Hiccup’s character arc throughout the trilogy deserves a whole other video for itself and why it improves the series so much. And his relationships with Astrid and Stoick too
Kirsten Huber him growing up and realizing that his dream would never work, and how it hurts more people than it helps, just breaks my heart every time i think about it. His father was murdered by Toothless, but instead of considering that dragons and vikings might not be the best pairing, he just pushes this idea further and INSISTS that they live together until he almost loses everything. Then he has to let go, but he doesn’t let go completely. He tells his children about his childhood, and inspires them to create a better world than the one he lived in so that the dragons will return.
I really adore the scene in the end where Toothless is helping Hiccup to walk With his new leg and the camera focuses on the floor (on Hiccup's feet) and there's a moment where Toothless' tail sways over Hiccup's feet, showing his Missing (tail Thing) and showing the parralel/connection of their Missing parts I also always loved How Hiccup's metal leg fits perfectly into Toothless' tail mecanism
Toothless lost his left tail fin because of Hiccup and Hiccup lost his his left leg (not really but kinda) because of Toothless. But they both learned how to deal with it because they helped each other. This movie is incredible.
Me too! I love the many ways Toothless and Hiccup are connected, their similar personalities, eye color, prostetics, and the most important...friendship.
The First HTTYD will always be my favorite. It was the most efficient and sincere with it's story-telling, and still holds up as the strongest narrative of the three films.
Agreed. While I personally love the whole trilogy, I find myself going back to the first one more. Probably because of nostalgia. There’s something about it, maybe the soundtrack, the plot or the character development and interactions. Another added bonus is the lack of an actual antagonist, because this movie wouldn’t exactly work if there was an actually antagonist.
I love that you mentioned the brilliance of the cinematography (arguably the best of any animated film), and the music. As for the symmetry, there's actually another great line that is repeated: "I did this" - First said by Hiccup, feeling remorseful that he'd ensnared Toothless in his trap, then said by Stoick at the end when he believes Hiccup had died. I thought that was a brilliant touch. Great video, keep it up!
Also, I know that this was mentioned (albeit briefly) but my lord the SCORE!!!! I’m learning Sebastian Wolff’s version of Test Drive right now and whenever I hear it, it never fails to bring me to tears. Also, ThePandaTooth, I love your music so much and I’ve been subscribed for around 2 years now, so please continue making music for all the scores I love so much
Sir you forgot the "I did this" Toothless is shot down by Hiccup, Hiccup regrets his decision and says, "I did this." Stoick leans over Hiccup's body at the end and believes him to be dead, and says, "I did this."
Also the symmetry in Hiccup ending up crippled as a consequence of him crippling Toothless. I came out of the movie HATING the ending for a solid three days, and then that occurred to me. It was a beautiful, terrible symmetry. Something this movie did again and again and again in ways few people ever noticed.
Fun Fact: Toothless' hesitation before letting Hiccup touch him was actually due to a glitch in the animation software, but since it worked so well the animators left it in.
Same thing happened with the shot of the wing going over the eye :) Originally they wanted you to see the eye opening & instead they left it cut as it felt more impactful and stunning
Ugh it was NOT A GLITCH!! The animators specifically talk about this moment in the making of the movie! Every single frame is animated by hand, how would a computer glitch decide to self-animate a character into a specific movement? Doesn’t even make sense.
@@EstorilEm You do understand how digital programmes work right. I suggest looking at animation bloopers. Sometimes the programme hiccups, stalls, buffers, stutters. It does glitch out- animation done through programes with rigging and models can & will glitch at times.
@@EstorilEm 100% correct!!! It wasn't a glitch. That's how great the movie is! They did that on purpose to really give you that emotional feeling and impact.
Im surprised you didnt talk about the style of animation because its subconciously using round and spickey designs of charakter, dragons and various objects to tell us about their status between good and evil. For instance the scales of the dragons are first not that good visable but later you see the round shapes, especially good showed in the scene with Snotlout and Hookfangs first bonding. First you see all the fangs and wierd spike-things on hookfangs back but later you see the warm round red texture of the scales and feel deep down, besides the bodylanguage of hookfang, a binding as you experience Hookfangs bonding with Snotlout. Of course this mostly happens subconciously but I just wanted to point out that even the character designs play into the progression of their development and the viewers point of view. But besides that great video you did there, hope you talk about the third movie and what it did spark in you. English is not my first language so sry for spelling and grammar mistakes.
You're so right that I should've brought that up. For this one, I was really more focusing on the story but when I make videos on the sequels, I'll be sure to bring it up. Thanks!
Another thing to notice is how Hiccup's story ties in with the Hero's Journey but on the first act Hiccup believes his father is the Mentor and the dragons are the Antagonist but the story switches those two roles
Speaking of the parallel lines in this film, I didnt realize this the first few times I watched it but when Hiccup goes into the woods to kill Toothless and then cuts him free, and then Toothless pins him down the two actually switch places. And it's just so interesting how they emphasize the look of their eyes and expressions in those shots so later Astrid asks him "Why didn't you?" Hiccup more or less concludes what they both saw and felt probably (Toothless is constantly mimicking Hiccup's actions in the movie too. Like the fish, the smile, the drawing, their first act of mercy, and even tho it's not intentional, the fact they lose something at the end but gain it back through eachother speaks volumes of how tied together the two are).
@@The0GamingHero I have not seen this video in so long because I was rewatching Defenders of Berk for so long... That Imma just agree with whatever you just said....
