To review- dragons require gems in order to grind up the limestone they eat to make fire. These gems are aquired by robbing dwarf mines. No gems means they screw up their teeth and/or stomachs eating unbroken limestone. Thus the decline of the dwarves is directly responsible for the disappearance of dragons. Elves are to blame.
@@Passions5555 Elves are to blame for pretty much all of the worlds woes. Global warming? Elves. Inflation? Elves. The sudden popularity of the Kardashians and, ironically, the break-up of Kim and Kanye? Fuckin' Elves.
@Scott's Precious Little Account let's do some people feel about certain fundamental parts of doing anything they're like no you just need to know this much and I don't really understand it past that but I don't feel like explaining to you how and why I don't understand the tiny details cuz i think that'll make me sound stupid, so just shut up and do the thing how I told you. I mean, he's not just the adopted uncle here, he's also an old proud dragon. This exchange felt wonderfully organic to me
There's something about the dialogue in 80s fantasy that I like a lot. The entire scene is just two dragons explaining how they breathe fire but their conversation is so charming and whimsical. I know nothing of this movie/series but you get a lot of characterization between the green and red dragon in a few minutes
This movie is not only a marvel of animation, it also tackles a very interesting plot : a rational, science-minded human finding himself in a Fantasy world, and trying to make sense of the things around him. Like figuring out how Dragons can fly. A fantasy world that still uses "our" science and logic. That's really interesting.
Pretty much a metaphor for the entire history of science. Once upon a time, man thought EVERYTHING was done by magic. Now we even refer to the things we can't explain as "phenomena" or "supernatural" as opposed to magical. But not believing in magic anymore didn't cause anything to go away (unless you count the charlatans).
The horror/romance movie "Spring" is a similar type of movie; what if an Eldrich horror grew up alongside humanity and its technological/scientific evolution and learned about its nature?
AH! This also explains why the wings of a Dragon seem to be too small for flight: They're used for navigation, stabilisation and forward propulsion, not for lift!
@Sven Kortjohn I believe he means loud obnoxious sound effects and bright colors and out of place music, like you find in lower quality childrens media
@@steventhepotionhoarder2107 child me was convinced by the science explanations that the whole scenario was real and the writers knew Peter and the ending impacted my attitude to education going forward.
I loved this movie when I was 7 and this scene was one of the reasons why... This was a uniquely intelligent and thought-provoking childrens' film that encouraged scientific inquiry into matters deemed mysterious. I also thought it funny that fierce dragons of mythology would basically be hot-air balloons.
The MC Peter Dickenson is also the author of the book of the same name that explains fantasy through science, he was even referenced by Terry Pratchett.
Fun story, Flight of Dragons is pretty much the animated movie of a book called The George and The Dragon by Gordon r. Dickson where a modern (1980s or 1990s) man is mentality transported into a dragon in another world to try and save his girlfriend/fiancée. Great book with a bunch more in the series, please check them out, they are some of my favorites
Check out the book 'The Flight of Dragons' by Peter Dickinson and Wayne Anderson. The designs are from this book. Harper & Row, 1979. My dad got it for me when I was a kid because I've always loved Anderson's art.
this movie is a seriously underrated gem - this take on dragon anatomy and trying to explain a plausible way they could have flown is really inventive imo
It's fascinating. And funny thing? Decades later when Animal Planet did their dragon mocumentary, the explanation for flight and fire breathing was very similar to this
Yes! I saw this exact scene somewhere when I was a kid. Didn't know what it was. I've always loved the scientific explanation here and comparing dragons to birds. I thought I had misremembered it but TH-cam is an amazing place lol
Same here. It sounded familiar with the dwarves bringing gemstones, but when they got to the electric spot in his mouth I realized this was the same cartoon I watched as a kid.
2:56 was my favorite part as a kid, simply because watching a rotund dragon adorably wiggle his wings in irritation was the cutest thing I've ever seen.
I kept looking up D&D movies because I was sure that's where this vague memory I had was from. I've never been able to find this film until now, as a purely luck based reccomended video. This scene stuck with my for me entire life. I was so young when I saw it I was thinking I might have imagined this movie. So glad to find out it's real, and to hear the explanation again. This one scene left an imprint on my personality that has never vanished. Explaining fantasy with reality is something I absolutely love! And specifically explaining dragons as if they were real, which is a lot easier than you might think.
Same here. I definitely saw this movie when I was too young to talk, but could understand just enough that the green dragon was trying to make sense of magic and fantasy. And I loved the red dragon for some reason. Again, I didn't really know what they were saying when I was a little, but I remembered this scene vividly cause the green dragon was so curious about being a dragon. And I remember wanting a more indepth look at the relationship between dwarfs (who I thought were gnomes or kebler elves xD) and dragons. Somehow the way this scene was animated and the sound of the red dragon's voice kept my interest when I was a baby. I definitely had no idea what helium, limestone, and hydrogen was back then, so it wasn't that bit that kept my interest. lol
Oh my goodness, me too! I remember watching this in the living room with my nan and really enjoying listening to the explanation, and all I could remember was the inside being like a honeycomb structure. I completely forgotten about this until the YT gods decided to grace me with this again
I think I saw this movie on Disney channel back in the '90s and all I remember was one dragon character saying "I don't believe my ears" despise not physically having ears
Ha. That’s exactly the same as me. Remember seeing this somewhere 30 plus years ago and I remembered the explanation, but I’d never seen it since until today. What a crazy world and the things that stick with us all along.
Same. Saw it as a kid in the 90's. The scene where the villian says he'll "pluck the sun from the sky" stuck with me because of how the protaganist replies. Just tells him the Sun isn't there anymore; you're just seeing where the sun was, based on the time it takes for light to travel. I didn't have a clue what that meant lol
No, you were being informed as a child as to the mechanics of flight. At least in this form of flight. It's called revelation of method and it's in every movie and TV show that's ever been seen. Might want to start paying attention as those who know are obligated to inform the masses.
I saw this when I was at school, on TV a few years later. Not literally AT school, was on over the xmas holidays in the UK some time around 1990 or a couple of years either side.
I know limestone is a, relatively soft rock but just imagine how powerful there jaws have to be in order. To just bite huge chunks of it off a cliff face!
