How to Train Your Dragon 2
Director: Dean DeBlois
Writer: Dean DeBlois
Based on: Cressida Cowell‘s books
Sequel to: How to Train Your Dragon
Cast: Jay Baruchel, Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T.J. Miller, Kristen Wiig, Djimon Hounsou, Kit Harington

Plot:
After the events of How to Train Your Dragon, a lot has changed in Hiccup’s (Jay Baruchel) village. His father Stoick (Gerard Butler) is even talking about grooming Hiccup for leadership. Bue he would rather map the world flying around with Toothless and looking for other Night Furies. But instead of that, what Hiccup finds are other dragon riders and dragon hunters who kidnap the dragons for an entirely sinister purpose.

There is a lot to love about How to Train Your Dragon 2, but there are also a couple of things that I didn’t love at all. But the enjoyment did outweigh the issues.

Here are my biggest issues with the film: one, there is only one person of color in the film, and only one in the cast – and he is the villain? What is this shit? Two, how the fuck did that master dragon thing work? Even when you don’t question the fact that a master dragon can control all dragons he wants to control, how the fuck can Drago control the master? Three, the film had the golden opportunity for Hiccup to acknowledge that he isn’t a leader and that not everybody is a leader and look at Astrid, isn’t she like the perfect person for the job? Which would have given us a film where a protagonist does not value leadership and with it power over everything else and where a woman is given the job of village leader which would both have been amazing and important things to tell children. But instead Hiccup more or less magically becomes a leader for his people.

But other than those things, I did really enjoy the film. I liked the unconditional support Astrid gives Hiccup and vice versa. I liked that Valka got to be a mom who was forced into not choosing her child, but later gets to make it up to him, instead of being the bad mother forever. I also loved that she got to fight in her battle in her own way instead of showing the physical strength that is usually expected. That was a nice parallel to Hiccup’s own storyline in the first film.

The film also shows the same wonderful warmth and humor as in the first one. Especially Kristen Wiig had me on my knees from laughing so hard, despite only having a couple of lines. But those lines were enough, especially coupled with the perfect animation of Ruffnut’s face.

Generally, the film looked great and the voice cast was really good. And despite the issues I had with it, I went out of the film smiling and wanting to watch it again.

Summarizing: Extremely nice sequel. Extremely nice film.