How to Train Your Dragon 2
Paramount Pictures | Release Date: June 13, 2014 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
77
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 48 Critic Reviews
Positive:
41
Mixed:
7
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)John SemleyJun 12, 2014
It’s not about the world catching up to understand poor, lonesome Hiccup. It’s about Hiccup catching up to the expectations of the world on his own. Read full review
100
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternJun 12, 2014
Gleeful and smart, funny and serious, this sequel surpasses the endearing original with gorgeous animation — a dragon Eden, a dragon scourge, an infinitude of dragons — and one stirring human encounter after another. Read full review
100
Chicago Sun-TimesBill ZweckerJun 11, 2014
Not only does this second movie match the charm, wit, animation skill and intelligent storytelling of the original, I think it even exceeds it. Read full review
100
HitfixDrew McWeenyMay 16, 2014
This is a sequel that has its own story to tell and that gets right down to it, and it expands on the ideas from the first film, but in a way that tells a thematically satisfying and complete story. In other words, this is how franchises are supposed to work. Read full review
95
IGNMax NicholsonJan 21, 2020
Fun, action-packed and dramatically deep, How to Train Your Dragon 2 is a prime example of "How to Make a Sequel." Read full review
90
Screen RantBen KendrickJan 23, 2020
How to Train Your Dragon 2 is the rare sequel that improves upon its predecessor in nearly every single way imaginable. Read full review
90
VarietyPeter DebrugeMay 16, 2014
If necessity is the mother of invention, then DreamWorks’ desire to extend the Dragon franchise has propelled the creative team in the most admirable of directions, resulting in what just may be the mother of all animated sequels. Read full review
88
The Seattle TimesMoira MacdonaldOct 26, 2021
The plot doesn’t matter in the slightest; young and old fans of the first movie will be lining up for the wit, for the inventiveness of the characters, for the breathtaking visuals — and just the sheer fun of it all. Read full review
88
Philadelphia InquirerTirdad DerakhshaniJun 13, 2014
One of this year's true surprises, the superior animated sequel not only is infused with the same independent spirit and off-kilter aesthetic that enriched the original, it also deepens the first film's major themes. Read full review
88
Washington PostStephanie MerryJun 12, 2014
A riveting, moving and beautifully animated film. Read full review
88
RogerEbert.comSusan WloszczynaJun 12, 2014
If anyone is concerned about the way women are presented on the big screen these days, just look at how an evolved male like Hiccup respectfully treats his girlfriend Astrid (America Ferrera) and the portrayal of Blanchett’s Valka. Read full review
88
Rolling StonePeter TraversJun 12, 2014
It's thrilling, a soaring blend of 3D animation and spectacular storytelling that swerves daringly to honor the healing chaos of family, human and dragon. Read full review
88
Miami HeraldRene RodriguezJun 12, 2014
The movie offers just the right amount of spectacle. Read full review
88
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsJun 12, 2014
Looks, feels and flows like a real movie. It's better than the last few Pixar features, among other things, and from where I sit that includes "Toy Story 3." Read full review
85
NPRBob MondelloJun 13, 2014
Director Dean DeBlois has been saying this installment is the middle movie in a How to Train Your Dragon trilogy. It's clear that he took inspiration from the first Star Wars trilogy — not a bad model for breathing new life, and yes, a bit of fire, into one of Hollywood's more nuanced animated franchises. Read full review
83
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerOct 26, 2021
The dragons in this movie are expertly brought to life. Read full review
83
Paste MagazineMark RozemanDec 11, 2019
How to Train Your Dragon 2 may not be Toy Story 2 (or The Empire Strikes Back, for that matter), but it’s a more than worthy successor to the first film. Even when it falls short of its lofty ambitions, you can’t help but appreciate how thoroughly it commits to achieving them. Read full review
83
The Film StageNathan BartlebaughDec 11, 2019
Like its curious and intrepid hero, Dragon keeps wandering off from blockbuster responsibilities to chase the fancies of its big, beating reptilian heart. The fantasy action has never been more exciting or visually impressive, but it repeatedly takes backseat to character relationships, which develop on several new intriguing fronts. Read full review
83
Tampa Bay TimesSteve PersallJun 12, 2014
How to Train Your Dragon 2 is how to make a sequel, when it gets its head out of the clouds. Read full review
80
The New YorkerBruce DionesOct 26, 2021
The voice work, by Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, and America Ferrera, among others, is also lively and fun. This sequel also adds a major new character, Valka (voiced exquisitely by Cate Blanchett), a protective den mother who runs a dragon sanctuary. She gives the film a surprising emotional resonance. Read full review
80
The Irish TimesTara BradyOct 26, 2021
Dragon 2 feels like a proper film, not just a cartoon. Read full review
80
CineVueJamie NeishDec 11, 2019
To follow-up a successful film is a daring achievement in itself, but to surpass it is something else, and that’s what DuBois does here. Read full review
80
EmpireHelen O'HaraJul 7, 2014
At times terrifying and too tough for tinies, this is nevertheless a triumphant sequel that puts its faith in Hiccup and Toothless to find a way through dark times for man and dragon. Until we all get our own dragon to go flying with, the result is a story sufficiently thrilling to have us all airborne. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesBetsy SharkeyJun 12, 2014
What DeBlois has deepened in No. 2, is the film's emotional core. Though there are moments when the tension goes slack, the cast steps up to keep things afloat. Read full review