They don’t need to be. They hum and their teeth vibrate the rocks apart. Dinosaurs had this ability if you look into how triceratops would sing using his crown as an amplifier. The science of precision cutting of rock using vibration isn’t hard either. I’ve tried to tell people how this works but no one believes me. Not just about dragons, the science of it.
You know when you have a favourite movie, when you can see a random scene from it... like this one... watching it for the first time in years, and yet STILL be able to recite it word-for-word.
This movie is so dear to me, the animation, the music, it's so nostalgic. This scene has so deeply affected my ideas of magic, and how I'm doing my worldbuilding for my fantasy novel. Nobody I talk to has ever heard of this movie, but maybe one day I'll find someone I can show it too
My mother recorded this movie on VHS and called it "Dinosaurs". it also started about 4 minutes in so I never knew the beginning. But it was priceless in my childhood
This has been floating around in my mind, half-remembered for 35 years. I almost believed I had imagined this animated movie explaining how dragons ignite their fire with electricity in the roof of their mouth. I’m glad to finally see this again!
The dialouge of animated work in the 80s always had this soothing quality. You could write poems on the line delivery, the voice, the words they used. Real, in a magical sort of way. Relaxed and introspective. From it's music to its film (i havent delved much into its literature), so much media from the 1980s always makes me feel this strange sense of nostalgia, this serene appreciation for life. It makes me feel some way no other thing has been capable of. Like everything's going to be all right, just slow down and have a good look at where you are.
This movie was a miracle for me as a kid. It opened so so much to me and let me get away from even more. Thanks flight of dragons, and thanks 1980’s. You really were the magic and the science behind the best of me. Thanks a million times.
A film I almost forgot about. But what a disturbing and wonderful work of art. Something created in it's time, never to be truly repeated. A kids film, but with truly dark themes...if you watch the whole thing.
I remember borrowing this movie from the library as a kid, it was a huge delight and imprinted on me in a way a lot of things never did. This scene especially, I loved hearing the explanations and learning the story's unique way of detailing what otherwise would just be a mystery. I couldn't remember what this was called for the longest time, and am so happy to come across this snippet again. Thanks for uploading it.
Still one of my favorite childhood movies. I think my mom might still have the VHS copy we recorded from TV. "Shut up & eat your limestone!" & "By the beards of Antiquity, I went & merged them!" are still 2 of the best lines from it.
The Flight of Dragons was such an amazing movie, made my parents borrow it from the library for me to watch probably a dozen times as a kid. You can find it cheap on DVD, and it is worth it, go buy it now. They don't do anything like this with animation anymore, not in the West. Everything done by computer, when they hand drew or painted every last frame of this in a style we won't ever see again. Very similar to the 80's The Hobbit, possibly same animators.
The science is wrong, but not necessarily the logic. They never give us the average weight of a dragon after all, so even though they got the chemistry all wrong, "gas" is still a plausible explanation. Which is, by the way, what makes this movie's many shortcomings forgivable. It's also why the red wizard died while everything else "magical" was allowed to live: Because the "magic" of everything else could be translated into science. I'd be willing to bet the villain's death was caused by his realization that he had been pulling trickery on his own mind, whereas the other three wizards would attribute their longevity to "potions" and "rituals" that would translate scientifically into diet and exercise.
He could set up electrolysis equipment near a water source and produce hydrogen gas without needing to eat rocks. He would just need a way to generate electricity. The dwarves could probably take care of all of that.
Omadon was the epitome of witchcraft and sorcery, concepts which used to be considered both powerful and frighteningly real. Sorcerers could summon demons and ghouls, cause harm with curses, etc, but we advanced as a society and left those notions of supernatural power behind, which is what this movie symbolized. Omadon was destroyed because he couldn’t deny the existence of logic and science the way his own power could be denied.
The shear number of lines on these dragons is crazy. I'd be surprised if any animators made it out with their sanity intact after creating this masterpiece.
This story was loosely based off of a book called The Dragon and the George. While the animated version leaned more heavily into the scientific background of the main character coming from a modern world, the book version was more of a fish out of water story in which the main character simply surprises everyone by how civilized he is as a dragon, even as he sometimes fails to resist his dragon instincts. Overall, the book was funnier and a little more down to earth.
Yep, although the draconic anatomy and biochemistry is borrowed from the 1979 speculative biology book The Flight of Dragons by the actual Peter Dickinson.
@@Ozraptor4 ... So what you're saying is that at the end of the day it's a hodgepodge of two different books? IDK if I've ever heard of it before finding this video, to be honest, but I like what I see.
@@StarshadowMelody Yes, the film is a fusion of Dragon and the George (the 1976 fantasy novel by Gordon R. Dickson) and The Flight of Dragons (the 1979 spec-bio book by Peter Dickinson). The basic story arc (modern day protagonist, called Jim Eckert in the novel, who transforms into a dragon) and and most of the characters (Carolinus, Gorbash, Smrgol, Sir Neville-Smyth etc) come from Dragon and the George. The dragon biology and the overall design of the dragons (plus the film's title and the hero's name) is taken from The Flight of Dragons book.
The Flight of Dragons is my number 1 Dragon based movie, I watched it as a kid so many times, but looking at it now as a teenager and into science now, I I find this scientific explanation of dragons, As a person who loves dragons, I can confirm that this would be so true, Because think of it these way, think of how we make hot-air balloons fly, then think of a dragon, dragons are big and so they need something other than wings to give them lift, so think of the wings as a steering wheel helping them maneuver through places and helping them stay in the sky, so it's scientifically true for dragons to eat limestone and gems to make fire for takeoff.
*rocking back and forth on a chair, sitting outside on the porch* Ah, now this takes me back. I remember this movie, and others like The Last Unicorn and The Hobbit, checking them out from my local library on VHS! Had to walk 10 miles through the woods on a trail we made to get there! Those days were pretty good as a kid; got to go on an unsupervised adventure, and return home with treasure to enjoy on a Saturday afternoon. Do kids these days even know what walking is? Pah!
One slight problem: limestone release carbon dioxide when dissolved by acid, not hydrogen. Other than that, the rest _would_ check out, if that were the case.
