2025’s How to Train Your Dragon is a live-action remake of the 2010 animated original from DreamWorks that released this weekend. Written & directed by Dean DeBlois, the film stars Mason Thames, Nico Parker, Gabriel Howell, Julian Dennison, Bronwyn James, Harry Trevaldwyn, Peter Serafinowicz, Nick Frost, and Gerard Butler. On the rugged isle of Berk, where Vikings and dragons have been bitter enemies for generations, Hiccup stands apart, defying centuries of tradition when he befriends Toothless, a feared Night Fury dragon. Their unlikely bond reveals the true nature of dragons, challenging the very foundations of Viking society.

With full disclosure, I feel like I am one of the few who have no sort of attachment to the original trilogy. I think I saw the first two back-to-back at one point in high school. I saw the third one in theaters and felt like it was perfectly fine for what it was. Never have I ever revisited the movies nor have I ever wanted to, but I will admit they were good for what they were. Before this, I didn’t feel one way or the other when it came to live-action remakes. Even though this is going to make a LOT of money that will greenlight more films, if not, at least a sequel, I do think it’s time for studios to really question what needs to be remade and when it needs to be remade.

Out of the latest live-action remakes, the one that I have enjoyed the most was Lilo & Stitch. I loved the original, but I never revisited in recent years. While that one won’t be for everyone, I personally liked how it differed a little bit to make it more original, plus it brought me back to when I felt like a kid again. The original animated version of this movie only came out 15 years ago. Even though I don’t remember much from the original, I could still tell where it was a beat-for-beat remake. I could see every plot line happening a mile away. Plus, I felt like I was seeing a different movie than everyone else, because the visuals were not great.

As die-hard fans, I can easily understand why they are liking this movie. What’s not to like when you are getting something you’ve enjoyed, but presented in realism? It’s easy to feel more in touch with it. Out of all of DreamWorks’ properties, this is easily the best one to adapt between the story and its characters. I am afraid it might give the studio the wrong confidence by adapting everything they have into live-action. Given the original only came out 15 years ago, I am still puzzled as to why it needed to be remade so soon, especially when it hasn’t been that long to feel nostalgic.

I think the biggest issue I have with the film is how it treats its location and animation. Of course, I am not asking for real dragons, but when the film still relies so much on CGI, I don’t understand what the point of this film’s existence is. I have been liking CGI less and less lately and want more practical effects. If you’re going to make a live-action remake, at least make it look real. I couldn’t believe how much of it looks like it was in front of a green screen. When so much of it looks like it’s not real, it just took me out of any of the peril that was going on.

Given how much the talent has to work with the animation, I do have to say that I was impressed with what they did here. I do think Mason Thames & Nico Parker were great in their respective roles. There were a lot to enjoy with each character. Gerard Butler is also a solid standout going from voice work to having to do both voice and actions this time. The talent was all around great here. Since this is a live-action remake of an animation movie, though, you can still get the sense these characters are acting, sounding, and looking animated at times. Again, if it’s going to be live-action, take advantage of it. Shake things up a bit. Bring the story here more into realism.

As much as I like Toothless here, especially in the other films, I think the live-action remake loses out on giving him more of a background. If you are someone completely unfamiliar with these films, it would have been nice to see why Toothless is the way he is. Honestly, I think the other animated movies explore this. I can’t remember. I just think if you’re going to start over from the beginning and have a longer movie, take advantage of what you have here instead of relying too much on what came before. Then again, I think if they did that, people would still be upset. You can’t win with live-action. I just wish we got something more original.

The film still finds ways to bring you back to this world that makes it worth seeing in the theater. Seeing it in IMAX looks great when the aspect ratio expands and we get to see more of the image. My theater was eating up every scene between the humor and action set pieces. The story also has some great moments. I do wish the set design looked more immersive. It just looked too much like I was going to Universal instead of going to this world.

With all that being said, I still think the third act delivers. It’s exciting and you can honestly see where this where they put most of their budget. I wish we got more of that throughout. Maybe the sequel will utilize the budget more. The way the film wraps up does have it cliche’s, but I am also glad that it doesn’t shy away from Hiccup having real-world consequences that I think may test him even more in its sequel.

Overall, How to Train Your Dragon wasn’t for me, and that’s okay. Life goes on. It’s one of the rarest movies I have seen where I don’t exactly agree with the majority, but I am still glad that people are enjoying it. It does have a fun quality to it that I think fans and families alike will enjoy. I think my expectations were already at an all-time high due to the reviews, and I was expecting something more instead of a film that literally copy and pastes itself.

VERDICT: 2.5/5 (Okay)