It's not quite as sweet as 'Lassie' or as visually stunning as 'E.T.' but Dragonworld is an overall pleasant story. It is a bit too short, and slightly dated, but there is probably enough charm and magic for a young audience that has not been lobotomized by modern entertainment, cartoons, crude humor, action figures and all that jazz.
After his the death of his parents, young John McGowen moves to Scotland to live with his uncle in the family castle. One lonely afternoon he wishes for a friend, and five minutes later he finds a baby dragon. We jump ahead twenty years, and John now lives alone in the McGowan castle with his dragon buddy, and nobody disturbs them, until a crooked business man finds out about the dragon and tricks John into selling him to his theme park. At first, John is relieved because he needs the money to pay off back taxes, but soon he finds out that his dragon is mistreated, and with the help of his new girlfriend and her father, they try to break him out. Happy ending.
The dragon is a mix of three different effects, and only one of them works. There is a stop motion miniature, a cg dragon which flies, and a full size animatronic head and neck which breathes fire. Only the animatronics are competent.
I think the appropriate age range for this movie would be around seven to twelve. Adults can enjoy this too, but not as much. Dragonworld is likable, but not lovable.
