he Isle of Berk is secluded, produces poor crops, and has a pest problem of extraordinary size, variety, and danger. Only the bravest – and most stubborn – people would wish to live there. Stoick the Vast (Gerard Butler) is one such person, a Viking of considerable size and bullheadedness. Ever since his wife was taken by the marauding dragons that plague the land, Stoick and his clan of dauntless warriors have vowed to fight the beasts, with the hope of eventually locating their hidden nest and eradicating the voracious reptiles once and for all. Despite an overwhelming clumsiness and magnetism to catastrophes, Stoick’s son Hiccup (Mason Thames) longs to become a dragon slayer like his father. Envious of the mettlesome Fire Brigade and his reluctant colleagues Astrid (Nico Parker), Snotlout (Gabriel Howell), Fishlegs (Julian Dennison), Ruffnut (Bronwyn James), and Tuffnut (Harry Trevaldwyn), Hiccup tries desperately to fit in, until one fateful night when he downs the most feared of all dragons – the Night Fury. But when he finally meets his quarry, he discovers the misunderstood animals may not be the merciless killers the Vikings have always believed them to be.

Butler is so perfectly cast that he’s the only one capable of playing the role in both animated and live-action. Amusingly, the rest of the players are essentially caricatures anyway, adorned in enough leather and fur to nicely embody the exaggerated designs from the original. Yet as each actor brings to life what was previously a computer-animated persona, it begs the question as to what exactly is being improved upon (it’s certainly not the pacing); like this year’s “Snow White,” this update struggles to answer that brain-scratcher with any conviction.

As every scene goes by, this 2025 version – 15 years after the first big-screen adaptation – feels as if it’s live-action solely for the sake of live-action. And there’s not even that much live-action as it is. Stunts, scenery, elemental effects, destruction/explosions, and even appendages are all computer-animated, let alone the fact that all of the dragons never shift away from their former CG incarnations (most of them aren’t even re-imagined, but simply spruced up with extra details; Toothless is virtually identical); not that it would have been superior, but there doesn’t appear to be puppets or animatronics in the mix, either. So much of this tale was destined for CG that a live-action translation is a notable conundrum, especially when the protagonists are mostly clumsy, nutty, eccentric creations who all engage in comedy and slapstick – shaping them to be more at home in a cartoon world (in perhaps the most glaring of predicaments for this redo are the seriousness of fighting toothy monstrosities, which carries the potential for greater violence and pulled punches [training montages tend to be the phoniest], and the running gag of a dismissive, neglectful father [Spitelout] who completely ignores his son [Snotlout], which rings true too often to be genuinely funny). Many of the exact same jokes crop up as well. This may be the most needless of all movie remakes. “Is anyone taking this seriously?”

Nevertheless, even without significant changes or surprises (costuming and armory might have a sharper sheen to them), “How to Train Your Dragon” is fortunate to be working with a superb story. It still tackles effective themes of the old guard versus fresh thinking (the many versus the few), understanding and even sympathizing with the enemy, weighing competition against teamwork, courageousness in the face of adversity, assimilating versus forging a different path, and being open to new ideas – all of which are wrapped up in family-friendly fantasy and a strong sense of adventure. When Hiccup steadily analyzes his foe, determining whether it’s evil, instinctual, and wild, or compassionate, intelligent, and loyal, these domestication/friendship scenes still soar with excitement; so too does the finale, boasting an epic kaiju-like showdown that was a visual marvel back in 2010. And thankfully, this production retains the music, booming with triumphant melodies that heighten the charm and the spectacle. By the end, it’s still entertaining, even if it’s basically the same thing as before, strangely seeming better aimed at audiences who never caught the original, as they’ll be able to appreciate the premise and the dialogue without being reminded of the almost shot-for-shot similarities.

– The Massie Twins