How to Train Your Dragon

THIS is how you do a live action remake! Packed with great visual effects, John Powell's soaring, wall-to-wall music and Gerard Butler's best performance in years, HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON is family summer movie perfection.

Setting a humorous, exciting tone from its opening scenes, Writer/Director Dean DeBiois has carefully created a stunning live take on his own, original animated version.

Maybe that's the magic here, having the original creator adapt his own material. Whatever alchemy is at work, it conjures up a LOT of movie magic, especially in it's final sixty minutes.

All roles are perfectly cast, starting with Mason Thames (For All Mankind, The Black Phone) as Hiccup, the warrior wannabe son of Viking Chief Stoick, embodied by Butler, who's having more fun here than he's had in a long time. Butler brings his usual intensity to the role, but also packs in a lot of heart & pride that will resonate with plenty of Dads this opening Father's Day weekend.

After thousands of years of his village fighting dragons as their lifelong mission, Hiccup meets the young dragon Toothless, who CGI artists have packed with incredible realism, great facial expressions and the rumbling roar of Spielberg's T-Rex.

Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) steals every scene he's in as Gobbler, the Dragon Fighter Trainer who seems to be missing a whole lot of body parts. Frost's comic timing will make the kids laugh, but adults will really enjoy how savvy he is in the part. He's fantastic.

Astrid is perfectly embodied by Nico Parker, a fierce young female warrior with all the battle skills that Hiccup lacks.

Julian Dennison (Deadpool 2) and Browyn James (Wicked) are also standouts as two hapless young dragonslayers that keep the laughs coming hot & heavy.

Visually, the film is stunning to look at. The dragons come in many varieties, from very small to Godzilla size and each one is perfectly rendered. The care with which each species has been designed adds to the fun.

From the moment that Hiccup first saddles up on Toothless, about an hour into the film, through the fiery, wildly emotional and grand scale conclusion, this is pure summer movie magic.

When I saw the previews, I felt like the flying scenes were just going to be a rehash of what I've seen with different creatures in "Avatar", but DeBiois infuses so many fun visual details and the right amount of danger, that it all feels more joyful. Powell's music score is certainly a huge benefit.

Butler (reprising his role from the original animated version and finding much more depth) and Thames are the father/son heart and core of the story and the duo are just as adept at hilarious small talk as they are battling for their lives, dodging massive blasts of blazing dragon's breath. Their quiet scene in which they try to bond in a little hut is packed with laughs. Butler is clearly relishing the most fully rounded character he's had the chance to play, maybe ever. He brings the heart AND the warrior, delivering a pre-battle speech that would make anyone walk though a wall for him.

But mostly, it's just pure sword and sorcery, flying dragon fun on a level far beyond my expectations.

This is everything you want in a summer family movie. As the lights go down, let the huge orchestral score of John Powell wash over you and settle in for fun. I'm betting you walk in expecting the laughs, but the amount of heart on display will surprise you.

HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON gets an A.