I always knew HTTYD was a masterpiece, unlike any othet dreamworks movies, I felt so attached and commited to finding out more about the lore of this one, I've been playing the online game for 6 years now and im a HTTYD nerd, I love everything about its lore and universe its breath taking and the cinematography is so eye pleasing. Im glad they didn't use the typical dreamworks human models aswell but created their own for these movies. Ps: Not to mention the AMAZING so well fitting soundtrack... Im in love with these movies. Am I the only one who is amazed by these movies that it brings tears to their eyes?
yess!!! I love how all the lessons got to use in the final fight "A flightless dragon is a dead dragon" "dragons are not fireproof from the inside" etc. These really make the movie feel like it build up and that you get to use what you learned in life
A detail about hiccups leg, it can also be seen as something that connects him and toothless together. Toothless is missing a fin and hiccup lost a leg. The symmetry between them is brilliant
The line development of “Gestured to all of me...” or why it was delivered was fantastic Gobber and Stoick pointing out that Hiccup needs to stop *gestures to Hiccup* this Then at the end of the film Stoick saying “Turns out we all needed was a little worth of *gestures to Hiccup* this”. And Hiccup always replied with, “You just gestured to all of me.”
Oh oh oh another little parallel is when Hiccup says "I did this" looking at Toothless after he's shot down, and is then said by his father when he thinks Hiccup is dead :)
I hate how people disregard this movie and look at it no more than just a, “kids movie”. People usually laugh at me when I say this is one of the most beautiful and underrated movies, and when I say the soundtrack is amazing.
I also often use HTTYD as my answer for "what's your favourite movie?" and I have never really been able to explain why, I just had a strong feeling. Your analysis made it clear to me why I love the second act so much, so thank you. And let's be honest - who could not love the scene without any dialogue when they are getting to know each other paired with the amazing piece of music
Grant - You didn't mention the parallelism in how both Hiccup and Toothless have lost similar body parts (Hiccup his left foot, Toothless his left tail wing). And how they're both walking the "left hand path" - they both are essentially the outsiders/oddballs of their tribes. And how they both come together in a yin/yang complimentary relationship to achieve goals (mainly, peace for both dragons and Vikings) that neither could have reached separately. (Think Toothless doesn't have goals? Notice how he was _not_ one of the dragons attacking Vikings nor stealing their sheep; he was mostly keeping back from the conflict, and he only used his breath blasts in non-lethal ways.) So that's just yet another factor in how well-crafted the script and characterization are for this film.
You also forgot to mention what a masterpiece the music is - each character has their own sort of tune which is a motif throughout the film because the intro was so good. John Powell was able to develop every character's tune in the intro (except for toothless, cuz he's an outsider) and do the same thing in the following movies for the existing and new characters. For example, when we first see Astrid, there is a particular tune that comes on, which is also heard again during the romantic flight with Hiccup. Hiccup's tune intertwines with toothless's when they first learn how to fly symbiotically. Also, toothless was first introduced using bagpipes to showcase unfamiliarity. This is done again in number two when hiccup discovers the new islands etc.
one of my favorite things about this series, other then the dragons of course, was seeing the animation improve over the years. All 3 of them got better and better and its so exciting and interesting to re-watch them and see all the little changes
i completely agree. Dreamworks' movies are usually seen as second grade animations, compared to disney and pixar. But how to train your dragon is a gem. it's a great movie, i loved it so much. there are so many details in the world, the story, the characters. it's greatly done. it's beautiful, funny, heartwarming, heartbreaking... and i love the second and third parts as well. although they are not as strong as the first one.
I love the fact that the way they take down the red death is discovered as a joke scene? and they don't even mention it in the movie as a "oh we can beat dragons by shooting the gas!" but as a throwaway line "not so fireproof on the inside are you?"
It´ s the ony film that makes me cry. I watched it in the cinema three times... and like five more in the next years. The scene of the "driving practice" when Toothless flies again is too much for me to hold my tears. It's so beautiful, so epic. I watched this film with some primary school groups. And they all loved it. I used to make questions about the characters. And something that called my attention is that at first, the boys used to say that Hicup was a coward because he was not able to kill a dragon... but at the end of the film they all agreed he is the bravest viking ever. I guess this film gave "permission" to some boys to be kind, and make them know that being kind and compassionate doesn't make them less "boys" or less "brave". (That was years ago, now things are different). A brilliant, touching film.
Well said. The movie's stellar in every aspect, but what really makes it impossible to get out of your head is the soundtrack. Test Drive, Romantic Flight, Forbidden Friendship and Once There Were Dragons have been looping in my head for the past week, lmao. Have you seen the next two movies? I'm curious to know your thoughts on them.
EDIT (05/23/2022): I guess I should note that I don't love the entire trilogy. I left the THW theater feeling...weird, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. I saw some videos from other people talking about it, and I completely understand why and now I really can't stand the movie. How to Train Your Dragon is my absolute favorite movie series, and brings me to tears every time I watch it. Kung Fu Panda is a close second.
When you were talking about the "Why didn't you?" parts, I realized the two major characters had the opportunity and motivation to kill each other. Kind of dark.
I just re-watched this movie, and I thought it was quite brilliant. The one problem I had with it is that there's always this beautiful wordless story telling, and then one of the characters spells out what just happened to us. Not reacting, but spewing exposition for something we'd just seen. I guess it's a way of keeping the kids up to speed. Still, I'd really like it if this movie had the balls to actually rely on these wordless sequences without spelling it out afterwards.
You’re absolutely right on every mark. You explained a lot of the reasons why I adore this movie so much, and wish it got more attention for its brilliance. I feel it’s been spoiled, particularly in its third movie, by its fan base that want nothing but fan service and don’t see the first film for its actual brilliance. One thing I think you neglected it notice is Stoic’s character arc in relation to Hiccup. Their relationship is the classic one of a parent and child failing to communicate and understand one another. Stoic and Hiccup are so different and Stoic is perplexed by Hiccup because he’s so different to how he is. This can be seen the most clearly in the scene in the first act where he speaks to Gobber. He’s struggling to understand his son and therefore to know how to parent him. Hiccup is struggling to be understood and listened to. Stoics arch is learning to accept his son and to see what incredible strengths his son actually has, although different from his own strengths. Their relationship arc and progression is an especially noteworthy part of the story.
before watching this, hp was the only film that made me want to enter its universe and experience everything, but after watching it when it released it definitely made a big part on my love for movies and even made me want to enter the universe myself, and it broke my heart knowing pt. 3 was the last movie that it made me not to rewatch it whenever im having a movie marathon
1:53 Was about to comment on your channel's phenomenal quality but I don't think I can support a cat hater... Jokes aside, this video is freaking awesome man. I was expecting to see multiple hundreds of thousands of subscribers and was disappointed when I didn't. Criminally underrated.