The way the green dragon tries to explain how dragons fly and breath fire is kinda like that one really good dragon documentary called Dragons a Fantasy Made Real, I haven't watched the documentary in a while so I don't remember exactly how they explained it but it when something like this, in the documentary, how dragons flew and breathed fire was similar to this but instead of gems and limestone, the dragons just ate meat and had special bacteria in there stomachs that produced hydrogen, they also fed on platinum deposits and that's gave them the "spark" so to speak that helped the hydrogen they breathed out ignite with the oxygen in the air and boom, fire breath The hydrogen also helped them keep aloft in the air while flying, despite having hollow bones the dragons still had small wings compared to their body size, hence the need for hydrogen, a gas lighter than air to help them fly, this was also kind of a 2 way streak, the same hydrogen the dragons needed to fly also fueled their fire breath, meaning they couldn't just breath fire all the time, mostly used as a weapon of last resort in territorial fights That's all I remember, but very good documentary, highly recommend it to anyone who loves dragons and have been interested in seeing a more scientific approach to these amazing, sadly fantastical creatures Plus it was made by the BBC, the same guys who did the Walking With Dinosaurs documentary series Although there are 2 versions One like Walking With Dinosaurs, narrated by Sir Patrick Stewart and soly focuses on the Dragons themselves and another version that's more like a Mockumentary about a paleontologist who's obsession with Dragons lends him to get his credibility nearly taken away until he's tasked with studying a possible actual frozen Dragon carcass found in the Carpathian Mountains of Romania I recommend the one narrated by Sir Patrick Stewart more because it's of course more of the informative documentary style and not a drama But both are good imo
I watched his religiously as a child in the 80’s on vhs. I didn’t fully understand what I was seeing or hearing. But seeing and hearing it now as an adult…it’s like a whole new movie with better understanding
This video literally made me impulse buy the audiobook of the book this animation is based on, The Dragon and The George. It's an enjoyable read, especially since I LOVE fantasy stories with grounded, logical-thinking characters, like ones from a familiar world put in an extraordinary place.
I love this movie. Good film. I love dragons and I have to admit the way they did the explanation of how their fire breathing and flying makes it sound like they could really existed, which deep inside I love to think ^^
I have no idea that this movie existed, yet I sat and watched the whole thing. Certainly an interesting scene. I like the characterization of both dragons, and the voice acting of the red one is SO good! It feels like an actual conversation you just so happen to be eavesdropping on.
Well, it makes sense when you consider that this is a human in a dragon's body, and a very logical human at that. Of course he wants to know how his new body works.
I had completely forgotten about this movie until it popped up in my recommendations. I must have been very young when I watched it the first time, but now I'm experiencing a wave of nostalgia.
I love when magic and science coexist and there's an interesting explanation for things like spells and whatelse. I remember I came up with some ideas for psychic abilities, being that the brain's electromagnetic energy connects to the ever existing energy all over the air, meaning that the esper is concentrating that connection to control the flow of the fundamental forces of nature, which is a fancy way of saying "psychokinesis". It now reminds me of how Final Fantasy 7 depicts its magic, being a biological ability the Cetra have, not specifically to deal with supernatural forces, but to control the actual abilities of the planet. Materia in particular being these crystals made out of the Lifestream's energy, which is basically where the souls of the planet come from, when equiped, can give humans the ability and knowledge that the Cetra had, allowing them to cast magic as well. In fact, the scientists of FF7's world didn't even want to call it "magic" as it felt unscientific, but they couldn't come up with any better term. Heh, I rambled on a bit, I just love talking about stuff like this, and I wanted to get it off my chest ^^;
The brain generally CAN influence a person's surroundings as was seen with a random number generator test where a certain number the person taking the test thinking of showing up more often. If there's a mass of people all sharing the same belief they probably could influence everything around them. In world war 1 a soldier hallucinated a ghost of his dead friend who tried to warn him about explosives being buried in their trench. Other people saw it too and they dug at the spot the ghost pointed to. Sure enough, there were bombs in the trench that were disposed of before they went off. It's possible either the bombs weren't there until people believed the hallucination and made them exist, or that ghosts are real but not the way they are often depicted in media
@@CheeseOfMasters No it isn't. You only say that because you've been groomed to believe only a narrow range of ideas. You're literally no different from the cave man that discovered fire. Actually, you're far more foolish than them.
I never saw this movie as a kid, and have never heard of it until recently a friend mentioned it while discussing some projects. I am kinda interested in the Rankin-Bass movies now, even the Lord of the Rings films too! The dragons are what drew me to this movie though, not because of some strange interest I may have, but what I could do with the inspiration I've found from them.
Umm yeah not so much. Calcium carbonate from limestone would mix with stomach acid to produce calcium chloride, CO2 gas, and water. CO2 is not only a fire suppressant, but heavier than air. So it's doing the exact OPPOSITE of helping him fly and breath flames!
The stomach acid of most creatures is hydrochloric acid. There are certain exceptions, for example some ants produce formic acid. However you will always end up with H2O, CO2, and something else. All acids contain hydrogen atoms. With formic acid that "something else" is calcium formate. With sulphuric acid, it would be calcium sulfate. The only way you can get elemental hydrogen gas is with pure calcium metal. And then, it doesn't matter what acid you use. The reason is that calcium carbonate has one calcium, one carbon, and 3 oxygen atoms. They all have to go somewhere in a reaction, so the hydrogen binds to the oxygen and produces water. In pure calcium metal you have only calcium to work with. There are no oxygen atoms in the reaction, so the hydrogen atoms from the acid simply become a gas as H2.
I loved this time....no alternative facts....just logic and open communication. Professionals were respected as such...and not watered down by ignorance. We need this back. I still dream we can.
The movie was inspired I think by the series of books called " the Dragon and the George" . Similar stories but with alterations in the movie to speed it along. Love them both.
well. I finally found this movie. I was looking for it for the longest time and I had no idea what it was called or where to find it. I thought I just imagined watching it as a kid. But here I find it in my TH-cam recommended. Well done XD
This clip randomly appeared in my reccomendations, and upon watching it, i just knew i had to watch this movie, and i'm glad i did. This film's take on dragon fire and flight is amazing and well grounded, i can easily see a real creature using these methods. This along with httyd are my favorite fantasy films of all time.
