I repeat: was it really needed?
Same as with Lilo & Stitch, it's not a bad movie, but it does not add anything to the story, characters or the world. And again, it's good in a sense, that they did not butcher the original, so people who did not see it, will probably enjoy it about the same. But it was not necessary. And arguably, even less necessary than Lilo & Stitch, because it suffers from issues with suspense of disbelief even more, purely because of the size of the dragons.
Stitch was small, and all "alien" stuff was not really the focus of the movie or, at least, did not take up the whole screen. Dragons are big though (even though there are some small ones). They cover the whole screen. While CGI is good, it is still CGI, it's not practical effects like in early Jurassic Park, where dinosaurs felt real (because they were real, they were taking up space, they had weight, they had texture). That already provides a level of dissonance, at least for me.
But then there are moments, like flying on the dragons, that feel surreal. I do not believe in them. Huge part of that is just me knowing some stuff about animals, about flying... So kind of my fault for being and info-sponge, I guess, but it still bothers my brain. When it's fully animated - I do not care. Animation is not trying to feel real, it's focusing on the story, and animation is just a tool, that can give more freedom of expression. The same approach does not work as universally with live-action.
I think that's why some felt... "Flat". Or not as impactful. Kids will still love it, probably will still be affected, but they probably would have felt the same way with a remaster, that improved textures and lighting of the original or something like that. Although it still looks good enough to my eyes. So... Can only recommend this is if you have have an allergy to 3D animation (which is still here any way) or if you just got tired of the the original, I guess.
