How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World

 Writer/Director Dean DeBlois’ How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is a fine end to this franchise.

A dastardly dragon hunter (voice of F. Murray Abraham) is trying to capture Toothless, the Alpha Dragon, and force him to lead all the dragons living in harmony with the Vikings under the leadership of Hiccup (v. Jay Baruchel) to their doom.

The interesting aspect of this all-family film is that it turns into a dual love story between Hiccup and Astrid (v. America Ferrera) and Toothless and the female Night Fury, all of which seemed more of a nod to the adults in the audience.

The animation is great and the resolution is quite wonderful. 

I give How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World a 3.9 out of 5.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

 Co-Directors Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey and Rodney Rothman’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse has more action than any animated or live-action film in memory.

It, also, has more diversity of characters with Miles Morales (voice of Shameik Moore), a young African-American/Hispanic mix taking the Spider-Man mantle after being bitten by an radioactive spider and the original Spider-Man, Peter B. Parker (v. Jake Johnson), being killed by Kingpin (v. Liev Schreiber).

Together with Peter B. Parker from another dimension and characters from still other dimensions, including Gwen Stacey (v. Hailee Steinfeld), Spider-Man Noir (v. Nicolas Cage), Peni Parker (v. Kimiko Glenn) with her robot SP//dr and Peter Porker (v. John Mulaney), the multi-verse team tries to prevent Kingpin’s Super Collider from destroying the world.

I give Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse a 4.5 out of 5.

Alita: Battle Angel

Writer/Director Robert Rodriguez’s Alita: Battle Angel is a futuristic thriller/cyborg romance that should appeal to sci-fi fans.

The story takes place 500 years in the future and presents an Earth that I, for one, do not look forward to coming back for. 

 

There is a floating city above the planet where the lucky few exist, while those on the surface wallow in a garbage-filled existence.  Only the few, who do something outstanding, like win the grueling rollerball-type games, get to ascend to the sky city.

An incredible inventor played by Christoph Waltz, who, with his able assistant (Idara  Victor) is able to build and repair cyborgs.  He constructs Alita from parts found in garbage from the sky city and she turns out to be a superhero. 

While the visual effects are incredible, the story is extremely violent and I don’t recommend it for young children.

I give Alita: Battle Angel a 3.6 out of 5.