The Christmas Dragon (2014)

As a child Ayden's (Bailee Michelle Johnson) parents are killed by a dragon while imprisoned by a tax collector/bounty hunter. Six years later she leads a band of orphans to "find the magic" and return it to Father Christmas (Adam Johnson) in order to save Christmas. Orphan and Babe-in-waiting Rosalynne (Paris Warner) plays her frenemy providing us with conflict when the film lacks bandits, goblins, and dragons.This is a heart warming film for those that can make it through till the end. This is done by the same Utah group that has created Mythica, Survivor, Osombie, and that disaster Orc Wars which they re-titled Drangonfyre. (It was still bad under the new name.) The production lacks acting and a plot line that keeps you engaged. Of course the film is all well that ends well except for Garret (Talon G. Ackerman) who was sold into child slavery and never heard from again. What writer dropped the ball on that? Some blood in the beginning. Fight scenes become rather lame afterwards, even for a kid's film. Four people with the surname Johnson in this film. My guess is that they are all related.So if you are a fan of the aforementioned Utah films, that somehow missed my personal favorite list, follow the magic.

This is an original concept and that is a big draw to this film. Set in medieval times (land unknown) this story pretty much gives us the traditional Father Christmas and not the "Coke Cola" money-making man of today.Even in those times, where life is tough, people are forgetting about the spirit of Christmas. This is having a disturbing effect on Father Christmas, as well as the elves. It's up to a group of orphan kids to conjure a little magic and save Christmastime.The plus side to the film is the originality of the story and the strength of the acting, as well as pretty decent direction.The negative sides are the faux English accents, which are bad enough, but when real English accents are heard, it only makes the fake ones more absurd and difficult to listen too. However, this film is for the kids, primarily, and they probably won't notice a thing - adults beware, though.The CGI effects are not too brilliant. At the start of the movie they're fine and the adult dragon is passable. They must have spent most of the budget by the time we get the orphan dragon as this is where the CGI looks quite a bit cheaper.It also seems to be a tad too long, since it's for the children, and there are times where your attention drifts off. If they'd cut it a little tighter it would've made it more enthralling for the kids.I would recommend this for Snow Day viewing, if your kids are tired of snow fights and building snow castles.

This is my new favorite Christmas Movie! Think "Santa Claus: The Movie" meets "How to Train Your Dragon" meets "Lord of the Rings" with a Sean Connery Santa Claus! Obviously the budget pales in comparison, so don't come expecting the best effects, but they aren't terrible either. Father Christmas is amazing and the story line is a fairly unique take on rescuing Christmas. My kids LOVE dragons so we decided to take a risk on this. Best decision ever. This movie is a new tradition for our family starting now!Unlike the ordinary orphan based films, these orphans are friends and partners (for the most part) from the very beginning of the movie. They aren't fighting over the magical items in the film and trust is not a rare commodity. As a parent I thoroughly enjoyed watching this film with my children. Again, if you are expecting the effects of a big budget Hollywood film you will be disappointed. But if you are looking for an original Christmas movie (sure it's probably inspired by others) then it's worth a shot.

THE Christmas DRAGON, by Lord of the Rings standards cost very little, but this made in Utah fantasy film comes to life with amazing special effects and a wonderful musical score as it brings to life a tale of orphan children and a young dragon attempting to rescue the fading memory of Christmas. John Lyde's screenplay and direction do a first rate job in providing an exciting adventure for children and adults to experience together. It might be a bit too frightening for the younger members of a family but should hold the interest of older children, teenagers and adults. The cinematography and editing are top notch as are the special effects - - they really do look quite professional and show that even a magical story like told here can be done on a non-Hollywood budget. A lot of love and care have gone into this production and it deserves to find a large audience. The film should have had a theatrical run but has been released direct to DVD. I only wish that it had been made available as a Blu-ray.