This was awesome dude. I came to love How to Train Your Dragon from John Powell's works but later got hooked on the plot and the animation. You put everything I love about the movie in a ten-minute clip. Ta! Also, I did not notice the reoccurring line "So why didn't you?" or the one in the comments "I did this" and now I love the films even more.
I read the books when I was like five and loved them they were my favirote and when I heard of this movie I flipped. I grew up with these books and movies and I love them so damn much
I mean, you’re not wrong that it’s brilliant, but I do think you’ve almost missed why. It’s 95% because of the score. That’s basically it. It’s the best film score of this decade at least.
You're so right. The score is incredible. Unfortunately, it's the thing that RUclips really tries to copyright claim too. But hey, when I make videos on the sequels, I'll be sure to bring it up more.
So you're going to chock up the reasons why this film franchise is great due to a score despite all other things literally looking you dead in the eye?
@@steeevealbright I'm impressively appalled. Whilst yes, the score was phenomenal, the series as a whole does a lot of things that many other rather overrated franchises do sloppily. The world is enriching and leaves the viewer with questions, the creatures(dragons) in question are PERFECT, the pacing is godly, and of course, we cannot forget about the animation's quality and semi-realism.
Thank you so much for explaining the points I have tried to make over and over again as to why this movie is so amazing, I absolutely love how to train your dragon, and I'm happy to see so many others that are just as enthusiastic about it.
I'm here from Sideways but I was actually here before it seems because I've already liked this video and I remember your voice but it doesn't show up as viewed in my youtube
Truly the best movie of all time, and my favourite movie of all time with the best score of all time, and the best scenes of all time, plus the best pacing of all time. Let's not forget the best story of all time.
HTTYD is hands down my favorite franchise (along with one of the reasons for my lifelong love of all things dragon) and it’s great to see other people agree. Excellent video. ☺️
I adore this movie so much oh my god, great video! I think that shot of hiccup and toothless walking towards the door together at the end of the movie is a subtle but clever way of showing both hiccup and toothless have lost a limb (idk if a wing really counts as a limb but imma go with it?). they reference it aloud in the sequels, but for this movie I like that they didn't say anything. they just let the audience sit with it.
I came from Sideways, after rewatching the movie as a pseudo adult. And I, just as you, was enthralled with the effort and execution of the film. The review only clarifies this. Hope you continue to upload
I absolutely love this video 💙 100% agree it’s probably one of the most underrated movies. Honestly I believe it’s one of the best animated movies of all time. Seriously the art is stunning. And the soundtrack and cinematography-beautiful. Dang it’s just so good
Here from Sideways and glad I came to see it. I realize that it's been 9 months since you've made a video and you may no longer have the desire to do it; but know that if you do, I'll be there to see it.
I definitely did take a sizable break from RUclips haha. But I actually just uploaded a new video (and will hopefully be here to stay). I'd love for you to check it out!
Good to know that I'm not the only adult, who thinks HTTYD is the best movie of all time. Many of my friends were like, "what's that? Never heard of it." when I mentioned HTTYD
I’ve spent a solid $150 on all the DVDs for the movies and TV shows, amazingly worth it! I love seeing HTTYD getting some love like this, it’s not very common, so this is a nice change.
Amazing (and also my personal favorite film) with a very well made essay. Great working and looking forward to your next video no matter what that’ll end up being on
httyd is amazing legit still looks new in some scenes you could be watching it in 2044 and there would still be some scenes that look impossible to come from the time they came from
thanks for making this video. A lot of video essays are pretentious as fuck but you seemed pretty wholesome and this is also one of my favourite films and this video pretty much highlights why. So thanks.
I just did a marathon of all three movies in the trilogy for the 10 year anniversary and I came out of it feeling this strange sense of overwhelming satisfaction and genuine happiness and I didn't know why, especially in this hard time we're going through. I had no reason to feel like everything was okay, yet I did. I think the reason I love these movies and the shows so much is mainly because the musical score is so powerful but also because even though the shows are never mentioned in the movies, they still feel like they happened. The overall story seems to fit together from the 6 years between 1 and 3. You can see the riders' first mission in the end of the first movie and how they're completely inexperienced and then you see their final mission in the end of the third one and you think of everything they've been through in those 6 years. Even if you haven't watched the shows, you can still tell that they have tons of experience under their belts by the end of the third film. And that's what I mean when I say the story works between the movies an shows, even though the events of the shows aren't mentioned at all in the movies, you can still tell that lots has happened. The overall story and the characters, the sense of humor that this franchise has is what resonates with me and it's why, even though I'm only still in high school, I can't wait to watch these with my kids
sick video essay man, like how you said what was bad about the movie without being super aggressive about it and hating, but put it in a very nice way, i also love this movie and the trilogy. The characters actually have weight to them and characters that lose things (leg), or die, are so much more interesting to watch as you are genuinely scared they could die so become more attached to them. Bring on more videos like this
Glad you enjoyed it! Just uploaded a new video actually and got more on the way! But yeah, I try not to go too overboard with my criticism. There's too many people screaming about things they hate in movies on RUclips as it is.
