Dragonheart: A New Beginning
Encyclopedia
Dragonheart: A New Beginning is a 2000 direct-to-video
sequel of the 1996 film Dragonheart
. The film is directed by Doug Lefler
and stars Christopher Masterson
, Harry Van Gorkum, and the voice of Robby Benson
.
after the death of Sir Bowen, protagonist of the previous film, who in the last year of his life, visited the cave-home of his long-dead friend Draco, and obtained there a dragon
egg, which, at the time, contained the present film's character Drake (voiced by Benson). He took the egg to a monastery where lived his friend the monk Brother Gilbert. The friar
s at the monastery pledged to hide the dragon away, with Friar Peter protecting him and teaching him. Later, before Friar Peter dies, the task of taking care of Drake is passed to a young and gullible friar named Mansel.
An orphaned stable boy named Geoff, who dreams of one day becoming a knight like Bowen, lives at the monastery, doing menial chores; but he tricks Mansel into manual labor and discovers the hidden Drake. At first Geoff is afraid; but realizes Drake is more afraid of him. Thereafter they become friends, and Geoff draws Drake into the open.
During this time, two Chinese citizens, appearing to be a frail old man and his grandson, enter the kingdom and ask Friar Peter for Drake to fulfill a known prophecy
stating that "a dragon's heart will doom mankind when a two-tailed comet
blazed across the night sky". Fearing that Drake's heart is the heart of the prophecy, they wish to kill him. Meanwhile, the King makes a mysterious man named Ozric his adviser, and Ozric pledges to unite the kingdom under the old code, but corrupts it by forcing each status of citizen to wear a certain color of tunic.
While Geoff is complaining about this new law, he and Drake are surprised by some bullies, and Drake is forced to take his first flight. During this, the two Chinese learn of Drake's true existence and start to train him to use his dragon abilities, including fire-breathing, flight, using his tail, claws, and teeth, and to exhale an ice breath, the last of which is a rare skill that few dragons managed to master. Before this time of teaching, Geoff discovers that the Chinese grandson is the princess of China in disguise, who reveals that dragons once abetted mankind until an evil dragon named Griffin betrayed the dragons and killed humans. Fearing that all dragons were akin to Griffin, the Chinese emperor ordered the killing of every dragon in the country, so that Drake is the last dragon in the world.
Thereafter the Chinese citizens are taken under arrest into the castle and Geoff is made a knight for his friendship with Drake. Ozric takes them to battle a group of rebels where a fight engages, during which Ozric feigns a fatal blow and asks Drake to give him his heart. Before he can hand it over, Geoff notices that the attempt is a trick and rallies Drake in an escape (During which Drake masters his fire-breathing skills for the first time, previous efforts resulting in the fire coming out the wrong end). At the castle, when Ozric recognizes a familiar box, Master Kwan (the elder Chinese) recognizes Ozric's true identity and orders the amulet into the fire. Ozric douses the fire, opens the box, and finds his lost heart. He then throws a knife
at Liann (Master Kwan's companion) in revenge for her ancestor's slaying of the dragons, only for Kwan to intercept the blade.
Geoff and Drake arrive, and as the comet comes into view, Ozric is revealed to be Griffin, whose heart was cut out by the emperor and that Liann borne it with her to protect it. When his heart is restored, he resumes his dragon form and asks Drake to join him in the conquest of mankind, but Drake, recalling how Griffin would have cost him his soul if Geoff had not intervened, refuses and a fight ensues. Drake wins by using his ice breath on Griffin, freezing him in mid-flight and letting him crash and break apart. Geoff is injured by a piece of ice lodged in his heart; so Drake offers a piece of his own, in the process securing his place in the constellation Draco. In the end, an off-screen elderly Mansel states that the old code was restored and Liann returned to her royal duties for a time, while Mansell was awarded guardianship of Brother Gilbert's scrolls. A life of prayer and devotion was his- although Mansell notes that it is quieter than he remembers-, while Geoff and Drake are joined as 'life-bond brothers', Mansell reflecting that they have each discovered the familial bond that was all they ever truly wanted.