Oh, never mind about the "hydrogen in stomach" problem. The honey-combed muscle and bone that expands kinda defeats the problem that bloated animals deal with. When they eat rich food or something, the bacteria in their gut create a unnatural amount of gas, making their bellies bloat. When they bloat, their stomachs can't expand very well and they could die if they don't get the medicine and walked. Dragons have solved this problem with the honey-combed deal and the fire-breathing.
The irony of this is that it is physiologically backwards. That sort of messy circuit does exist in nature from time to time, so it passes muster, but the limestone isn't the hydrogen source at all. Calcite is made of calcium, oxygen, and carbon. When introduced to even a weak acid, like the very dilute acids of a stomach, it reacts almost immediately by releasing a gas. But the hydrogen component comes out of the acid. That's what acid is -- a solution of water that has free-floating hydrogen ions. And those ions are introduced through the stomach lining, having been processed from other things the creature has eaten. The limestone is a way for dragons to cause their stomach acids to release a chemical that their own bodies introduced to the stomach in a nearly pure form.
This just came completely out of nowhere in my recommended and I've been trying to unlock what this movie was in my brain for a solid decade. All I remembered was an 80s looking animated movie that had dragons in it and nothing else
Holy crap - I saw this when I was a kid and have had no idea what it was until NOW! And... honestly - this looks better than the VHS we used to watch it on.
To review- dragons require gems in order to grind up the limestone they eat to make fire. These gems are aquired by robbing dwarf mines. No gems means they screw up their teeth and/or stomachs eating unbroken limestone. Thus the decline of the dwarves is directly responsible for the disappearance of dragons.
Elves are to blame.
@@Passions5555 Elves and dwarves hate each other, according to Tolkien lore
@@Passions5555 Elves are to blame for pretty much all of the worlds woes. Global warming? Elves. Inflation? Elves. The sudden popularity of the Kardashians and, ironically, the break-up of Kim and Kanye? Fuckin' Elves.
@@TwentyNineJP I mean this isn’t middle earth though. And the relationship between dwarf and elf in Tolkien’s work is a bit more nuanced than that.
It's always elves. Every single time. How many more countries do they need to be kicked out of?
Those damn vegan pointy ears!
I like how the red dragon calls limestone limestone by the end, showing that he is at least some what listening
he was bring accomodating
Good catch!
shtup and eat ur limestone!
He was defeated and gave up lol. Fine u ruined it kid eat the limestone.
@Scott's Precious Little Account let's do some people feel about certain fundamental parts of doing anything they're like no you just need to know this much and I don't really understand it past that but I don't feel like explaining to you how and why I don't understand the tiny details cuz i think that'll make me sound stupid, so just shut up and do the thing how I told you. I mean, he's not just the adopted uncle here, he's also an old proud dragon. This exchange felt wonderfully organic to me
There's something about the dialogue in 80s fantasy that I like a lot. The entire scene is just two dragons explaining how they breathe fire but their conversation is so charming and whimsical. I know nothing of this movie/series but you get a lot of characterization between the green and red dragon in a few minutes
I think the green dragon is actually a human scientist that got brought to a fantasy world from what I can surmise from the comments section
@@khunt5336 God I wish that were me
@@debbiestellar same 😭
Flight of Dragons is a 1980's Isekai, I'm going to flip a table.
@@khunt5336 that's sounds like a good idea for an isekai anime.
This movie is not only a marvel of animation, it also tackles a very interesting plot : a rational, science-minded human finding himself in a Fantasy world, and trying to make sense of the things around him. Like figuring out how Dragons can fly. A fantasy world that still uses "our" science and logic. That's really interesting.
Basicly isekai
Pretty much a metaphor for the entire history of science. Once upon a time, man thought EVERYTHING was done by magic. Now we even refer to the things we can't explain as "phenomena" or "supernatural" as opposed to magical. But not believing in magic anymore didn't cause anything to go away (unless you count the charlatans).
i really miss 2d cel animation it was so pretty
shut up and eat your limestone
The horror/romance movie "Spring" is a similar type of movie; what if an Eldrich horror grew up alongside humanity and its technological/scientific evolution and learned about its nature?
AH! This also explains why the wings of a Dragon seem to be too small for flight: They're used for navigation, stabilisation and forward propulsion, not for lift!
I mean, they can be used for lift, by carefully controlling the amount of -hydrogen- dragon fire they can stay buoyant at a certain altitude.
@@Fridelain yall are arguing on a make believe creature, thats top tier cringe if I've ever seen it
@@MonsPubis7 Who asked tho
@@MonsPubis7 Isn't that what's happening in the animation to begin with?
@@MonsPubis7 Nobody in this reply thread even remotely feels hostile or argumentative but you lmao. What.
Love this dialogue. No bells or whistles to grab children’s attention but instead world building
It was one of my favorites when I was a kid. The intro song was one of the greatest themes ever.
Ah, shut up and eat yer limestone.
@Sven Kortjohn I believe he means loud obnoxious sound effects and bright colors and out of place music, like you find in lower quality childrens media
I think the fact they're cartoon dragons are the bells and whistles to grab children's attention. It's definitely not the science explanation.
@@steventhepotionhoarder2107 child me was convinced by the science explanations that the whole scenario was real and the writers knew Peter and the ending impacted my attitude to education going forward.
"Because we're dragons! And dragons breath fire!" Smergol is like my grandad, and it makes me happy to remember him 😊
111th like
This might be my favorite line, in any work of fiction, ever.
Nothing too complicated about it. Just is what it is. Now have some more limestone.
He also speaks like my niece
"But I wonder why it comes out as fire."
"Because we're dragons and dragons breathe fire."
"Yes, but what makes the ignition?"
"The Thor Thimble, fool."
Reminds me of Terry Pratchett and Granny Weatherwax's Headology.
@@sebastianemond5313" ...what happens if we accidentally inhale the exhaled fire??" *BOOOOM!!!*
@@Hotchpotchsoup or it leaves through the end
@@mrnickname850I like the way you think 😅
I loved this movie when I was 7 and this scene was one of the reasons why... This was a uniquely intelligent and thought-provoking childrens' film that encouraged scientific inquiry into matters deemed mysterious.
I also thought it funny that fierce dragons of mythology would basically be hot-air balloons.
Rock on man
@@ballHand limestone on man
they're minerals!
Jesus Marie!
Whats the movie called?
my man literally explained dragons with science. what a lad.
