Linda Sunshine
Dark Horse
Nonfiction, Art/Media Reference
***** (Great)
DESCRIPTION: The third and final film installment of the How to Train Your Dragon series follows former-misfit Viking Hiccup and his Night Fury dragon companion, Toothless, as they struggle to achieve their dream of a world where dragons and humans can live together. They've successfully convinced the Berkians that dragons are friends, and turned the village into a sanctuary for hunted dragons... but they're running out of room and resources, and making themselves more of a target for dragon hunters. The solution may lie in old legends of a "hidden world" beyond the horizon, from which the dragons originally came. But even as Hiccup determines to find this paradise, Toothless becomes distracted by a female Light Fury... and Berk becomes targeted by a ruthless hunter determined to finish exterminating the Night Furies once and for all - and, with them, Hiccup's dream of peace.
This exploration of the art of the movie includes forewords and notes from voice actors and production staff.
REVIEW: The movie was a spectacular animated experience, both visually and emotionally, and this book is a perfect homage as it explores the creative process that translated it from pencil sketch and story notes to the finished product. Unlike many animated movies, this franchise successfully aged up the heroes, physically and emotionally, and this book gives insight into that process. Even the dragons do some growing up, particularly Toothless (who remains perhaps my favorite movie dragon of all time.) The ending was sweet and sad and satisfying, and reading this book brought it all back. (Though, in the interest of full disclosure, I was listening to the soundtrack from the first film as I wrote this review; about the only area I could fault the second and third films on was somewhat less absorbing scores, but that was probably just me.) From concept sketches to finished screenshots, this book is a must-have for fans of the movie and of modern animation in general.
You Might Also Enjoy:
The Art of How to Train Your Dragon (Tracy Miller-Zarneke) - My Review
The Art of How to Train Your Dragon 2 (Linda Sunshine) - My Review
How To Train Your Dragon: 3-Movie Collection
- Amazon DVD link
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