The HD-DVD release is generally better than average, but with being a rehash of the decade old “Special Collector’s Edition” DVD, it is starting to show its age in both material and technology.
Tools:
Recommend review to a friend »
Rob Cohen´s "Dragonheart" may not be the most memorable film, but it has its place in Hollywood history. Released in 1996, the film featured the very first completely CGI generated character. Predating Jar-Jar Binks, Draco the dragon was created by Industrial Light and Magic and featured the voice of Sean Connery as the computer generated dragon. While CGI characters are commonplace in special effects films these days, computer generated special effects were still evolving and 1993´s "Jurassic Park" was one of the first films to show that computers could generated incredibly detailed and lifelike effects. After the success of Spielberg´s dino epic, the filmmakers of "Dragonheart" realized their long in-limbo project could finally come to fruition. Considering "Dragonheart" is a first generation CGI film, it is somewhat surprisingly that the film´s effects still hold up reasonably well in today´s high detailed 1080p world.
Dennis Quaid is Bowen, a knight who has lost his way after the boy king he mentored in honorable ways became a ruthless killer. The king, Einon (David Thewlis) was nearly killed as a young man, but a dragon gave Einon half his heart to keep the boy alive. When Einon displayed his wicked ways, Bowen assumed the dragon´s heart had poisoned the boy. He set out on a mission to kill each and every dragon, until he killed the one that had given Einon the heart. However, Bowen eventually befriended the last Dragon, Draco and they became a partnership of swindlers who feigned dragon slayings to earn Bowen a livelihood. Along their journeys, Bowen and Draco come across the lovely young Kara (Dina Meyer) and a religious man, Gilbert of Glockenspur (Pete Postlethwaite). Kara is a peasant girl who wants to lead a revolt against Einon and bring an end to his cruel rule. Gilbert looks to Quaid as a great man and rejoices in his dragon slayings.
The film progresses and Kara and Gilbert talk Bowen and Draco to lead a revolt against Einon. The heart that Draco had given Einon as a boy has linked Einon and Draco´s fates together. As long as Draco lives, Einon lives. If Draco dies, Einon dies. Einon´s mother hires dragonslayers to kill the dragon and end her son´s life, but Einon learns of his invincibility that is tied to Draco. Draco is lonely as the final dragon and he knows of his folly in giving the tainted Einon his pure heart. For Draco to allow his spirit to continue after his death, he must make up for the wrongdoing in saving Einon. A large assault between Bowen, Draco and the peasants against Einon´s castle results in Draco being captured by the dragonslayers and Bowen and Kara must fight Einon and do what they can to save Draco from his imprisonment.
"Dragonheart" is a nice little fantasy film. After Peter Jackson´s incredible "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, the film has lost some of its allure with its CGI generated dragon. There haven´t been many good Hollywood dragons, and as far as character dragons go, "Dragonheart" is still the best. The film is written in a manner that makes "Dragonheart" an entertaining picture for adults to watch, but younger boys can relish in the excitement of a Sean Connery voiced dragon. The plot isn´t the strongest and it doesn´t take long to realize how everything must end for the film to find closure. The actors sturdy up the film´s weak script with solid character acting. Dennis Quaid is a good action actor that is underused, but nicely cast here. Sean Connery brings nobility to Draco. Dina Meyer is spunky and her energy carries Kara to life. Jason Isaacs and David Thewlis make appearances, but it is Pete Postlethwaite who steals the scenes. The veteran character actor is absolutely hilarious as Gilbert and watching him work with the bow and arrow is perhaps the best scenes in the film.
This isn´t "Lord of the Rings." The film does not try to be a sprawling epic. It does try to recreate its medieval setting with authenticity and the CGI dragon was not the only element to have great care in its creation. While the film suffers from a predictable and uninspiring plot, the actors allow "Dragonheart" to be a very watchable film. I´ve seen the film a half a dozen times, but I still enjoy sitting back and watching Sean Connery portray Draco. The technology used in the film has evolved greatly since then. Of course, we are all familiar with Jar-Jar. However, Draco is a worthwhile character and although over ten years have passed since the film was created, there are a few notable scenes where the effects have stood the test of time. If you want a movie with dragons and sword fighting, "Dragonheart" is not a bad choice. If you want a huge epic production featuring knights in full armor and magic and grandeur, you may be disappointed. This film was intended to showcase on thing and one thing only – Draco. Eleven years later, Draco is still worth watching.
Video:
"Dragonheart" was released a couple of times in the early going of DVD. The film was first released on the one year anniversary of the format in a decent looking anamorphic transfer that was among the better looking releases in the first year. The step to high definition a year after the debut of the HD-DVD brings "Dragonheart" to the next generation of technology. However, "Dragonheart" is no longer reference quality material and the VC-1/1080p 2.35:1 transfer moves between average and excellent. The excellent scenes show fine details and bright colors. The average scenes are hindered by softness and slight levels of film grain. It is still a great looking film, but the film´s age is betrayed by the higher definition of HD-DVD.
Average user rating (1-5):
[release]20756[/release]