I LOVE THIS MOVIE SO MUCH!! and I also loved your review of it. I specifically searched for this... I mean... THIS video because you just said everything that I wished people would see in this movie.
Thank you. This movie has been my favorite ever since I was 10 years old. I'm 19 now. XD Honestly it stands out to me like no other movie ever has and I couldn't have explained it better than you did! ♥️ And while we're on the subject of HTTYD... *Who's stoked for the HTTYD: Homecoming short coming up? OwO*
Suddenly got your video recommended to me by RUclips. HTTYD is one of my favorite animated films, and while 2 and 3 are great in their own ways, they don't hold a candle to the first. Plus I've read a lot of the books (though it's been a hot minute) and it's always great to see a really good adaptation of a book series.
How to train your dragon is one of my all time favorite trilogies. The story, the music, it's all so fantastic. I've grown up on this franchise, and it's nice to see people appreciate it as much as i do.
Liked the short essay. There are other things that could be said as + and - about this film, but you seem to cover most important parts of it. Hope you put out another interesting essay! :)
the main reason why i like these movies is because of the growth that hiccup and the cast have. in film 1, hiccup was trying to gain the respect of family and village, which a lot of people try to do when they enter high school, which is hiccups age at 14 i believe it is. Then in film 2, at around 19-20 yrs old, on the cusp of adulthood he trying to find his place in the world, with worries of not being good enough, also very similar to our lives. Finally, in the last film, hiccup learns one of the hardest lessons to learn in life, sometimes you just have to let go.
My only two complaints about this film: The outdated CGI is much harsher on this realistic style than in a one about literally plastic characters. The kids aren't Scottish.
I think the only cgi that looks kinda wonky now is the people in the movie, but since DreamWorks never goes for very realistic styles for humans I can get over it pretty quick. All of the nature, backgrounds, etc still look fantastic in my eyes.
Actually the creators wanted to separate the teens from the Vikings, this stimulates a subconscious conclusion that they’re not the same. The accents of the older characters show their old ways of thinking and doing. While having the teens have an American accent shows that they aren’t their parents nor are they sticking to tradition. It’s a subtle difference I didn’t pick up on when I was younger but as I get older, I realize that they did that to push the idea that the teens are the new age of berk not only literally but figuratively.
@Harry Willmore Personally I feel the CGI still holds up rather well, but I’m also curious as to why you said ‘two’ complaints and then only mention one thing about the CGI?
The kids don't have an accent because the filmmakers wanted to differentiate them from the adult vikings. That sort of thing is done a lot in movies, actually.
I am a huge how to train your dragon fan. It's not fav movie but it's my fav animated trilogy. I loved what you said how you described the movie perfectly. My fav scene in the first one tho is where loses his chest sheet and then has to figure out how to do everything based on instinct mostly. That scene got me.
Hiccup’s character arc throughout the trilogy deserves a whole other video for itself and why it improves the series so much. And his relationships with Astrid and Stoick too
Kirsten Huber him growing up and realizing that his dream would never work, and how it hurts more people than it helps, just breaks my heart every time i think about it. His father was murdered by Toothless, but instead of considering that dragons and vikings might not be the best pairing, he just pushes this idea further and INSISTS that they live together until he almost loses everything. Then he has to let go, but he doesn’t let go completely. He tells his children about his childhood, and inspires them to create a better world than the one he lived in so that the dragons will return.
I really adore the scene in the end where Toothless is helping Hiccup to walk With his new leg and the camera focuses on the floor (on Hiccup's feet) and there's a moment where Toothless' tail sways over Hiccup's feet, showing his Missing (tail Thing) and showing the parralel/connection of their Missing parts
I also always loved How Hiccup's metal leg fits perfectly into Toothless' tail mecanism
Twinsies!
Toothless lost his left tail fin because of Hiccup and Hiccup lost his his left leg (not really but kinda) because of Toothless. But they both learned how to deal with it because they helped each other.
This movie is incredible.
@@tormclean9657 Yep
Me too! I love the many ways Toothless and Hiccup are connected, their similar personalities, eye color, prostetics, and the most important...friendship.
@@fckyoudidntask642 actually there's a fan theory that toothless ripped of hiccups leg in a last ditch effort to get to him while they were falling
The First HTTYD will always be my favorite. It was the most efficient and sincere with it's story-telling, and still holds up as the strongest narrative of the three films.
Ikr
Absolutely. The second and third are by no means bad films, but they were such letdowns after the simple perfection of the first. Sigh.
Agreed. While I personally love the whole trilogy, I find myself going back to the first one more. Probably because of nostalgia.
There’s something about it, maybe the soundtrack, the plot or the character development and interactions. Another added bonus is the lack of an actual antagonist, because this movie wouldn’t exactly work if there was an actually antagonist.
the soundtrack says it all
I absolutely love this franchise with my whole heart
ayyy I found my fandom
Me too
Same
Just to be clear how old is this fandom? Cause I feel like I’m in the only 17 year old with a bunch of four graders obsessing over this franchise
YES!
I love that you mentioned the brilliance of the cinematography (arguably the best of any animated film), and the music. As for the symmetry, there's actually another great line that is repeated: "I did this" - First said by Hiccup, feeling remorseful that he'd ensnared Toothless in his trap, then said by Stoick at the end when he believes Hiccup had died. I thought that was a brilliant touch.
Great video, keep it up!
Fancy meeting you in the comment section! Hello
I was just gonna say that. It took until my fifth or sixth watch before I caught it. How I missed “So why didn’t you?”, is a mystery.
And then again, when Toothless only "relents" when he hears "I'm sorry."
Also, I know that this was mentioned (albeit briefly) but my lord the SCORE!!!! I’m learning Sebastian Wolff’s version of Test Drive right now and whenever I hear it, it never fails to bring me to tears.
