How to Train Your Dragon (2025) 4K Blu-ray Review

Plot: On the rugged isle of Berk, a Viking boy named Hiccup defies centuries of tradition by befriending a dragon named Toothless. However, when an ancient threat emerges that endangers both species, Hiccup’s friendship with Toothless becomes the key to forging a new future. Together, they must navigate the delicate path toward peace, soaring beyond the boundaries of their worlds and redefining what it means to be a hero and a leader.

Review: The animated movie of How to Train Your Dragon is a bit of a favourite of mine mostly due to how Scottish it feels especially with Gerard Butler as Stoick, the stern father of the protagonist Hiccup. I was delighted when Gerard was returning to portray the character in the live action interpretation of HTTYD as I couldn’t think of anyone else who could possibly capture what he brought to the role.

This live action version is hugely entertaining and feels like genuine time and care went into the making of it rather than it just being a lazy cash grab.

Mason Thames replaces Jay Baruchel as Hiccup and he does a fine job however, it’s still weird hearing an American accent when everyone else is either Scottish or English.

Although a couple of scenes didn’t make it to this version it’s still a faithful adaptation; this 4K has the two deleted scenes which were understandably removed for pacing reasons. It was interesting to know that one of the scenes was genuinely shot in The Giant’s Causeway in Ireland.

The film looks and sounds faultless and is one of the year’s best 4K releases; it has enough special features to keep you entertained for a few hours too.

Special Features and Technical Specs:

• HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
• DOLBY ATMOS AUDIO TRACK
• Feature Commentary with Writer/Director Dean DeBlois
• Deleted Scenes with Introductions by Writer/Director Dean DeBlois
• Gag Reel
• Love and Legacy: Making HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON – Go behind the scenes to see how the beloved characters and intricate fantasy world were brought to the live-action medium.
• Building Berk – Walk onto the set of HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON and take in the scale, detail, and heart that went into building Berk.
• Dreaming Up the Dragons – A glimpse at the technology, artistry, and imagination involved in bringing life-like dragons to the screen.
• Fit for a Viking – Witness the elaborate transformations the cast made to embody the Vikings we see in the film.
• Forbidden Friendship with Introductions by Writer/Director Dean DeBlois – Watch Mason Thames perform the full Forbidden Friendship sequence with a puppeteer in the early stages of creating one of the film’s most iconic scenes.
• Test Drive with Introduction by Writer/Director Dean DeBlois – Hold on tight as we join Hiccup on his first flight with Toothless, and see the various elements that came together to construct the thrilling scene.
• Exploring the Isle of Berk at Epic Universe – Explore HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON – Isle of Berk and discover an island where Vikings and fire-breathing dragons exist together in harmony.
• Optional English SDH, Spanish, and French subtitles for the main feature

HTTYD is well paced with some exciting family friendly action set-pieces, and the dragons are silly enough looking to not scare the kiddies.

SPOILER ALERT – Hiccup waking up having lost his leg at the end still shocks me to this day though. I’m glad they didn’t sugarcoat that.

My favourite aspect of this movie has always been the music which has become one of my all time favourite music scores. When the bagpipes kick in I always tear up as despite not living in Scotland anymore it will always be where I’m from.

Overall, How to Train Your Dragon is a massively entertaining movie and a faithful update of the animated classic. This 4K is one of the year’s best with perfect picture and sound with enough special features to keep you entertained for a few hours.