The MC Peter Dickenson is also the author of the book of the same name that explains fantasy through science, he was even referenced by Terry Pratchett.
@@jamesbrice3267 I own the book, but for some reason couldn't find the power to go through it :c
They got it wrong
CaCO3 + 2 HCl → CaCl2 + H2O + CO2
You simply have to love the fact that dragons are basically hot air balloons!
lmao
:))
Ivan Buck cause they're fat in this film
n-no were not
I love dragons!
Fun story, Flight of Dragons is pretty much the animated movie of a book called The George and The Dragon by Gordon r. Dickson where a modern (1980s or 1990s) man is mentality transported into a dragon in another world to try and save his girlfriend/fiancée. Great book with a bunch more in the series, please check them out, they are some of my favorites
Thank you for the suggestion, I'll check out the series.
Gracias.
I loved this book in high-school, and this movie since I was a toddler.
an old western isekai esc story, got to love humans and
their desire to transport modern characters back in time
or to some made up fantasy world.
Check out the book 'The Flight of Dragons' by Peter Dickinson and Wayne Anderson. The designs are from this book. Harper & Row, 1979. My dad got it for me when I was a kid because I've always loved Anderson's art.
this movie is a seriously underrated gem - this take on dragon anatomy and trying to explain a plausible way they could have flown is
really inventive imo
I knew it! I got "underrated" in five. You asses.
Was not alive when it came out, but discovered it a few months ago. It's a really great movie.
In reality, limestone mixed with acid produces carbon dioxide, not the hydrogen required for lift. It's still a fun theory!
This movie had one of the most brilliant voice-acting casts of it's time.
"Oh shut up and eat your limestone.."
A puny man-word if I’ve ever heard it! EAT!
I love that Smrgol goes from calling it "the white fire-rock" to the puny man-word lol
I saw this movie all of once 30 years ago and this scene has lived rent free in my head ever since.
It's fascinating. And funny thing? Decades later when Animal Planet did their dragon mocumentary, the explanation for flight and fire breathing was very similar to this
Yes! I saw this exact scene somewhere when I was a kid. Didn't know what it was. I've always loved the scientific explanation here and comparing dragons to birds. I thought I had misremembered it but TH-cam is an amazing place lol
Same here. It sounded familiar with the dwarves bringing gemstones, but when they got to the electric spot in his mouth I realized this was the same cartoon I watched as a kid.
Same! The electric spot in his mouth is what’s stuck in my head all these decades. Funny how you doubt it was ever real until you see it again!
2:56 was my favorite part as a kid, simply because watching a rotund dragon adorably wiggle his wings in irritation was the cutest thing I've ever seen.
I kept looking up D&D movies because I was sure that's where this vague memory I had was from. I've never been able to find this film until now, as a purely luck based reccomended video. This scene stuck with my for me entire life. I was so young when I saw it I was thinking I might have imagined this movie. So glad to find out it's real, and to hear the explanation again. This one scene left an imprint on my personality that has never vanished. Explaining fantasy with reality is something I absolutely love! And specifically explaining dragons as if they were real, which is a lot easier than you might think.
Same here. I definitely saw this movie when I was too young to talk, but could understand just enough that the green dragon was trying to make sense of magic and fantasy. And I loved the red dragon for some reason.
Again, I didn't really know what they were saying when I was a little, but I remembered this scene vividly cause the green dragon was so curious about being a dragon. And I remember wanting a more indepth look at the relationship between dwarfs (who I thought were gnomes or kebler elves xD) and dragons. Somehow the way this scene was animated and the sound of the red dragon's voice kept my interest when I was a baby. I definitely had no idea what helium, limestone, and hydrogen was back then, so it wasn't that bit that kept my interest. lol
Oh my goodness, me too! I remember watching this in the living room with my nan and really enjoying listening to the explanation, and all I could remember was the inside being like a honeycomb structure. I completely forgotten about this until the YT gods decided to grace me with this again
I think I saw this movie on Disney channel back in the '90s and all I remember was one dragon character saying "I don't believe my ears" despise not physically having ears
Ha. That’s exactly the same as me. Remember seeing this somewhere 30 plus years ago and I remembered the explanation, but I’d never seen it since until today. What a crazy world and the things that stick with us all along.
Same. Saw it as a kid in the 90's. The scene where the villian says he'll "pluck the sun from the sky" stuck with me because of how the protaganist replies. Just tells him the Sun isn't there anymore; you're just seeing where the sun was, based on the time it takes for light to travel. I didn't have a clue what that meant lol
I love how the old dragon is right to the point. "We're dragons! And dragons breathe fire!" LOL! Genius!
Someone sat down and figured out dragon flight scientifically...for a kid's movie. I love it.
No, you were being informed as a child as to the mechanics of flight. At least in this form of flight. It's called revelation of method and it's in every movie and TV show that's ever been seen. Might want to start paying attention as those who know are obligated to inform the masses.
The movie's science was based on the original Flight of Dragons book authored by Peter Dickenson.
Check out the book, it's fantastic!
this is one of the earliest movies I can remember watching in my life.
Mine too. My dad had it recorded on tape for me.
christopher anchor
What's the name of this movie.
@@scottyrose9106 Two years late, but I want say this movie is called "The Flight of Dragons." It is a really good movie. I just love it.
@@Passions5555
Better late than never. LoL.
Thank you!
I saw this when I was at school, on TV a few years later. Not literally AT school, was on over the xmas holidays in the UK some time around 1990 or a couple of years either side.
Awww... RIP John Ritter aka "Jack Tripper". Such a fun, kind human being.
I thought that was him! His voice is like an old friend, warmed my heart to hear. Like dragon fire.
He blinded the other dragon with SCIENCE!
Trygve Skogsholm poetry in motion
Excellent song lol
I know limestone is a, relatively soft rock but just imagine how powerful there jaws have to be in order. To just bite huge chunks of it off a cliff face!
Soft is relative when talking about rocks and metals.
They don’t need to be. They hum and their teeth vibrate the rocks apart. Dinosaurs had this ability if you look into how triceratops would sing using his crown as an amplifier. The science of precision cutting of rock using vibration isn’t hard either. I’ve tried to tell people how this works but no one believes me. Not just about dragons, the science of it.
Unless you're a Dragon or Rock Eater like in Never Ending Story. They eat rock no problem!