Also, ThePandaTooth, I love your music so much and I’ve been subscribed for around 2 years now, so please continue making music for all the scores I love so much
ThePandaTooth I never noticed that before! I'm so glad you pointed that out!
Sir you forgot the "I did this"
Toothless is shot down by Hiccup, Hiccup regrets his decision and says, "I did this."
Stoick leans over Hiccup's body at the end and believes him to be dead, and says, "I did this."
Also the symmetry in Hiccup ending up crippled as a consequence of him crippling Toothless. I came out of the movie HATING the ending for a solid three days, and then that occurred to me. It was a beautiful, terrible symmetry. Something this movie did again and again and again in ways few people ever noticed.
Minor thing, but if hiccup said those 3 words in the 2nd film, it would be more impactful than what it currently is
@@tormclean9657 Exactly
I'm here because you were recommended by Sideways in his How to Train Your Dragon video. 👍🏻
Me too :)
Same lol
Yup
Ok, How to Train Your Dragon has THE BEST soundtrack ever created and you can NOT change my mind.
I agree, but I’ll always love Surfs Up soundtrack lmao
Skyrim’s soundtrack is another amazing piece, much like HTTYD, the soundtrack is the key to the whole thing
who says I was willing to?
Fun Fact: Toothless' hesitation before letting Hiccup touch him was actually due to a glitch in the animation software, but since it worked so well the animators left it in.
Same thing happened with the shot of the wing going over the eye :) Originally they wanted you to see the eye opening & instead they left it cut as it felt more impactful and stunning
Ugh it was NOT A GLITCH!! The animators specifically talk about this moment in the making of the movie! Every single frame is animated by hand, how would a computer glitch decide to self-animate a character into a specific movement? Doesn’t even make sense.
@@EstorilEm You do understand how digital programmes work right. I suggest looking at animation bloopers. Sometimes the programme hiccups, stalls, buffers, stutters. It does glitch out- animation done through programes with rigging and models can & will glitch at times.
@@EstorilEm 100% correct!!! It wasn't a glitch. That's how great the movie is! They did that on purpose to really give you that emotional feeling and impact.
@@MizuSky you obviously have never animated anything in CGI
Im surprised you didnt talk about the style of animation because its subconciously using round and spickey designs of charakter, dragons and various objects to tell us about their status between good and evil. For instance the scales of the dragons are first not that good visable but later you see the round shapes, especially good showed in the scene with Snotlout and Hookfangs first bonding. First you see all the fangs and wierd spike-things on hookfangs back but later you see the warm round red texture of the scales and feel deep down, besides the bodylanguage of hookfang, a binding as you experience Hookfangs bonding with Snotlout. Of course this mostly happens subconciously but I just wanted to point out that even the character designs play into the progression of their development and the viewers point of view. But besides that great video you did there, hope you talk about the third movie and what it did spark in you. English is not my first language so sry for spelling and grammar mistakes.
You're so right that I should've brought that up. For this one, I was really more focusing on the story but when I make videos on the sequels, I'll be sure to bring it up. Thanks!
Another thing to notice is how Hiccup's story ties in with the Hero's Journey but on the first act Hiccup believes his father is the Mentor and the dragons are the Antagonist but the story switches those two roles
Speaking of the parallel lines in this film, I didnt realize this the first few times I watched it but when Hiccup goes into the woods to kill Toothless and then cuts him free, and then Toothless pins him down the two actually switch places. And it's just so interesting how they emphasize the look of their eyes and expressions in those shots so later Astrid asks him "Why didn't you?" Hiccup more or less concludes what they both saw and felt probably (Toothless is constantly mimicking Hiccup's actions in the movie too. Like the fish, the smile, the drawing, their first act of mercy, and even tho it's not intentional, the fact they lose something at the end but gain it back through eachother speaks volumes of how tied together the two are).
Just wann shoutout the editing at 5:54 because daaaamn that was smooth
But he got lazy, and you get the point
Right?
@@mse5842 I think StigSlashBro is referring to the snake being thrown between scenes almost seemlessly.
@@The0GamingHero I have not seen this video in so long because I was rewatching Defenders of Berk for so long...
That Imma just agree with whatever you just said....
@@The0GamingHero It was an Eel
I'm so glad someone else noticed that, I got so hyped over how clean it was lmao
I always knew HTTYD was a masterpiece, unlike any othet dreamworks movies, I felt so attached and commited to finding out more about the lore of this one, I've been playing the online game for 6 years now and im a HTTYD nerd, I love everything about its lore and universe its breath taking and the cinematography is so eye pleasing. Im glad they didn't use the typical dreamworks human models aswell but created their own for these movies.
Ps: Not to mention the AMAZING so well fitting soundtrack... Im in love with these movies. Am I the only one who is amazed by these movies that it brings tears to their eyes?
Have you read "A Thing of Vikings" on AO3? Over 1 million words of dragon-based epicness.
true
My favorite movie ever. I can quote it from beginning to end (but only if I do cheesy impersonations of each character as I go). I'm a dork.
Don't worry, you're not the only one. I annoy the crap out of my friends.
yess!!! I love how all the lessons got to use in the final fight "A flightless dragon is a dead dragon" "dragons are not fireproof from the inside" etc.
These really make the movie feel like it build up and that you get to use what you learned in life
A detail about hiccups leg, it can also be seen as something that connects him and toothless together. Toothless is missing a fin and hiccup lost a leg. The symmetry between them is brilliant
The line development of “Gestured to all of me...” or why it was delivered was fantastic
Gobber and Stoick pointing out that Hiccup needs to stop *gestures to Hiccup* this
Then at the end of the film Stoick saying “Turns out we all needed was a little worth of *gestures to Hiccup* this”.
And Hiccup always replied with, “You just gestured to all of me.”
