How To Train Your Dragon

[ar]

How to Train Your Dragon has two supporting female characters: Astrid, the love interest, and Ruffnut, one of the comic relief characters. Despite the fact that they are both in dragon fighting classes together, I can't recall a single instance in which they ever speak to each other. Astrid speaks almost solely to the hero, Hiccup, and Ruffnut to her male twin brother, Tuffnut. The film is very much a horse-and-his-boy story, substituting "dragon" for "horse;" what dialogue doesn't involve Hiccup in some way isn't very substantial, no matter who's saying it.

That said, I personally found the film enjoyable despite the fact that it fails the Bechdel Test at rule 2, and I hold out hope that if it does well enough to garner sequels, future movies might be Bechdel passes.

Comments

[foxfirefey]

I am glad you posted about this! I want to see this movie because zomg cute dragons. I was kind of hoping that it might pass the Bechdel Test from the trailer, but, I guess that was too much to ask!

[anthimeria]

I'm not sure, but I think the movie might squeak a pass. There's one training scene where Astrid and Ruffnut are paired, and the night they sit around the fire telling stories and bragging.

That being said, even if it doesn't pass, it's worth seeing for numerous other awesome reasons (including the spoiler you mentioned, which made me gleeful).

I was also really pleased to see a bunch of kickass, butch female Vikings in the crowd scenes.