a lot in common with him.

Now that we’ve learned about this world and we’ve met the dragons, we're able to explore the characters. Some of the movie’s best scenes have nothing to do with Drago or the titular creatures. They’re romantic scenes where we see the chemistry between Hiccup and his fiancée, Astrid (America Ferrera), or between Stoick and Valka. The chemistry between the actors is so good you forget you’re looking at living drawings. You just see them as living, breathing people. That’s quite a feat.

By comparison, the film’s villain does not get a whole lot of development, but that’s sort of the point. Ever-hopeful, Hiccup believes Drago is simply misunderstood and that a hand extended in friendship will transform him. It worked with dragons, after all. Maybe he even thinks himself a little bit better than all the adults who warn him about the warlord, that they just don’t understand something that he does. After all, Hiccup and Drago have a lot in common. They’ve both been scarred by dragons but their time with them has ultimately made them stronger. The truth is they might’ve been friends once upon a time but somewhere along the way, the two became mirror opposites. Just as the giant dragon in the first movie couldn’t be reasoned with, Drago also can’t be reasoned with. That might sound like a cliché, but it isn’t, not in this movie. It’s a lesson Hiccup will have to learn before it’s too late.

Ultimately, How to Train Your Dragon 2 is a very different kind of adventure. Rather than boiling down to a boss that needs to be beaten up/killed, it’s a battle of wills and beliefs. If that doesn’t necessarily sound visually dynamic, you’ve figured out the film’s only flaw. While there are plenty of gorgeous scenes, the soundtrack is just as good as the first, the jokes are hilarious and rewarding, the character designs inspired, the emotions rich and the action scenes are rousing, the finale is not the same kind of jaw-dropper we saw in 2010. Is it a big deal? Only if you demand the movies be on the exact same level. If this was a standalone adventure, it would easily earn itself a 5-star rating. Because it’s a sequel and those have different expectations thrust upon them, I’m going to give it a 4.5 - but only because we’re rounding down with extreme prejudice. (On Blu-ray, May 27, 2022)

[plaininternettrash]

tumblr rebrand! little intro post hi

I'm very much not new to haikyuu or other fandoms I talk about but I haven't been on tumblr in a hot second so,,, hello it's nice to meet you all :)

Back into Haikyuu at the moment and is my main interest, the thing that dragged me back here so thank you hq movie. I will be consuming any and all content I can get my hands on please and thank you 🫶

I also like spy x family, sk8 infinity, kuroko basketball, yuri on ice, free - you get the gist of what anime I like (any recs are welcome)

Other shows I like: Miraculous (have not caught up omg what is happening), Good Omens, Merlin, Ted Lasso, the Bear, The Office, Brooklyn 99

Top fav films but I honestly love so many: Mamma Mia, La La Land, Knives Out, Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse, How to Train Your Dragon

Will probably share some film rants and reviews on here and definitely mainly spam about haikyuu so I look forward to getting back into it!

ALSO love Dan and Phil !!

[riddlerosehearts]

okay. i said i would write a post about how much i adore how to train your dragon 1 & 2 to balance out all the complaining about bad dreamworks movies that i've been doing, so:

i can be very indecisive at times when i try to rank and rate things. but httyd 1 and 2 are definitely both in my top 5 favorite dreamworks movies. the first movie is in my top 3, easily, because it's just a little more special to me than the second one. and then personally i have... some issues with the third movie, but god, the first two are just amazing. i think i'm mostly just gonna talk about the first one in this post since it's my favorite.

httyd 1 is a very simple story, about a boy finding his place in the world and earning his dad's acceptance through forming a forbidden friendship with a dragon. but it is so emotional and so beautifully told. every single scene matters to the story, and everything hiccup learns is used either in his training or to defeat the red death. the movie never ever feels slow or unbalanced, it all just flows perfectly. hiccup is loyal and stubborn and sassy and insecure and a genius inventor and one of the best leads in a dreamworks film. he feels so real and so well-developed. and toothless shows so much personality and has such a beautiful bond with him. astrid could, i suppose, have been more fleshed out in the first movie, but she still has a lot of great moments. she's fierce, passionate, and driven, and the way she grows to accept hiccup and softens up toward him is just adorable. i love her.

also, the character designs, animation, and the score were already amazing in httyd 1 but they only improve in the second movie. the flying scenes and toothless himself with his catlike mannerisms are especially well-animated in both movies and songs like test flight from httyd 1 and toothless found from httyd 2 are fantastic. and the humor of these movies is great. it's not reliant on making tons of pop culture reference and toilet jokes like dreamworks usually loves to do, instead it's just really witty. hearing hiccup say "any food that grows here is tough and tasteless, the people that grow here even more-so" is hilarious to me. berk also has such a unique atmosphere about it, especially in the first movie, i feel like.

i would argue that httyd 2 isn't quite as masterfully written and has some pacing issues, but i still love it a lot. valka's story, and the tragedy of her relationship with stoick, is so well done and i love seeing hiccup start learning to be chief and to be more responsible. httyd 1 is sweet and upbeat and heartwarming but httyd 2 has this epic fantasy feel with a darker type of story. and hiccup's dialogue at the end does not get enough appreciation for how beautiful it is: "we may be small in numbers, but we stand for something bigger than anything the world can pit against us. we are the voice of peace, and bit by bit, we will change this world."

and anyway anyone who's been following me for a while can probably tell i am bad at writing analyses and reviews lol. but i just love how to train your dragon so so much and i don't wanna seem like i set out to watch every dreamworks movie just so i could complain about them constantly. so yeah, these movies are amazing to me and i really should get around to watching the httyd tv shows one of these days.