How to Train Your Dragon

2010, US, directed by Dean DeBlois & Chris Sanders

The sheer exuberance of How to Train Your Dragon is beguiling, with the directors placing the emphasis on out-and-out fun rather than on Meaningful Moments; the moral, very much present, doesn't threaten to overwhelm the material here. The pacing and wit are tremendously enjoyable, although the film lacks the consistently polished look of the Pixar competition; it's as though the filmmakers have elected to pour their onscreen resources into certain sequences (the beautifully animated dragon book or the thrilling flight sequences) rather than others (the backgrounds when we first encounter the film's main dragon look rather like those of a standard computer game, lacking the richness and realism of Pixar fare, where every scene is beautifully rendered).