Genre: CG Animation
Director: Guillaume Ivernel and Arthur Qwak
Cast: Forest Whitaker, Rob Paulsen, Nick Jameson, Jess Harnell, Mary Mouser, Dave Wittenberg
RunTime: 1 hr 20 mins
Released By: GV
Rating: PG
Official Website: http://www.dragonhunters-themovie.com

Opening Day: 6 November 2008

Synopsis:

Zoe is a little girl who believes in fairy tales. In order to help her uncle Lord Arnold get rid
of a terrible dragon,she decides she has to find some heroes like the ones she reads in
her books. But instead, she meets Gwizdo and Lian-Chu, two dragon hunters whose sole
ambition in life is to buy a quiet little farm and hang ten...

But so what? The little girl thinks they are the heroes of her dreams, and cunning little
Gwizdo, all fired up by Lord Arnold’s gold, is certainly not going to tell her the truth.

Zoe is determined to follow her heroes in their adventure. From here on, there is no turning
back. And to Gwizdo’s great dismay, they begin a perilous journey to the end of the world,
where, still asleep, but not for long, lies the most terrifying dragon ever to have ever
stalked the face of the earth: the infamous « World Gobbler »!

For Zoe, it’s a dream coming true. For Gwizdo, a nightmare that can only end in disaster.
Yet neither the little girl, nor Gwizdo have any idea that Lian-Chu and the World Gobbler,
have met before. And they have a score to settle….


Movie Review:

Say animation and you think of the big Hollywood folks like Disney, Pixar and Dreamworks. So when anybody else who isn’t part of the big honchos comes along with an animated movie, people would dismiss it as second rate. But we at movieXclusive.com are objective enough to sit through movies of all genres, from all countries to tell you what the world really is like out there. And we are happy to report that this French production is a delightful watch, and contains some great messages which kids and adults can relate to.

Based on a cartoon series, this feature film follows two dragon hunters (not the most original movie title, we’d say) who rove a fantastical world where dragons threaten to destroy every bit of beauty and happiness that exists. The problem is, these two aren’t your typical knights in shining armors. They are small time travelers accompanied by an adorable blue dog, hoping to earn enough money to stay in a farm and rear sheep. Along comes a pesky girl whose uncle promises lots of gold coins. The four unlikely friends then set off on an adventure to find The World Gobbler (another uncreative name for a baddie) and make the world a better place.

Sure, you probably wouldn’t get too excited by reading the short synopsis. You can already imagine scenes of the irritating girl who talks non stop and annoys the hell out of everyone. You can picture the gentle giant who believes that he can hunt down the dragon and save the day. You can also imagine how the brains of the dragon hunting duo will be spouting wisecracks that will make viewers laugh. Yes, these “been there done that” aspects are all there in the movie.

But the animated feature has a unique look that will leave you gaping in wonder and amazement. The futuristic and medieval world can only be visualized by animation. And the visionary filmmakers have created a conglomerate of islands of varying sizes and shapes. These floating masses of land are accompanied by out of this world menacing monsters which are conveniently known as dragons. This is real eye candy – you have to see this world to believe how far the human imagination can go.

Then there are the character designs. Check out the sword wielding and muscle bound protagonist Lian Chu (we love the Chinese reference) who has a humongous body balanced by two skinny legs. Be amused by how his childhood friend Gwizdo wears a silly pilot cap and goggles to look serious despite being the joke of the duo. And their blue pet dog Hector looks like a hyper active carnivorous rabbit which never fails to make viewers chuckle in glee. The young girl Zoe has two ridiculous looking ponytails which give the heroine of the movie a unique look. These distinctive character designs are intricately done and would please animation fans because they would be something they haven’t done before.

Originally produced in French, this English version stars the voices of Forest Whitaker (Street Kings, Vantage Point) as Lian Chu, Rob Paulsen (Happily N’ever After) as Hector and Mary Mouser (Son of the Mask) as Zoe. The flavour of the adventure is retained in this English version, and we can guarantee you an enjoyably enchanting 80 minutes in the theatre.

Movie Rating:



(The animated movie will bring you on a dragon hunting adventure you can only imagine)

Review by John Li