There are few movie monsters to command as much awe as a dragon, and while there are other horrifying creatures in movies, the dragons often remain the most majestic. Dragons have been a fantasy movie staple for over eight decades, and they vary from menacing destroyers of worlds to loyal companions. They exist in live-action and animation, as well as post-apocalyptic survival stories and tender coming-of-age tales. These films also broke technical ground over the years, with one of the best dragon movies presenting the first realistic full speaking CGI dragon, and another setting a benchmark for flying creatures in animated movies.
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The best dragon movies prove these winged beasts can be the most terrifying apex predators in fantasy history, or they can be wise allies offering an unlikely friendship.
5) Reign of Fire
Released in 2002, director Rob Bowman created the post-apocalyptic action-fantasy movie Reign of Fire. The dragons here are the main threat, fire-breathing creatures that drive humanity to near-extinction. Christian Bale stars as survivor leader Quinn Abercromby, while Matthew McConaughey appears as dragon-slayer Denton Van Zan. The film also features an early role for Gerard Butler.
The key creature is the lone male (bull) dragon, the only male in the colony and the one fertilizing all the eggs. Quinn and Denton killing him becomes the crucial plot point to end the dragon population. This movie stands out among others for its gritty, modern dragon design and the inventive concept of dragons as a self-collapsing species. The movie received mixed reviews and a lackluster box office, but it has remained a cult classic, with some great dragon action throughout.
4) The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
One of the most successful live-action movies ever made about a dragon, The Desolation of Smaug is the second part of The Hobbit trilogy by Peter Jackson, his prequel to The Lord of the Rings movies. As the title suggests, this movie is about Smaug, the legendary dragon from the J.R.R. Tolkien series, voiced in the movie by Benedict Cumberbatch.
The movie follows Bilbo Baggins, Thorin Oakenshield, and the dwarves on their quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain (Erebor). Living there is the mighty dragon Smaug, who laid waste to Erebor and the town of Dale and then hoarded the mountain’s treasure for over 170 years. Smaug guards the treasure jealously and, when roused, flies out to wreak destruction. This movie stands out as featuring the greatest visual performance-capture dragon ever put on screen.
3) Dragonheart
Dragonheart takes the ideas of dragons and turns them on their head. This is a 1996 fantasy adventure directed by Rob Cohen, set in 984 A.D. In the film, a disillusioned knight named Sir Bowen (Dennis Quaid) hunts dragons after a sliver of a dragon’s heart fails to make a cruel young king benevolent. However, things change when he meets the last surviving dragon, Draco (voiced by Sean Connery).
The dragon is Draco (named by Bowen after the constellation), who once shared part of his heart to save the prince Einon, binding the two so that pain to one is felt by the other. His role in this movie is not as a slayer or a threat, but as an ally, as he and Sir Bowen become partners and join forces to fight the tyrant king (David Thewlis). This dragon movie stands out as a technical milestone, being the first film with a realistic CGI dragon capable of human speech, using ILM’s then-new software to lip-sync Draco to Connery’s voice.
2) Dragonslayer
Arguably, the biggest cult favorite dragon movie of all time is the 1981 dark fantasy film Dragonslayer. This movie might have one of the most unexpected leading men in fantasy history, as Peter MacNicol stars in the lead role. Most fans know MacNicol today as the minor antagonist Janosz Poha in Ghostbusters II and as Renfield in Dracula: Dead and Loving It. In Dragonslayer, he plays Galen Bradwarden, a young wizard’s apprentice who hunts a 400-year-old dragon terrorizing a sixth-century kingdom.
The dragon is Vermithrax Pejorative, a name roughly meaning the Thracian worm, and it is a deadly menace that demands virgin sacrifices twice a year. This movie had the best-ever dragon effects when it was released, and none other than George R.R. Martin (Game of Thrones) named Dragonslayer one of his favorite films and listed Vermithrax as the best dragon he ever saw in a movie.
1) How to Train Your Dragon
The best dragon movie ever made is an animated film from 2010 by DreamWorks. Set in the Viking village of Berk, teen outcast Hiccup, the son of the chieftain, is expected to become a dragon slayer but instead befriends a wounded dragon he names Toothless. How to Train Your Dragon takes a strong look at the war against dragons, and how not all dragons are bad, and many can become strong allies.
The dragon’s role here is as an ally and companion. Toothless reframes dragons as misunderstood rather than enemies and resolves the human-dragon conflict, and it is up to Hiccup and Toothless to convince the chieftain to stop hunting dragons because they can help against an even deadlier enemy. The movie made $494.9 million worldwide, was nominated for two Oscars, and started a franchise with more movies, spinoff TV shows, and even a live-action remake.
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