Based on the book by Cressida Cowell, the movie from writer-director Dean Dubois is funny, well-drawn and imaginatively structured so that adults need have no fear about taking the kids to it.

It's a foolproof scheme for picture making: take the plot elements of favorite movies, paint the concoction with bright colors so it looks like the zazziest customized car, set it running at NASCAR speed, and you have How to Train Your Dragon.

Three cheers to DreamWorks for zipping it, at long last: in laying aside the post-modern quips, they've rediscovered an airborne sense of joy.

…this epic animation from Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders does just about everything right…the makers anticipate the need for kids to understand prejudice, family and disability, without ever forgetting the film’s primary function to entertain...