Shut up and eat your limestone!
@@dogmom8668 gorons and link of Legend of Zalda also have a stone cold diet
You know when you have a favourite movie, when you can see a random scene from it... like this one... watching it for the first time in years, and yet STILL be able to recite it word-for-word.
This movie is so dear to me, the animation, the music, it's so nostalgic. This scene has so deeply affected my ideas of magic, and how I'm doing my worldbuilding for my fantasy novel. Nobody I talk to has ever heard of this movie, but maybe one day I'll find someone I can show it too
My mother recorded this movie on VHS and called it "Dinosaurs".
it also started about 4 minutes in so I never knew the beginning.
But it was priceless in my childhood
This has been floating around in my mind, half-remembered for 35 years. I almost believed I had imagined this animated movie explaining how dragons ignite their fire with electricity in the roof of their mouth. I’m glad to finally see this again!
The dialouge of animated work in the 80s always had this soothing quality. You could write poems on the line delivery, the voice, the words they used. Real, in a magical sort of way. Relaxed and introspective.
From it's music to its film (i havent delved much into its literature), so much media from the 1980s always makes me feel this strange sense of nostalgia, this serene appreciation for life. It makes me feel some way no other thing has been capable of. Like everything's going to be all right, just slow down and have a good look at where you are.
"The meat you get's not worth pickin' out of yer teeth." That's how I feel about crabs' legs.
NaiTaiDai never had a good sized King Crab then.
5 years later, here to tell you that crab is delicious
I feel the same with wings
This movie was a miracle for me as a kid. It opened so so much to me and let me get away from even more. Thanks flight of dragons, and thanks 1980’s. You really were the magic and the science behind the best of me. Thanks a million times.
A film I almost forgot about. But what a disturbing and wonderful work of art. Something created in it's time, never to be truly repeated. A kids film, but with truly dark themes...if you watch the whole thing.
I remember borrowing this movie from the library as a kid, it was a huge delight and imprinted on me in a way a lot of things never did. This scene especially, I loved hearing the explanations and learning the story's unique way of detailing what otherwise would just be a mystery. I couldn't remember what this was called for the longest time, and am so happy to come across this snippet again. Thanks for uploading it.
talk about a parenting sentance "shut up and eat your limestone!"
Still one of my favorite childhood movies. I think my mom might still have the VHS copy we recorded from TV. "Shut up & eat your limestone!" & "By the beards of Antiquity, I went & merged them!" are still 2 of the best lines from it.
The Flight of Dragons was such an amazing movie, made my parents borrow it from the library for me to watch probably a dozen times as a kid. You can find it cheap on DVD, and it is worth it, go buy it now. They don't do anything like this with animation anymore, not in the West. Everything done by computer, when they hand drew or painted every last frame of this in a style we won't ever see again. Very similar to the 80's The Hobbit, possibly same animators.
The science is wrong, but not necessarily the logic. They never give us the average weight of a dragon after all, so even though they got the chemistry all wrong, "gas" is still a plausible explanation.
Which is, by the way, what makes this movie's many shortcomings forgivable. It's also why the red wizard died while everything else "magical" was allowed to live: Because the "magic" of everything else could be translated into science. I'd be willing to bet the villain's death was caused by his realization that he had been pulling trickery on his own mind, whereas the other three wizards would attribute their longevity to "potions" and "rituals" that would translate scientifically into diet and exercise.
Hey, put a spoiler warning on this thing, you lousy dwarf eater!
He could set up electrolysis equipment near a water source and produce hydrogen gas without needing to eat rocks. He would just need a way to generate electricity. The dwarves could probably take care of all of that.
Obviously, he was a psycher and the gods of chaos looked down upon him as he lost faith
@@dixievfd55 why? he generates electricity with his mouth
Omadon was the epitome of witchcraft and sorcery, concepts which used to be considered both powerful and frighteningly real. Sorcerers could summon demons and ghouls, cause harm with curses, etc, but we advanced as a society and left those notions of supernatural power behind, which is what this movie symbolized. Omadon was destroyed because he couldn’t deny the existence of logic and science the way his own power could be denied.
The shear number of lines on these dragons is crazy. I'd be surprised if any animators made it out with their sanity intact after creating this masterpiece.
I think there was a lot more heart and passion back then. Less corporate abuse like animation/anime artists deal with now
@@Wulfjager There was a lot more abuse that went unnoticed and a lot more underpaid out of country work to poor countries that had no choice
Especially given the movie had only _three_ key animators and four in-betweeners.
This story was loosely based off of a book called The Dragon and the George. While the animated version leaned more heavily into the scientific background of the main character coming from a modern world, the book version was more of a fish out of water story in which the main character simply surprises everyone by how civilized he is as a dragon, even as he sometimes fails to resist his dragon instincts. Overall, the book was funnier and a little more down to earth.
Yep, although the draconic anatomy and biochemistry is borrowed from the 1979 speculative biology book The Flight of Dragons by the actual Peter Dickinson.
@@Ozraptor4 ... So what you're saying is that at the end of the day it's a hodgepodge of two different books? IDK if I've ever heard of it before finding this video, to be honest, but I like what I see.
@@StarshadowMelody Yes, the film is a fusion of Dragon and the George (the 1976 fantasy novel by Gordon R. Dickson) and The Flight of Dragons (the 1979 spec-bio book by Peter Dickinson). The basic story arc (modern day protagonist, called Jim Eckert in the novel, who transforms into a dragon) and and most of the characters (Carolinus, Gorbash, Smrgol, Sir Neville-Smyth etc) come from Dragon and the George. The dragon biology and the overall design of the dragons (plus the film's title and the hero's name) is taken from The Flight of Dragons book.
The Flight of Dragons is my number 1 Dragon based movie, I watched it as a kid so many times, but looking at it now as a teenager and into science now, I I find this scientific explanation of dragons, As a person who loves dragons, I can confirm that this would be so true, Because think of it these way, think of how we make hot-air balloons fly, then think of a dragon, dragons are big and so they need something other than wings to give them lift, so think of the wings as a steering wheel helping them maneuver through places and helping them stay in the sky, so it's scientifically true for dragons to eat limestone and gems to make fire for takeoff.
You got to admire how far the author went to use science to explain how a fantasy world could function.