Oh oh oh another little parallel is when Hiccup says "I did this" looking at Toothless after he's shot down, and is then said by his father when he thinks Hiccup is dead :)
I hate how people disregard this movie and look at it no more than just a, “kids movie”. People usually laugh at me when I say this is one of the most beautiful and underrated movies, and when I say the soundtrack is amazing.
I also often use HTTYD as my answer for "what's your favourite movie?" and I have never really been able to explain why, I just had a strong feeling. Your analysis made it clear to me why I love the second act so much, so thank you. And let's be honest - who could not love the scene without any dialogue when they are getting to know each other paired with the amazing piece of music
Grant - You didn't mention the parallelism in how both Hiccup and Toothless have lost similar body parts (Hiccup his left foot, Toothless his left tail wing). And how they're both walking the "left hand path" - they both are essentially the outsiders/oddballs of their tribes. And how they both come together in a yin/yang complimentary relationship to achieve goals (mainly, peace for both dragons and Vikings) that neither could have reached separately. (Think Toothless doesn't have goals? Notice how he was _not_ one of the dragons attacking Vikings nor stealing their sheep; he was mostly keeping back from the conflict, and he only used his breath blasts in non-lethal ways.) So that's just yet another factor in how well-crafted the script and characterization are for this film.
You also forgot to mention what a masterpiece the music is - each character has their own sort of tune which is a motif throughout the film because the intro was so good. John Powell was able to develop every character's tune in the intro (except for toothless, cuz he's an outsider) and do the same thing in the following movies for the existing and new characters. For example, when we first see Astrid, there is a particular tune that comes on, which is also heard again during the romantic flight with Hiccup. Hiccup's tune intertwines with toothless's when they first learn how to fly symbiotically. Also, toothless was first introduced using bagpipes to showcase unfamiliarity. This is done again in number two when hiccup discovers the new islands etc.
5:54 AAAHHH that was some brilliant editing XD
one of my favorite things about this series, other then the dragons of course, was seeing the animation improve over the years. All 3 of them got better and better and its so exciting and interesting to re-watch them and see all the little changes
"Dreamworks isn't known for cinematic masterpieces"
Everybody : (Cough) (Cough) your forgetting *MEGAMIND* and *KUNG FU PANDA* TRILOGIES!
My favourite movies since ten years, I love them more then I can even express.
i completely agree. Dreamworks' movies are usually seen as second grade animations, compared to disney and pixar. But how to train your dragon is a gem.
it's a great movie, i loved it so much. there are so many details in the world, the story, the characters.
it's greatly done. it's beautiful, funny, heartwarming, heartbreaking...
and i love the second and third parts as well. although they are not as strong as the first one.
I love the fact that the way they take down the red death is discovered as a joke scene? and they don't even mention it in the movie as a "oh we can beat dragons by shooting the gas!" but as a throwaway line "not so fireproof on the inside are you?"
It´ s the ony film that makes me cry. I watched it in the cinema three times... and like five more in the next years. The scene of the "driving practice" when Toothless flies again is too much for me to hold my tears. It's so beautiful, so epic.
I watched this film with some primary school groups. And they all loved it. I used to make questions about the characters. And something that called my attention is that at first, the boys used to say that Hicup was a coward because he was not able to kill a dragon... but at the end of the film they all agreed he is the bravest viking ever. I guess this film gave "permission" to some boys to be kind, and make them know that being kind and compassionate doesn't make them less "boys" or less "brave". (That was years ago, now things are different).
A brilliant, touching film.
Well said. The movie's stellar in every aspect, but what really makes it impossible to get out of your head is the soundtrack. Test Drive, Romantic Flight, Forbidden Friendship and Once There Were Dragons have been looping in my head for the past week, lmao. Have you seen the next two movies? I'm curious to know your thoughts on them.
I Really wish How to train your Dragon 3 gets the Oscar they deserved it
Aaand They Lost .-.
If one was going to get the Oscar either of the first two were much more deserved in my opinion.
The first one absolutely deserved something, tho
EDIT (05/23/2022): I guess I should note that I don't love the entire trilogy. I left the THW theater feeling...weird, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. I saw some videos from other people talking about it, and I completely understand why and now I really can't stand the movie.
How to Train Your Dragon is my absolute favorite movie series, and brings me to tears every time I watch it.
Kung Fu Panda is a close second.
Yass!
ah yes, me watching videos reaffirming things I already know.
Fun fact: the hesitation in toothless when allowing Hiccup to touch him was a computer error that the film makers thought enhanced the film
When you were talking about the "Why didn't you?" parts, I realized the two major characters had the opportunity and motivation to kill each other. Kind of dark.
also this franchise is just so BEAUTIFUL!! like there are so many scenes i just want to live in and frame on the walls and UGH it’s just so gorgeous.
I just re-watched this movie, and I thought it was quite brilliant. The one problem I had with it is that there's always this beautiful wordless story telling, and then one of the characters spells out what just happened to us. Not reacting, but spewing exposition for something we'd just seen. I guess it's a way of keeping the kids up to speed. Still, I'd really like it if this movie had the balls to actually rely on these wordless sequences without spelling it out afterwards.
You’re absolutely right on every mark. You explained a lot of the reasons why I adore this movie so much, and wish it got more attention for its brilliance. I feel it’s been spoiled, particularly in its third movie, by its fan base that want nothing but fan service and don’t see the first film for its actual brilliance.
One thing I think you neglected it notice is Stoic’s character arc in relation to Hiccup. Their relationship is the classic one of a parent and child failing to communicate and understand one another. Stoic and Hiccup are so different and Stoic is perplexed by Hiccup because he’s so different to how he is. This can be seen the most clearly in the scene in the first act where he speaks to Gobber. He’s struggling to understand his son and therefore to know how to parent him. Hiccup is struggling to be understood and listened to. Stoics arch is learning to accept his son and to see what incredible strengths his son actually has, although different from his own strengths. Their relationship arc and progression is an especially noteworthy part of the story.
that came from the books. Book Stoick and Hiccup have a different dynamic in them that might be as good...
before watching this, hp was the only film that made me want to enter its universe and experience everything, but after watching it when it released it definitely made a big part on my love for movies and even made me want to enter the universe myself, and it broke my heart knowing pt. 3 was the last movie that it made me not to rewatch it whenever im having a movie marathon
8:38 when Toothless feels and recognizes the weight of the prosthetic tail fin.
