Dragon Movies – A Personal Top 5 of Fire-Blazing Films!

Dragons and their wizardry have a way with me. The fantastic elements and the larger-than-life animations found in dragon movies leave me in a stupor! Here are a few of my all-time favorite dragon movies; needless to say How to Train Your Dragon 2 is the one I’m really looking forward to!

Dragon Movies – A Personal Top 5 of Fire-Blazing Films:

1How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

Directed by Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders, How to Train Your Dragon is my current favorite of all the dragon fictions adapted for the big screen. Under the shadow of dragon slaying, the movie is a beautiful depiction of man-animal friendship. Hiccup, a Viking lad, grows up in a fantastic village called Berk only to follow his tribe’s tradition of becoming a dragon slayer. When he finally manages to capture his first dragon, he cannot bring himself to kill it. Instead, he starts to care for the creature just like an affectionate master does for his pet. The little monster recuperates from the attack and eventually fights to retain his master’s trust in him and save the Isle of Berk. How to Train Your Dragon strikes an emotional chord that’s difficult to find in most animated films.

2 Dragonheart (1996)

This is another of my favorite American fantasy dragon movies, by Rob Cohen. The dragon slaying race and the last remaining dragon must unite to fight against the tyranny of an unworthy king. The movie makes an effort to portray the human instincts of the beasts and the beastly instincts of the human race. The movie ends in a paradox where the good dragon must be slain in order to kill the evil king with whom he shares his heart. However, it’s the triumph over evil that wins my heart.

3 Age of the Dragons (2011)

Based on the classic novel Moby Dick, Age of the Dragons is another beautiful adaptation for the big screen. Harpooner joins Ahab on the Pequod, an armored land boat, that’s out on a mission to seek a kind of oil that only the fire-breathing winged creatures breathe out. The magic liquid is required to keep alive the mythical realm that Ahab and his men inhabit. However, Ahab’s mission is soon revealed to be a trap. He is out to avenge his injury and his sister’s death and kill all dragons, especially a great white dragon which scarred him decades ago. Harpooner falls in love Ahab’s adopted daughter and Age of the Dragons turns with a predictable but thrilling twist nonetheless. The movie culminates splendidly when Ahab meets a befitting end for conniving against the dragon race.

4The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)

The fourth movie on this list of best dragon movies is The Hobbit 2. As much as the movie is about Bilbo Baggins and Thorin Oakenshield, it is about the dragon Smaug as well! Depicted as intelligent, strong and greedy, he is the primary antagonist that inspires both awe and fear. The scene between Smaug and Bilbo where Bilbo uses riddles to describe him is powerful and keeps me hooked!

5Reign of Fire (2002)

This movie successfully manages to make us forget the good hearted, adorable dragons from How to Train Your Dragon! A brood of the fire-breathing beasts emerges from the earth and begins setting fire to everything, establishing dominance over the planet. Besides the dragons, it is Matthew McConaughey prior to his Dallas Buyers Club and The Wolf of Wall Street days that I enjoy watching on the silver screen. Catch this one if you absolutely swear by dragon thrillers.

That’s my list. Which other dragon movies would make it to your Top 5 list?

About the Author – Brionna Simpson is an internet geek and food nerd. She is a fan of everything dragon and maintains a How to Train your Dragon fan blog. In her spare time, she likes to read and imagine she’s a world famous air guitarist.