I watched this movie so many times when I was a kid. I'm glad it's not forgotten.
yes same
*rocking back and forth on a chair, sitting outside on the porch*
Ah, now this takes me back. I remember this movie, and others like The Last Unicorn and The Hobbit, checking them out from my local library on VHS! Had to walk 10 miles through the woods on a trail we made to get there! Those days were pretty good as a kid; got to go on an unsupervised adventure, and return home with treasure to enjoy on a Saturday afternoon.
Do kids these days even know what walking is? Pah!
Having zero context other than a love of dragons I cannot believe how smart this cartoon is
Man, I love some science in fantasy worlds. It makes things feel more realistic and believable.
The animation also actually looks amazing.
A very unique take on how fantasy worlds work in the eyes of someone who's never been in such a unique world.
One slight problem: limestone release carbon dioxide when dissolved by acid, not hydrogen.
Other than that, the rest _would_ check out, if that were the case.
The way the green dragon tries to explain how dragons fly and breath fire is kinda like that one really good dragon documentary called Dragons a Fantasy Made Real, I haven't watched the documentary in a while so I don't remember exactly how they explained it but it when something like this, in the documentary, how dragons flew and breathed fire was similar to this but instead of gems and limestone, the dragons just ate meat and had special bacteria in there stomachs that produced hydrogen, they also fed on platinum deposits and that's gave them the "spark" so to speak that helped the hydrogen they breathed out ignite with the oxygen in the air and boom, fire breath
The hydrogen also helped them keep aloft in the air while flying, despite having hollow bones the dragons still had small wings compared to their body size, hence the need for hydrogen, a gas lighter than air to help them fly, this was also kind of a 2 way streak, the same hydrogen the dragons needed to fly also fueled their fire breath, meaning they couldn't just breath fire all the time, mostly used as a weapon of last resort in territorial fights
That's all I remember, but very good documentary, highly recommend it to anyone who loves dragons and have been interested in seeing a more scientific approach to these amazing, sadly fantastical creatures
Plus it was made by the BBC, the same guys who did the Walking With Dinosaurs documentary series
Although there are 2 versions
One like Walking With Dinosaurs, narrated by Sir Patrick Stewart and soly focuses on the Dragons themselves and another version that's more like a Mockumentary about a paleontologist who's obsession with Dragons lends him to get his credibility nearly taken away until he's tasked with studying a possible actual frozen Dragon carcass found in the Carpathian Mountains of Romania
I recommend the one narrated by Sir Patrick Stewart more because it's of course more of the informative documentary style and not a drama
But both are good imo
I watched his religiously as a child in the 80’s on vhs. I didn’t fully understand what I was seeing or hearing. But seeing and hearing it now as an adult…it’s like a whole new movie with better understanding
I mean, this isn't what I was looking for when I searched "dragon inflation" but it seems like a cool movie.
I used to love this movie growing up, I wish fantasy was still this innocent and entertaining.
This video literally made me impulse buy the audiobook of the book this animation is based on, The Dragon and The George. It's an enjoyable read, especially since I LOVE fantasy stories with grounded, logical-thinking characters, like ones from a familiar world put in an extraordinary place.
That last line is a perfect way to shut down any argument
This is still one of my favourite films ever
And the name of it is?
@@blipblap8798 Flight of Dragons : )
I love this movie. Good film. I love dragons and I have to admit the way they did the explanation of how their fire breathing and flying makes it sound like they could really existed, which deep inside I love to think ^^
I have no idea that this movie existed, yet I sat and watched the whole thing. Certainly an interesting scene. I like the characterization of both dragons, and the voice acting of the red one is SO good! It feels like an actual conversation you just so happen to be eavesdropping on.
Well, it makes sense when you consider that this is a human in a dragon's body, and a very logical human at that. Of course he wants to know how his new body works.
This is great I'm amazed this gem traveled all throughout the rivers of time, 14 years before it reached me.
Same
YT just recommended something VERY random this time. I'm not complaining. This is very charming!
I had completely forgotten about this movie until it popped up in my recommendations.
I must have been very young when I watched it the first time, but now I'm experiencing a wave of nostalgia.
Jack Tripper & Inspector Frank Luger- R.I.P., John Ritter and James Gregory!!!
I love how this doesn't 'patronize' kids. It invites them to look at even fantasy in a rational, scientific way.
This reminds me so much of how they explained breathing fire & flying in The Last Dragon/Dragons: A Fantasy Made Real (2004)
I have never heard of this movie before and I don't know why this clip is getting recommended to me 14 years later, but I am intrigued.
I love when magic and science coexist and there's an interesting explanation for things like spells and whatelse.
I remember I came up with some ideas for psychic abilities, being that the brain's electromagnetic energy connects to the ever existing energy all over the air, meaning that the esper is concentrating that connection to control the flow of the fundamental forces of nature, which is a fancy way of saying "psychokinesis".
It now reminds me of how Final Fantasy 7 depicts its magic, being a biological ability the Cetra have, not specifically to deal with supernatural forces, but to control the actual abilities of the planet. Materia in particular being these crystals made out of the Lifestream's energy, which is basically where the souls of the planet come from, when equiped, can give humans the ability and knowledge that the Cetra had, allowing them to cast magic as well. In fact, the scientists of FF7's world didn't even want to call it "magic" as it felt unscientific, but they couldn't come up with any better term.
Heh, I rambled on a bit, I just love talking about stuff like this, and I wanted to get it off my chest ^^;
ooh, that’s a great comparison, actually!
The brain generally CAN influence a person's surroundings as was seen with a random number generator test where a certain number the person taking the test thinking of showing up more often. If there's a mass of people all sharing the same belief they probably could influence everything around them. In world war 1 a soldier hallucinated a ghost of his dead friend who tried to warn him about explosives being buried in their trench. Other people saw it too and they dug at the spot the ghost pointed to. Sure enough, there were bombs in the trench that were disposed of before they went off. It's possible either the bombs weren't there until people believed the hallucination and made them exist, or that ghosts are real but not the way they are often depicted in media
@@riddlerthediddler4392 You know the numbers are one thing but creating bombs out of nothing is a pretty far stretch tbh.
@@CheeseOfMasters No it isn't. You only say that because you've been groomed to believe only a narrow range of ideas. You're literally no different from the cave man that discovered fire. Actually, you're far more foolish than them.
