Eragon (PG)
Dragon fantasy falls flat, but kids won't care.
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- Studio: Twentieth Century Fox
- Directed By: Stefan Fangmeier
- Running Time: 104 minutes
- Release Date: 12/14/2006
- Video/DVD Release Date: 03/20/2007
- Genre: Fantasy
- MPAA Rating: PG
- MPAA Explanation: battle sequences and frightening moments
Parents need to know
Families can talk about how the movie differs from the book. What worked better in the book and what in the movie? Why? Those who didn't read the story might talk about Eragon's response to being "chosen" by the dragon. Why are dragons such fascinating creatures in fiction and legends? Families can also talk about the movie's similarities to (and differences from) other fantasy and sci-fi classics, like Star Wars and Lord of the Rings. What elements of Eragon's story are unique? Which ones have you seen before?
Message
Social Behavior:
Bad king and wizard want to stomp out all independent thought; dragon rider and his friends want their land to be prosperous and free.
Consumerism:
Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco:
Violence
Violence pushes the PG edge, with bloody injuries and faces, brief sadness following a character's murder, and wraithy figures who swoop around in darkness; battle scenes include huge armies wielding multiple weapons (spears, arrows, flames, swords, knives); battle between two flying creatures (good dragon and bad smoky dark beastie) has them biting at each other, resulting in bloody wounds; riders fall from horses; magic spell leaves victim with black spidery veins and debilitating "illness."
Sex
Mutual attraction between Arya and Eragon is established -- without much spark but with some sensual glances; Eragon's relationship with the dragon is "romantic," though it stops short of being sensual (some lines are comic, whether intentionally or not, as each declares their mutually interdependent "power").
Language
Common Sense says
What's the story?
Reviewed by Cynthia Fuchs
When Eragon (Edward Speleers) goes hunting in the forest, he discovers a glowing blue stone. Little does he know that it's a dragon egg, and that the beast about to hatch has selected him (and only him) to be her rider. He meets a wise former rider named Brom (Jeremy Irons) and helps regain the kingdom of Alagaesia from the gnarly, paranoid, seldom-seen King Galbatorix (John Malkovich).
Is it any good?
For a movie about flying dragons, ERAGON is disappointingly flatfooted. With plot points borrowed from a range of other movies -- whether great like Star Wars or dismal like Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker -- it tells the tale of an ordinary-seeming boy, Eragon, who's destined for great things.
It's hardly a good sign that much of the back story must be narrated (by Irons) before the movie really begins. The unnecessarily talky set-up names some of the different types of creatures in Alagaësia (bad Urgels and Ra'zac, mostly good humans), then goes on to describe Eragon's reactions and feelings, even when you can see them yourself. At 17, he's not exactly a child, but he still grows up quickly under the auspices of Obi-Wan-like Brom and flying, fire-breathing, cranky dragon Saphira (voiced somewhat stiffly by Rachel Weisz). Their approaches to his education are different, but both intend to get him ready to reintroduce the grandeur of the dragon riders back into current lore.
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