This year will see some major movie story lines coming to an end. Avengers: Endgame will wrap up the current phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Star Wars Episode IX will end the brand new trilogy. However, before any of those, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World will wrap up a much smaller, but much loved animated trilogy. Based on reviews, it looks like fans will get exactly what they have hoped for as the film is getting rave reviews from nearly all corners. CinermaBlend's MIke Reyes gave the movie four and a half stars and says that the film is incredibly satisfying, saying...
Fans of the How To Train Your Dragon franchise couldn’t have asked for a more satisfying sequel, as The Hidden World brings this family epic to an emotionally gorgeous close.
The majority of the reviews are in agreement with Mike. Nearly everybody seems to feel that the How to Train Your Dragon movies have been great since the beginning, and the third movie is no exception.
One thing that many reviews have pointed out, is that, rather than make a movie that leaves the story open for an inconceivable number of sequels, The Hidden World actually takes the brave step of wrapping up the story and giving it all a conclusion. As the New York Times puts it...
Unusually for a sequel, this installment has the courage to feel conclusive. The series has earned affection for its characters and its disarming premise. Now it's time to let it go.
While most movie franchises seem geared toward the trilogy concept, it seems no major film property is ever quite ready to let a successful brand go. As such, even the end of a trilogy never really feels like the "end" that it's supposed to be. The Hidden World seems to do something different by being willing to commit to a conclusion.
One of the reasons that can be difficult is that, if the story doesn't give a satisfying ending, it can make the entire journey feel like it wasn't really worth taking, but based on these reviews it seems clear that most people will be happy, and more than a bit emotional, with where the story goes.
Not every review is entirely glowing. The Chicago Tribune still gives The Hidden World a positive overall impression, but does point out that not all of it is amazing.
Despite a routine middle section, Dragon 3 starts and ends with a strong, simple emotional bond between humans and dragons.
Of course, few movies are truly universally praised, and How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is no exception. There are a few outliers who feel that the third installment has simply run out of energy and that, while the movie is still visually pleasing, there's not much to sink your teeth into underneath that. As the AV Club puts it...
The Hidden World doesn't really stop giving you lovely things to gawk at. But as an act of storytelling, it's curiously perfunctory, never rising to the level of effort and care put into creating its cornucopia of visual pleasures.
While some feel that How to Train Your Dragon ran out of gas before making it to The Hidden World, the vast majority think the new film is a perfect ending to a beautiful trilogy. You can judge for yourself when the movie hits theaters tomorrow.