5:54 I see watchu did there
1:53
Was about to comment on your channel's phenomenal quality but I don't think I can support a cat hater...
Jokes aside, this video is freaking awesome man. I was expecting to see multiple hundreds of thousands of subscribers and was disappointed when I didn't. Criminally underrated.
"your not a viking."
"your not my son" anyone else think that is really sad and an underrated scene?
This movie will always be my favorite, it’s the reason why I love fantasy and the world of fiction
I also say httyd and people look at me like i went to school without pants
This was awesome dude. I came to love How to Train Your Dragon from John Powell's works but later got hooked on the plot and the animation. You put everything I love about the movie in a ten-minute clip. Ta! Also, I did not notice the reoccurring line "So why didn't you?" or the one in the comments "I did this" and now I love the films even more.
I read the books when I was like five and loved them they were my favirote and when I heard of this movie I flipped. I grew up with these books and movies and I love them so damn much
HTTYD is one of those movies that gets better the more you watch it and not the other way around.
I mean, you’re not wrong that it’s brilliant, but I do think you’ve almost missed why. It’s 95% because of the score. That’s basically it. It’s the best film score of this decade at least.
You're so right. The score is incredible. Unfortunately, it's the thing that RUclips really tries to copyright claim too. But hey, when I make videos on the sequels, I'll be sure to bring it up more.
So you're going to chock up the reasons why this film franchise is great due to a score despite all other things literally looking you dead in the eye?
@@monstermaker73 yes.
@@steeevealbright I'm impressively appalled.
Whilst yes, the score was phenomenal, the series as a whole does a lot of things that many other rather overrated franchises do sloppily. The world is enriching and leaves the viewer with questions, the creatures(dragons) in question are PERFECT, the pacing is godly, and of course, we cannot forget about the animation's quality and semi-realism.
@@monstermaker73 no it’s just the score actually
HTTYD makes me feel like I'm flyinh. The music, the story, the cinematography, everything is beautiful.
Thank you so much for explaining the points I have tried to make over and over again as to why this movie is so amazing, I absolutely love how to train your dragon, and I'm happy to see so many others that are just as enthusiastic about it.
I'm here from Sideways but I was actually here before it seems because I've already liked this video and I remember your voice but it doesn't show up as viewed in my youtube
I think Hiccup should get PTSD from his fall into flames, y’know, being a traumatic near-death experience and all.
Wasn't he knocked out though?
Truly the best movie of all time, and my favourite movie of all time with the best score of all time, and the best scenes of all time, plus the best pacing of all time. Let's not forget the best story of all time.
HTTYD is hands down my favorite franchise (along with one of the reasons for my lifelong love of all things dragon) and it’s great to see other people agree. Excellent video. ☺️
I adore this movie so much oh my god, great video!
I think that shot of hiccup and toothless walking towards the door together at the end of the movie is a subtle but clever way of showing both hiccup and toothless have lost a limb (idk if a wing really counts as a limb but imma go with it?). they reference it aloud in the sequels, but for this movie I like that they didn't say anything. they just let the audience sit with it.
every time i see something about how to train your dragon it makes me immediately want to rewatch the movie SO. here i go again for the billionth time
Hiccup sets unrealistic standards for growth in puberty
I came from Sideways, after rewatching the movie as a pseudo adult. And I, just as you, was enthralled with the effort and execution of the film. The review only clarifies this. Hope you continue to upload
I absolutely love this video 💙 100% agree it’s probably one of the most underrated movies. Honestly I believe it’s one of the best animated movies of all time. Seriously the art is stunning. And the soundtrack and cinematography-beautiful. Dang it’s just so good
You missed the BEST part. The music
Here from Sideways and glad I came to see it. I realize that it's been 9 months since you've made a video and you may no longer have the desire to do it; but know that if you do, I'll be there to see it.
I definitely did take a sizable break from RUclips haha. But I actually just uploaded a new video (and will hopefully be here to stay). I'd love for you to check it out!
Good to know that I'm not the only adult, who thinks HTTYD is the best movie of all time. Many of my friends were like, "what's that? Never heard of it." when I mentioned HTTYD
Thanks for taking me through the three Acts. I always want someone to explain to me technically why this movie works so well.
I’ve spent a solid $150 on all the DVDs for the movies and TV shows, amazingly worth it! I love seeing HTTYD getting some love like this, it’s not very common, so this is a nice change.
Amazing (and also my personal favorite film) with a very well made essay. Great working and looking forward to your next video no matter what that’ll end up being on
Took a while, but I am finally back on RUclips. Just uploaded another video and got more on the way. Thanks for watching!
httyd is amazing legit still looks new in some scenes you could be watching it in 2044 and there would still be some scenes that look impossible to come from the time they came from
thanks for making this video. A lot of video essays are pretentious as fuck but you seemed pretty wholesome and this is also one of my favourite films and this video pretty much highlights why. So thanks.
i get goosebumps every time i think of how to train your dragon. one of my favorite movies next to the incredibles and into the spiderverse.
this video needs more views
1:50 Finally, something I can relate to!
