Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		2.5

Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire Blu-ray Movie Review

Battle To Keep The Franchise Alive.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman June 2, 2017

Though the number seems much greater, Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire is actually only the fourth film in the Dragonheart series, a series that began with something of a spectacle of a film in 1996 which was followed by a direct-to-video sequel in the year 2000. Then there was a 15-year wait until Dragonheart 3, a prequel, this time, released direct to video. Now, only two years later, this fourth film, which is a sequel to the last prequel but still a prequel to the other films (sorry), has released. Maybe it's the combination of franchise longevity and the sudden release of two films in two years after a decade-and-a-half drought, but regardless there just seems like there are more than four of these. Regardless of movie count, Battle for the Heartfire is a fairly dull, but serviceable, meat-and-potatoes film, one that exists to flesh out a little more within the Dragonheart canon but otherwise serves precious little purpose beyond. Not particularly entertaining, not exceedingly well made, the movie just sort of lingers in DTV purgatory, where it certainly has plenty of company from its fellow franchise brethren and endless other movies in the Fantasy genre.

Two children, a boy and a girl, are born to royalty. Their mother dies in birth, and each infant bears the scaly mark of the dragon. They are separated along their youthful lives. Years later, the king has died. Drago the Dragon (voiced by Patrick Stewart), who shares a connection with each child, locates Edric (Tom Rhys Harries) who, thanks to his blood and superior strength, is crowned king. It's not long before he meets his long-lost sister Meghan (Jessamine-Bliss Bell) on the field of battle. Their rivalry intensifies, but if the kingdom is to be saved, Drago will have to bring them together under the banner of a common cause: retrieving the stolen Heartfire and restoring order to the land.

Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire plays with a blandness of tone and visual presentation that, combined with a somewhat stale story, results in a movie that's unyieldingly dull but serviceable in its purpose. It plays with little rhythm, less conviction, and feels made to bank on the (suddenly resurgent?) Dragonheart name rather than because fans were yearning for yet another tale from its world. The core story revolves around two twins, each infused with a bit of dragon DNA or some such thing that gives them scales (on the girl's face and on the boy's back) that grant them superhuman strength and make them natural leaders. Beyond the basic plot maneuverings is the movie's much more palatable and decently executed story of sibling rivalry, the story of how the twins were raised, separated, came to be antagonists, and how the dragon brings them together for a shared purpose. Character depth is decent, their story nothing audiences cannot live without learning but as the central narrative tool in a direct-to-video Fantasy film, it could be much worse. The downside is that Drago is less a dragon and more an intermediary, taking a lesser role in action and presenting as more of a thoughtful (OK) and sedentary (not OK) creature.

As a character-driven film, performances are vital to the movie. Much like everything else, they're neither here-nor-there. Tom Rhys Harries and Jessamine-Bliss Bell perform their characters more than they inhabit them. They find enough vitality, character qualities and quirks, antagonism, familiar similarities, and shared life experience to get by, all based on what the script gives them, but neither truly injects them with the sort of vitality the movie wants from them, vitality these actors cannot find and the script does not provide. Patrick Stewart voices Drago, the face of the franchise who just cannot earn a repeat performance. This fourth film features the fourth actor to voice the scaly beast. Stewart channels more of the Sean Connery performance from the first film and less the Ben Kingsley performance of the third, but he's a good fit for the part, particularly with the dragon's role as something more of a father figure and diplomat and less a fire-breathing warrior.

The movie's secondary needs are also met adequately. Digital effects are fine. The first film was something of a hallmark VFX film, one that, way back when, earned its share of oohs and aahs from moviegoers just then growing accustomed to the sort of intricate digital creature work modern audiences take for granted. This Drago doesn't look appreciably better two decades later, but for a lower budget DTV film the work is impressive enough that the viewer is never pulled out of the movie by shoddy, unconvincing visuals, as so frequently happens in these sort of movies. A few nice real-world backdrops and sets give the movie a larger budget feel, but it's still, largely, a straightforward production that plays with more a dreary, made-on-the-cheap quality that even decent costumes and good shooting locations cannot remedy.

Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire is another digitally photographed DTV film that's inherently bland and drab. The 1080p transfer does what it can with the source and reproduces it seemingly rather faithfully, but don't expect much of a looker. The movie is fairly flat, offering uninteresting details, even on texturally bountiful clothes, stone work, and vegetation. To be sure, crude detailing is obvious, but never does the movie allow for much more than the basics. Even skin textures are somewhat flat and lacking anything even remotely resembling intimate definition. The scaly dragon, CGI though it may be, does offer enough rigidity and detail to please. Colors largely favor a flat earthy and predominantly gray appearance. Splashes of natural green, orangey fire, and a few examples of other, prettier shades offer a nice contrast to the doldrums but aren't exactly presented with any sort of memorable vitality. Black levels push a bit pale and flesh tones are reflective of the movie's fairly dull nature. Source noise is unsurprisingly evident in lower light interiors. The transfer is by no means bad; it's just reflective of a boring-looking movie.

Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack is, like the video, effective but rather simplistic and unmemorable. Musical width is fair, clarity is decent, and there's a balanced wrap back into the rears. The low end accompaniment is also fair, offering a proficient, but certainly not prolific, sense of heft to the proceedings. Light environmental atmospherics creep in from time to time, largely in the form of birds and insects that slightly open up the listening area. Battle scenes offer just enough depth of field and clanking metal and screaming combatants to mimic, though certainly not recreate or draw the listener into, the battle. Dialogue is clear, center positioned, and well prioritized for the duration.

Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire contains three featurettes. A UV/iTunes digital copy code is included with purchase.

• The Making of Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire (1080p, 4:53): A quick run-through of the core story, themes, ideals of gender equality and strong females in the film, sacrifice in the film, and filmmaker goals for the movie.
• The Magic Behind Drago (1080p, 4:37): A closer look at the visual effects and voice work that make the film's dragon character come to life. It explores new dragon design, progression from the third film, character qualities, and more.
• Inside the Castle (1080p, 3:41): A closer look at one of the key, authentic locations featured prominently in the film.

Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire isn't good enough to propel the franchise forward and it's not bad enough to kill it off. It'll be interesting to see if Universal churns out a fifth film in the coming years, but chances are there won't be too much enthusiasm if it happens or too much disappointment if it doesn't. The studio's Blu-ray release of Battle for the Heartfire offers fair video and audio paired with a trio of brief supplements. Rent it.