DRAGONKEEPER

Name: DRAGONKEEPER
Item: DRAGONKEEPER
Author: Review

"Purity of Heart Saves the World"

Family Content: -3 Excessive sex, violence, immorality, and/or worldview problems. (Sometimes excessive content such as violence is in otherwise redemptive movies.)

Entertainment Quality:

	None	Light	Moderate	Heavy
Language
Violence
Sex
Nudity

Credits →

What You Need To Know:

DRAGONKEEPER is a story about a little orphan girl, Ping, who is destined to be a dragonkeeper. Ping protects her elderly caregiver by standing up to their evil master, Lan. Lan forces the girl to carry out heavy labor. She carries food for imprisoned dragons. After one of the dragons dies, Ping rescues a dragon named Danzi. Danzi appoints her to protect the last dragon egg. Pursued by dragon hunters, the two cross China in order to bring the egg to healing waters so that it may live. If the baby dragon dies, all hope and goodness will die with it.

DRAGONKEEPER has some very endearing, inspiring moments of courage, loyalty, friendship, and a commitment to protect the most vulnerable. Ping is a very brave and courageous, likable character who accepts the call to be a dragonkeeper, despite her size. However, the movie adds some false Buddhist, New Age teaching about chi energy from the universe being the source of all goodness and life. DRAGONKEEPER also has several scenes of violence where the girl is in mortal danger. So, MOVIEGUIDE® finds DRAGONKEEPER unacceptable.

Content:

(PaPa, BB, C, FRFR, VV)

Dominant Worldview and Other Worldview Content/Elements:

Mixed pagan worldview with strong moral, pro-life and some redemptive values stressing purity of heart, courage, sacrifice, bravery, protecting the weak and unborn, and kindness, but movie adds some false convoluted Eastern, Buddhist teachings about chi energy from the “universe” as a life force and a source of all goodness;

Foul Language:

No foul language;

Violence:

Villains fight with weapons, curses, spells, and the young heroine is the target, and she’s almost killed in several scenes;

Sex:

No sex;

Nudity:

No nudity;

Alcohol Use:

No alcohol use;

Smoking and/or Drug Use and Abuse:

No smoking or drugs; and,

Miscellaneous Immorality:

Nothing else objectionable.

More Detail:

DRAGONKEEPER is a sweet animated tale about a little orphan girl in Ancient China sent to save the last dragons. The little girl risks her life to save her aging caregiver. This kind act leads to her destiny to protect the last dragon egg from evil villains who seek to destroy it for its power. The story stresses friendship, love, bravery and defending the weak and unborn. There are, however, some convoluted Buddhist teachings, which will be hard for children to understand. DRAGONKEEPER also has lots of violence which includes the (off-screen) harvesting of a dragon, cruelty, perilous action where the girl almost dies, and fighting.

Ping is an orphan. She’s sent to live with an elderly woman, Lao Ma, in a village which serves the royal emperor in Ancient China. Lao Ma is forced to carry heavy burdens beyond her ability. In obedience to her station as servant, she complies.

One day Lao Ma collapses under the weight of hard labor. Her villainous master, Lan, is about to beat her, or worse. Ping steps in to carry the load in place of Lao Ma. She’s led to a pit where the last dragons are imprisoned. Her little mouse friend falls into the pit. In true dedication, Ping jumps into the pit to rescue her friend.

In the pit, Ping meets the trained dragons chained at the bottom. The dragons help Ping because they recognize her pure heart.

Later, Ping saves one of the aging dragons, Danzi. She escapes the army sent to bring the dragon back so that its eternal power can be harvested. Danzi entrusts Ping with the last remaining dragon egg. He instructs her to bring the egg to the healing waters so that it may live. Ping and Danzi travel across China pursued by dragon hunters.

DRAGONKEEPER engages the viewer with fantastical images and extremely likable and virtuous characters who risk their lives to save others. There are many moral, redemptive values represented. However, in this movie what Christians know as grace, or the power of our all-powerful Triune God, is simply described as chi, or a life force from the “universe.” There is also another parallel in that only the pure of heart can save the last dragon. As Jesus says in Matthew 5:8, “Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God.” Ping is the child sent to save the dragons, and all the goodness lying within them. In Christianity, however, Jesus Christ is the child sent to save all mankind. There is no goodness or life without God, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.