In the world of computer animated films, my general policy is to stay the hell away unless the name ‘Pixar’ is anywhere in the credits. The only exception to this rule has been Dreamworks’ “Kung-Fu Panda,” which proved to be a charming and fun film.
Chalk it up to good marketing and an intriguing trailer, but I found myself in the theater opening weekend for “Despicable Me,” the first animated feature from Illumination Entertainment.
“Despicable Me” is a harmless, albeit rather forgettable film. The pacing is incredibly awkward and, aside from the adorable Agnes (“It’s so fluffy!”) and charming yellow minions, the characters seem lifeless and devoid of any real personality. It’s a shame considering the amount of great comedic actors that make up the voice cast. I really love Jason Segal, Will Arnett and Kristen Wiig, but the characters they voice are fairly generic archetypes.
Sure, the film has some cute moments and I by no means regret going to see it. However, I just never found myself fully invested in the story as much as the filmmaker’s seemed to have wanted me to be.
Wait for the yellow minion clips to appear on YouTube and I think you’ll be set.
“How To Train Your Dragon” came out in early April, but due to it being a Dreamworks animated film, and considering it had some rather uninspiring trailers, I didn’t really have an interest in seeing it. However, I am an avid listener of the /Filmcast and Managing Editor Dave Chen could not contain his unabashed support of this film. Then friends and family members told me how much they enjoyed the movie. Well, I finally sought it out at a discount cinema and found it to be of 2010’s most pleasant surprises.
Dreamworks now has two good animated films, with “How To Train Your Dragon” taking the crown from “Kung-Fu Panda” as the best computer animated movie the studio has produced. The animation is superb, but what sets “Dragon” apart from its bland and often atrocious predecessors is that it actually has a good story and strong characters.
“Dragon” tells the story of Hiccup, a viking who does not quite share the same love of dragon slaying as his fellow kinsmen. Hiccup’s lack of blood lust leads him to form a rapport with one particularly adorable dragon named Toothless. The relationship between Hiccup and Toothless serves as the film’s narrative core, as Hiccup tries to convince the other vikings that slaying isn’t the only way to deal with dragons eating their sheep and terrorizing their town.
The film hits familiar emotional beats and you’ll probably figure out where it’s going long before the story actually arrives at its climax. But that’s not really the point of this movie. The reason to watch “How To Train Your Dragon” is for its characters and their endearing nature. Toothless is a hybrid of dogs and cats everywhere and the animators have captured what we love about these household animals (see Toothless rolling around in the grass). “How To Train Your Dragon” is an unexpected marvel and you should be sure to check it once it’s released on DVD.
I never though an animated film would be the one to tackle emotions such as love, loss, grief and mourning with such unrelenting honesty, but Pixar is always out to prove that animation is a medium just as capable as any other genre in exploring the human condition. “Up” is my favorite of the Pixar films and its first fifteen minutes consistently brings me to tears.