. Taught over time to fly and breathe fire by Liann and Master Kwan. Intimate friend of Geoff's. His exact age is unknown, but may be set near 20 years. He is voiced by Robby Benson
. Drake is shy and responsible, rarely makes jokes and has little self-confidence. He resembles Draco and is assumed to be Draco's son and possibly a female dragon Draco referred to as "the Scarred One".
passed across the sky. He is much older and somewhat stronger than Drake, but is killed by Drake's power of exhaling ice.
who was assigned to care for Drake after Friar Peter's death. He believes in the principles of God as taught by the monastery; but is somewhat remiss in fulfilling them. He keeps his task and Drake a secret until Geoff persuades him otherwise.
Empress, who traveled to the West in disguise with Master Kwan (her mentor). She leads their ox-pulled cart which is painted with Chinese symbols, and carries Griffin's heart in a box.
and a renowned expert on dragons. Drake's teacher in the use of exhaled fire and ice. Killed by Griffin while defending Liann.
Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television...
sequel of the 1996 film Dragonheart
Dragonheart
Dragonheart is a 1996 fantasy adventure film directed by Rob Cohen. It stars Dennis Quaid, David Thewlis, Pete Postlethwaite, Dina Meyer, and the voice of Sean Connery. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects and various other awards in 1996 and 1997...
. The film is directed by Doug Lefler
Doug Lefler
Doug Lefler is an American film director, screenwriter, film producer and storyboard artist, best known as director of the Dragonheart fantasy adventure film sequel, Dragonheart: A New Beginning, and recently The Last Legion.-Career:...
and stars Christopher Masterson
Christopher Masterson
Christopher Kennedy Masterson is an American actor known most for his role as Francis on Malcolm in the Middle.- Early life :Masterson was born to Peter and Carol Masterson on Long Island, New York, on January 22, 1980...
, Harry Van Gorkum, and the voice of Robby Benson
Robby Benson
Robby Benson is an American film and television actor, television director, educator and singer.-Early life:Benson was born Robin David Segal in Dallas, Texas, the son of Freda Ann , a singer, actress, and business promotions manager, and Jerry Segal, a writer...
.
Plot
The story starts approximately one yearYear
A year is the orbital period of the Earth moving around the Sun. For an observer on Earth, this corresponds to the period it takes the Sun to complete one course throughout the zodiac along the ecliptic....
after the death of Sir Bowen, protagonist of the previous film, who in the last year of his life, visited the cave-home of his long-dead friend Draco, and obtained there a dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
egg, which, at the time, contained the present film's character Drake (voiced by Benson). He took the egg to a monastery where lived his friend the monk Brother Gilbert. The friar
Friar
A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders.-Friars and monks:...
s at the monastery pledged to hide the dragon away, with Friar Peter protecting him and teaching him. Later, before Friar Peter dies, the task of taking care of Drake is passed to a young and gullible friar named Mansel.
An orphaned stable boy named Geoff, who dreams of one day becoming a knight like Bowen, lives at the monastery, doing menial chores; but he tricks Mansel into manual labor and discovers the hidden Drake. At first Geoff is afraid; but realizes Drake is more afraid of him. Thereafter they become friends, and Geoff draws Drake into the open.
During this time, two Chinese citizens, appearing to be a frail old man and his grandson, enter the kingdom and ask Friar Peter for Drake to fulfill a known prophecy
Prophecy
Prophecy is a process in which one or more messages that have been communicated to a prophet are then communicated to others. Such messages typically involve divine inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of conditioned events to come as well as testimonies or repeated revelations that the...
stating that "a dragon's heart will doom mankind when a two-tailed comet
Comet
A comet is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet...
blazed across the night sky". Fearing that Drake's heart is the heart of the prophecy, they wish to kill him. Meanwhile, the King makes a mysterious man named Ozric his adviser, and Ozric pledges to unite the kingdom under the old code, but corrupts it by forcing each status of citizen to wear a certain color of tunic.
While Geoff is complaining about this new law, he and Drake are surprised by some bullies, and Drake is forced to take his first flight. During this, the two Chinese learn of Drake's true existence and start to train him to use his dragon abilities, including fire-breathing, flight, using his tail, claws, and teeth, and to exhale an ice breath, the last of which is a rare skill that few dragons managed to master. Before this time of teaching, Geoff discovers that the Chinese grandson is the princess of China in disguise, who reveals that dragons once abetted mankind until an evil dragon named Griffin betrayed the dragons and killed humans. Fearing that all dragons were akin to Griffin, the Chinese emperor ordered the killing of every dragon in the country, so that Drake is the last dragon in the world.