80
The DissolveTasha RobinsonJun 12, 2014
The rote hero/villain face-offs are exciting, but the film is in no hurry to fast-forward to them. DeBlois seems to have a real passion for this world, and like Hiccup, he seems much more interested in soaring through the clouds than in fighting on the ground. Read full review
80
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzJun 11, 2014
The look of the film is amazing. The animation, particularly when the dragons take flight, is seamless. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleKimberley JonesJun 11, 2014
I laughed, I cried, I longed for a pet dragon to call my own. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliJun 13, 2014
Visually interesting but offers nothing groundbreaking. The animation is competent but not overwhelming. There's no moment of wonderment. Read full review
75
Portland OregonianMarc MohanJun 12, 2014
Like its 2010 predecessor, it's one of the most gorgeous computer-animated kids' films you'll come across, and one of the few that uses 3-D smartly and effectively. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChroniclePeter HartlaubJun 12, 2014
It is by far the sharpest-looking DreamWorks Animation film to date. Read full review
75
St. Louis Post-DispatchJody MitoriJun 12, 2014
Thankfully, all of the voice actors from the original return, including Kristen Wiig, Jonah Hill and Craig Ferguson, and keep lightening the mood. Read full review
75
New York PostLou LumenickJun 11, 2014
Offers some stunningly beautiful sequences and an engaging, if at times quite dark, story line. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyJoe McGovernJun 11, 2014
While the original movie benefited from narrative simplicity and an admirable lack of villains, this one paints the screen with too many characters and frequent diversions from the main story, but nevertheless serves up a bountiful and sugary feast for the 3-D-bespectacled eyes. Read full review
70
New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriJun 13, 2014
Dragon 2 is at its best when it quiets down and dares to be intimate. Read full review
70
The New York TimesStephen HoldenJun 12, 2014
Dragon 2 is considerably darker and more self-aware than its forerunner. Both films are speedier than the average animated blockbuster. In places, Dragon 2 is almost too fast to keep up with, and, in other places, it’s a little too dark, at least in 3-D. Read full review
70
Village VoiceStephanie ZacharekJun 10, 2014
The plot is needlessly busy, and much of the action is more manic and indistinct. But How to Train Your Dragon 2 cuts deeper than the first picture — it will be particularly resonant for anyone who has ever worked with or adopted rescue animals — and there are a few sequences of cartoon grandeur. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterLeslie FelperinMay 16, 2014
Clearly, these films are the work of people who love animals. More importantly though, going beyond the pat eco-conscious message that every kids’ film has to have, HTTYD2 touches on how complex the emotional bond between a person and an animal can be. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubA.A. Dowd Jun 11, 2014
There aren’t just more dragons, but more characters, more plot, more everything. The trade-off is that the charm of the original gets a little lost, a casualty of rapid-franchise expansion. Read full review
67
The PlaylistOliver LytteltonMay 16, 2014
After meandering for a while, the story kicks into gear in the third act, with a couple of legitimately shocking and well-executed developments that do pack a punch missing elsewhere in the film. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeTom RussoJun 12, 2014
How to Train Your Dragon 2 recaptures those lyrical highs. But returning writer-director Dean DeBlois also aims to layer on more poignancy for Baruchel and his castmates to play. At points, we’re left feeling a little detached. Read full review
63
McClatchy-Tribune News ServiceRoger MooreJun 11, 2014
A cartoon with better animation and livelier action, if fewer jokes. If there’s one thing these sweet-message/great flying sequence movies don’t need is fewer jokes. Read full review
60
Time Out LondonDave CalhounJul 8, 2014
Hats off to Dreamworks for offering some bold surprises in a respectable sequel filled with moments of humour and emotion among its ample noise and movement. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanJun 12, 2014
Younger kids looking for the cute connection between hesitant teen Hiccup and his loyal dragon, Toothless, may be stunned by the film’s violent tone. At the same time, it’s the unflinching edge that gives the film its unexpected depth. Read full review
60
Time OutDavid CalhounJun 12, 2014
This is a more rugged affair than, say, "Frozen," and any admirers of that film might find themselves yearning for a few more songs and a little less testosterone. Read full review
60
TheWrapInkoo KangJun 12, 2014
If there isn't enough to feel, at least there's a lot to look at. Thanks to the superb 3-D direction by DeBlois, we swoop through the air, whoosh down dragons’ tails, and juuust baaaarely squeeze into small crevices, but still, those experiences are only like being on a really great rollercoaster — they don't mean anything. Read full review
60
The TelegraphRobbie CollinMay 16, 2014
The action sequences here are armrest-gripping fun, and you only wish DeBlois and his animators had been even more confident; held their shots even longer; allowed us to enjoy the whistle of the wind and the curve of the dragons’ flight paths without hurriedly cutting away to another angle, and another, and another. When the film flies, it soars. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineEric HendersonJun 10, 2014
It has the core of a genuine crowd-pleaser, but unfortunately something bigger and more all-consuming keeps getting into its head. Read full review
50
Film.comJordan HoffmanMay 17, 2014
What's unfortunate is that Toothless is starring in a toothless story. Read full review
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