@@hawhafunnyraffs5568 Lmao
I never saw this movie as a kid, and have never heard of it until recently a friend mentioned it while discussing some projects. I am kinda interested in the Rankin-Bass movies now, even the Lord of the Rings films too! The dragons are what drew me to this movie though, not because of some strange interest I may have, but what I could do with the inspiration I've found from them.
Now you made me feel old
This makes me feel like dragons are literally always a hiccup of muscle spasm away from exploding like the hindenburg
This movie gave me the plausability for all my future readings of how dragons fly when they were never drawn with large enough wings! Love this film!
saw this as a young child and loved the explanation so much that it stuck with me long after i forgot the title of the film!
cutest dragons on film ever 🌱
Meanwhile my dragons just pilot jets that they blow on a valve to trigger a flamethrower for intimidation tactics.
Umm yeah not so much. Calcium carbonate from limestone would mix with stomach acid to produce calcium chloride, CO2 gas, and water. CO2 is not only a fire suppressant, but heavier than air. So it's doing the exact OPPOSITE of helping him fly and breath flames!
Wouldn't their acid be different than a human's though and cause a different reaction?
The stomach acid of most creatures is hydrochloric acid. There are certain exceptions, for example some ants produce formic acid. However you will always end up with H2O, CO2, and something else. All acids contain hydrogen atoms. With formic acid that "something else" is calcium formate. With sulphuric acid, it would be calcium sulfate. The only way you can get elemental hydrogen gas is with pure calcium metal. And then, it doesn't matter what acid you use. The reason is that calcium carbonate has one calcium, one carbon, and 3 oxygen atoms. They all have to go somewhere in a reaction, so the hydrogen binds to the oxygen and produces water. In pure calcium metal you have only calcium to work with. There are no oxygen atoms in the reaction, so the hydrogen atoms from the acid simply become a gas as H2.
If you were to state that in the movie the most likely reply would be: "it's magic so who cares?"
Probably why I became a scientist in the mid 90's....as this fantasy stuff never made sense!
What if they release the CO2 though the... bottom valve? ;)
I loved this time....no alternative facts....just logic and open communication. Professionals were respected as such...and not watered down by ignorance. We need this back. I still dream we can.
Exhibit A on Why Dragons Are Awesome:
Belching = Fire breath
+ReversedShadows Big deal, I can do the same with flatulence.;)
@@Pynaegan Yes, but dragons can breathe fire without regret.
You, on the other hand, have kindling in between your butt cheeks. You WILL regret it. XD
@@Terastas I beg to differ...I have ASS-best-ass!
XD
So basically dragons burp when they breathe fire
Well then
Thank you for finally giving a name to a near-lost childhood memory
The movie was inspired I think by the series of books called " the Dragon and the George" . Similar stories but with alterations in the movie to speed it along. Love them both.
well. I finally found this movie. I was looking for it for the longest time and I had no idea what it was called or where to find it. I thought I just imagined watching it as a kid. But here I find it in my TH-cam recommended. Well done XD
This offended my bearded dragon
This clip randomly appeared in my reccomendations, and upon watching it, i just knew i had to watch this movie, and i'm glad i did. This film's take on dragon fire and flight is amazing and well grounded, i can easily see a real creature using these methods. This along with httyd are my favorite fantasy films of all time.
Oh, never mind about the "hydrogen in stomach" problem. The honey-combed muscle and bone that expands kinda defeats the problem that bloated animals deal with. When they eat rich food or something, the bacteria in their gut create a unnatural amount of gas, making their bellies bloat. When they bloat, their stomachs can't expand very well and they could die if they don't get the medicine and walked. Dragons have solved this problem with the honey-combed deal and the fire-breathing.
"NEVER HAD DIAMONDS IN YOUR CRAW?"
This clip was recommended completely out of the blue, and now I'm absolutely in love with it.
Yeah, this is pretty much is the best explanation for this that we've come up with so far, isn't it?
The irony of this is that it is physiologically backwards. That sort of messy circuit does exist in nature from time to time, so it passes muster, but the limestone isn't the hydrogen source at all.
Calcite is made of calcium, oxygen, and carbon. When introduced to even a weak acid, like the very dilute acids of a stomach, it reacts almost immediately by releasing a gas. But the hydrogen component comes out of the acid. That's what acid is -- a solution of water that has free-floating hydrogen ions. And those ions are introduced through the stomach lining, having been processed from other things the creature has eaten.
The limestone is a way for dragons to cause their stomach acids to release a chemical that their own bodies introduced to the stomach in a nearly pure form.
I can almost hear Ian McShane doing the voicework for Smrgol.
I can see him voicing Bryagh too.
Red: Intuition v. Green: Logic.
They mentioned having a crop? OMG Dickinson appears to have had accepted the bird/dino link before it was mainstream
"And the word Raptor means bird of prey"
This just came completely out of nowhere in my recommended and I've been trying to unlock what this movie was in my brain for a solid decade. All I remembered was an 80s looking animated movie that had dragons in it and nothing else
lol those poor dwarves
wow, this style and animation is genuinely stunning along with the concept,,,,,, i have to watch this movie
Well, its kinda cool to see talking dragons.
Oh my God, I've been trying to find this movie for decades! One of my favorites as a child.
i feel happy for you bro.
I know that exact feeling of trying to find something
"I never had a craw."
"Shut up and eat your limestone."
A puny Man word if I ever heard one, Smergol. XD
I never knew this movie existed.....I NEED TO SEE IT!!! This is SO cool!!!
It's fun. Flight of Dragons
Holy crap - I saw this when I was a kid and have had no idea what it was until NOW! And... honestly - this looks better than the VHS we used to watch it on.
You're also watching it on a better screen, even if you're watching it on a phone.
@@Mark73 Ok, valid point. My pops had the best of everything back then - but yeah, screens are much more clear than anything we had back then.
Damn I remember this movie looking a lot different from what I saw as a kid damn over active imagination.
@@scottyrose9106 Flight of Dragons... It in the description just above the show more.
"Aww, shut up and eat your limestone" is going to be my new closer.
It's just the right mix of dismissal and respectfulness. 👍
Oh God I love this movie!
This is like a fever dream seeing this so many years later. I had completely forgotten this!