for the last time, a predictable story is not a bad thing in a movie, as long as it's executed well
That was really adorable omg great job I loved it :D
I just did a marathon of all three movies in the trilogy for the 10 year anniversary and I came out of it feeling this strange sense of overwhelming satisfaction and genuine happiness and I didn't know why, especially in this hard time we're going through. I had no reason to feel like everything was okay, yet I did. I think the reason I love these movies and the shows so much is mainly because the musical score is so powerful but also because even though the shows are never mentioned in the movies, they still feel like they happened. The overall story seems to fit together from the 6 years between 1 and 3. You can see the riders' first mission in the end of the first movie and how they're completely inexperienced and then you see their final mission in the end of the third one and you think of everything they've been through in those 6 years. Even if you haven't watched the shows, you can still tell that they have tons of experience under their belts by the end of the third film. And that's what I mean when I say the story works between the movies an shows, even though the events of the shows aren't mentioned at all in the movies, you can still tell that lots has happened. The overall story and the characters, the sense of humor that this franchise has is what resonates with me and it's why, even though I'm only still in high school, I can't wait to watch these with my kids
sick video essay man, like how you said what was bad about the movie without being super aggressive about it and hating, but put it in a very nice way, i also love this movie and the trilogy. The characters actually have weight to them and characters that lose things (leg), or die, are so much more interesting to watch as you are genuinely scared they could die so become more attached to them. Bring on more videos like this
Glad you enjoyed it! Just uploaded a new video actually and got more on the way! But yeah, I try not to go too overboard with my criticism. There's too many people screaming about things they hate in movies on RUclips as it is.
The fact that the directors for this movie also made Lilo & Stitch really explains why I see people draw so many parallels to those two. XD
I LOVE THIS MOVIE SO MUCH!! and I also loved your review of it. I specifically searched for this... I mean... THIS video because you just said everything that I wished people would see in this movie.
I LOVE this movie and absolutely LOVED this video. Thank you so much.
You know that hesitation by toothless was a computer glitch that they loved so much that they left it in
Thank you. This movie has been my favorite ever since I was 10 years old. I'm 19 now. XD Honestly it stands out to me like no other movie ever has and I couldn't have explained it better than you did! ♥️ And while we're on the subject of HTTYD... *Who's stoked for the HTTYD: Homecoming short coming up? OwO*
the _WHAT_
and I like your profile pic :)
@@a-bird-lover
Yea there's a HTTYD short coming up in December! :D And thank you regarding my profile picture! I made it myself lol
@@ItsMeFern2019 ooo :O
and ace pride my dude, nice job 👍
Suddenly got your video recommended to me by RUclips. HTTYD is one of my favorite animated films, and while 2 and 3 are great in their own ways, they don't hold a candle to the first. Plus I've read a lot of the books (though it's been a hot minute) and it's always great to see a really good adaptation of a book series.
How to train your dragon is one of my all time favorite trilogies. The story, the music, it's all so fantastic. I've grown up on this franchise, and it's nice to see people appreciate it as much as i do.
This film is one of the only times I'm fine with them massively altering the book. It's just incredible.
Great work. Entertaining and informative.
Liked the short essay. There are other things that could be said as + and - about this film, but you seem to cover most important parts of it.
Hope you put out another interesting essay! :)
the main reason why i like these movies is because of the growth that hiccup and the cast have. in film 1, hiccup was trying to gain the respect of family and village, which a lot of people try to do when they enter high school, which is hiccups age at 14 i believe it is. Then in film 2, at around 19-20 yrs old, on the cusp of adulthood he trying to find his place in the world, with worries of not being good enough, also very similar to our lives. Finally, in the last film, hiccup learns one of the hardest lessons to learn in life, sometimes you just have to let go.
My only two complaints about this film:
The outdated CGI is much harsher on this realistic style than in a one about literally plastic characters.
The kids aren't Scottish.
In my opinion the Cgi holds up pretty well (right now) and the background pieces are all extraordinarily beautiful.
I think the only cgi that looks kinda wonky now is the people in the movie, but since DreamWorks never goes for very realistic styles for humans I can get over it pretty quick. All of the nature, backgrounds, etc still look fantastic in my eyes.
Actually the creators wanted to separate the teens from the Vikings, this stimulates a subconscious conclusion that they’re not the same. The accents of the older characters show their old ways of thinking and doing. While having the teens have an American accent shows that they aren’t their parents nor are they sticking to tradition. It’s a subtle difference I didn’t pick up on when I was younger but as I get older, I realize that they did that to push the idea that the teens are the new age of berk not only literally but figuratively.
@Harry Willmore Personally I feel the CGI still holds up rather well, but I’m also curious as to why you said ‘two’ complaints and then only mention one thing about the CGI?
The kids don't have an accent because the filmmakers wanted to differentiate them from the adult vikings. That sort of thing is done a lot in movies, actually.
At around 5:53 you can see Hiccup throw the eel on the A Plot screen to the eel landing on the B Plot screen -- extremely clever.
MY FAV MOVIE OF ALL TIME THANK YOU FOR THIS
My all-time favourite, and I think it always will be
I am a huge how to train your dragon fan. It's not fav movie but it's my fav animated trilogy. I loved what you said how you described the movie perfectly. My fav scene in the first one tho is where loses his chest sheet and then has to figure out how to do everything based on instinct mostly. That scene got me.
it's one of the few movies of this decade where i will always have time for. it's really great!
great video BTW
How to Train your Dragon along with A Silent Voice are my favorite movies
Wow same!!
This movie always makes me cry... I just love it
This is amazing, love your humor
Best movie ever.
5:52 the way the videos are cropped it looks like Hiccup threw the eel into the other frame
Fun note, that hesitation was an animation glitch.
No it wasn't. It was very deliberate. The filmmakers talked about that in the film commentary.
@@ExplosiveBrohoof I saw it on an 107 facts on it. I thought it was right.
5.54 The way it is edited makes it look like Hiccup in the video on the left throws the eel into the video on the right! Nice
May I just repeat to emphasise, the music in all three films are INCREDIBLE!!!!
5:53 that was cut together very nicely