Thereafter the Chinese citizens are taken under arrest into the castle and Geoff is made a knight for his friendship with Drake. Ozric takes them to battle a group of rebels where a fight engages, during which Ozric feigns a fatal blow and asks Drake to give him his heart. Before he can hand it over, Geoff notices that the attempt is a trick and rallies Drake in an escape (During which Drake masters his fire-breathing skills for the first time, previous efforts resulting in the fire coming out the wrong end). At the castle, when Ozric recognizes a familiar box, Master Kwan (the elder Chinese) recognizes Ozric's true identity and orders the amulet into the fire. Ozric douses the fire, opens the box, and finds his lost heart. He then throws a knife
Knife
A knife is a cutting tool with an exposed cutting edge or blade, hand-held or otherwise, with or without a handle. Knives were used at least two-and-a-half million years ago, as evidenced by the Oldowan tools...
at Liann (Master Kwan's companion) in revenge for her ancestor's slaying of the dragons, only for Kwan to intercept the blade.
Geoff and Drake arrive, and as the comet comes into view, Ozric is revealed to be Griffin, whose heart was cut out by the emperor and that Liann borne it with her to protect it. When his heart is restored, he resumes his dragon form and asks Drake to join him in the conquest of mankind, but Drake, recalling how Griffin would have cost him his soul if Geoff had not intervened, refuses and a fight ensues. Drake wins by using his ice breath on Griffin, freezing him in mid-flight and letting him crash and break apart. Geoff is injured by a piece of ice lodged in his heart; so Drake offers a piece of his own, in the process securing his place in the constellation Draco. In the end, an off-screen elderly Mansel states that the old code was restored and Liann returned to her royal duties for a time, while Mansell was awarded guardianship of Brother Gilbert's scrolls. A life of prayer and devotion was his- although Mansell notes that it is quieter than he remembers-, while Geoff and Drake are joined as 'life-bond brothers', Mansell reflecting that they have each discovered the familial bond that was all they ever truly wanted.
Drake
A young dragon who lives in Friar Peter's monasteryMonastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
. Taught over time to fly and breathe fire by Liann and Master Kwan. Intimate friend of Geoff's. His exact age is unknown, but may be set near 20 years. He is voiced by Robby Benson
Robby Benson
Robby Benson is an American film and television actor, television director, educator and singer.-Early life:Benson was born Robin David Segal in Dallas, Texas, the son of Freda Ann , a singer, actress, and business promotions manager, and Jerry Segal, a writer...
. Drake is shy and responsible, rarely makes jokes and has little self-confidence. He resembles Draco and is assumed to be Draco's son and possibly a female dragon Draco referred to as "the Scarred One".
Griffin
A dragon who presumably fled during Bowen's twelve years of dragon-slaying, having come to regard the pledge of peace between humans and dragons as a cruel joke. He plotted a rebellion against both, but was captured and his heart was placed in a red round box. He was then cursed to live as a man, unless he could acquire a dragon's heart before a two-tailed cometComet
A comet is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet...
passed across the sky. He is much older and somewhat stronger than Drake, but is killed by Drake's power of exhaling ice.
Geoff
The protagonist, a young orphaned stable boy, near 16 years old when he first met Drake. Made Protector of the Realm when Lord Osric met Drake for the first time. At the end of the film, he shares half of Drake's heart. As a stable boy at the monastery, he displays an ingenious mind and an adventurous spirit, but is also a joker and makes light of serious matters. He learns to be responsible and to think of others after he meets Drake, who comes to regard him as a brother.Mansel
A humble and kind friarFriar
A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders.-Friars and monks:...
who was assigned to care for Drake after Friar Peter's death. He believes in the principles of God as taught by the monastery; but is somewhat remiss in fulfilling them. He keeps his task and Drake a secret until Geoff persuades him otherwise.
Liann
The young ChineseChina
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
Empress, who traveled to the West in disguise with Master Kwan (her mentor). She leads their ox-pulled cart which is painted with Chinese symbols, and carries Griffin's heart in a box.
Master Kwan
The servant and mentor of Liann, a master of martial artsMartial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
and a renowned expert on dragons. Drake's teacher in the use of exhaled fire and ice. Killed by Griffin while defending Liann.