Runtime: 2 hours, 14 minutes
Rating: PG-13
Directors: John Francis Daily, Jonathan Goldstein
Quick Impressions:
My husband has been so excited for this movie. For months! I think he’s more excited than the cast. Entertainment reporters should interview him. (I can imagine him on the champagne carpet talking to Ashley Graham. When she asked about his outfit, he could gush, “This is Critical Role merch! Feel how soft it is!” (It is the softest shirt ever. I don’t blame him for being happy about it. It’s pretty glorious, a purple button up, covered in Critical Role stuff, and a size smaller than he usually wears, too!))
I woke up, saying, “It’s Jeoparday!” and he replied, “Time for the Dungeons and Dragons movie!” Hooray!
I was less excited, just because—well. Remember Dungeons and Dragons from 2000? (Apparently, I don’t! I thought I was remembering it, but then, turns out, I was thinking of Eragon. My husband always talks about Jeremy Irons chewing scenery, and I’m always like, “Yeah…yeah…” But I guess he’s also in Eragon. I’m going to assume Jeremy Irons passionately loves dragons—because I want to believe that.) There haven’t been a lot of great D&D movies. (As a kid, I liked Dragonslayer, but that’s not really D&D. I also liked Mazes and Monsters—because it was just so…earnestly misguided? I remember my mom telling me as we watched, “You have to understand, back when this first came out, the public had a lot of fears about Dungeons & Dragons.”)
I did like the short-lived 80s cartoon series. (“It’s the Dungeons & Dragons ride!”) My husband and I found that whole series on eBay and showed it to our oldest when he was five. It doesn’t hit quite the same as an adult, but it’s still fun.
My husband loves D&D. We play with the kids (because when the age range is 20-7, it’s sometimes tricky to find an activity everyone will enjoy). He’s always the DM. (I thought about DMing once. I did create my own campaign when I was pregnant with my son, but I ended up incorporating most elements into a novel instead of running it.) We’ve been through several campaigns together by now. We roll new characters every time and always try to outdo each other with our convoluted backstories. (I discovered in our first campaign that when I played a disdainful moon elf librarian wizard, the kids always thought I was mad at them in real life, so I quickly switched to a fire genasi rogue who talked like Captain Jack Sparrow and always broke into every building, reason be damned.)
This movie is fun if you play premade D&D campaigns (which we usually do) because all the place names are like little Easter Eggs. (By the way, if you’re a fan of D&D Easter Eggs, keep your eyes peeled for the characters from the 1980s cartoon.)
We seem to be entering a golden age of D&D on screen. Between Stranger Things and Critical Role (plus its animated Amazon series), there’s plenty of D&D content on TV. But Stranger Things only takes light inspiration from D&D, and Critical Role is really for an adult audience. This movie seems like fun for the whole family. Honestly, the PG-13 rating baffles me. Maybe they wanted that rating. This seems family friendly to me. (I think at one point I heard some profanity from Chris Pine while he was getting dragged through the streets by a monster, but in that situation, what do you expect him to say?)
I was pleasantly surprised by Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. There’s plenty to like. If you go wanting to enjoy it, you will. And it should thrill kids. This movie would have delighted me to death when I was a child.
The Good:
Most of the jokes are funny, which is a huge component of why the movie does work. They’re not “fall down in the aisle rolling with laughter” funny. Nor are they the cleverest thing you’ve ever heard. But they’re funny enough. Chris Pine has good timing. Even when his jokes don’t quite work, you think, “Well, you seem like a funny guy. You’ve already demonstrated that. So I’ll smile.”
I mention this first because the movie is trying to be a good-natured comedy (probably to replicate the vibe of a D&D session you might have with your friends). So if it tried to be consistently funny throughout and never was, it would be a horrible movie, arduous to endure. But it is funny, for the most part. Usually, the humor is kind of silly. That’s why I think it would be good for families. Unlike Critical Role where the storylines are sometimes legitimately dark, and the humor is always extremely bawdy, this is just kind of gentle goofiness. There are moments when the jokes are situational, but most of the film’s best humor comes from awkward character dynamics.
I would never have thought of pairing Chris Pine and Michelle Rodriguez, but they have great screen chemistry and are very funny together. One of my favorite exchanges is their debate about sending a message by arrow. It also works to the film’s advantage that Edgin the Bard (Pine) comes across as the sort of guy who always goes for the joke, so naturally, his jokes don’t always land. That plays as true to life.
So the movie is enjoyable and has the same vibe you’ll often get playing D&D. Expect fun, adventure, some dark elements, peril, yes. But underlying all of that, there’s an atmosphere of relaxed joking, like you’ll find among friends playing together.
The co-writer/directors also wrote Spiderman: Homecoming, so I guess I shouldn’t have gone into this so suspicious, but the film’s theatrical trailers didn’t do enough to assuage my initial doubts about its quality.
The other characters are good, too. The character I’d most like to play (in a campaign) is Doric, the shapeshifting Druid. (In fact, it our most recent campaign—which has been on pause for the past several months—I am a gnome Druid with wild shape). I thought I recognized Sophia Lillis from Sharp Objects, but it would have made more sense to have recognized her from It where she has a much larger role. (But I don’t often think of that movie because I find the townspeople so unpleasant.)
As played by Justice Smith, Simon the sorcerer reminded me so much of a friend of mine. He had the same facial expressions, same despairing sardonic pessimism, same general demeanor. He’s often very funny, too.
And Regé-Jean Page (who I always think of as “the hot guy from Bridgerton,” despite the fact that I’ve never seen Bridgerton and don’t care if he’s hot) has so many memeable moments. (I’m not trying to insult his looks in any way. I just find it funny that I think of him that way as if it’s a Homeric epithet. How did that get into my head? Maybe it’s because I’m always taking Buzz Feed quizzes.) He would say a line, and I’d want to freeze the frame and capture it forever. The character’s manner of speaking really resonated with me. It kept reminding me of stuff. And the actor delivers those lines so impeccably. (I absolutely loved his last exit, too.)
Of course, Hugh Grant is funny. He’s always funny. I found the way the film handles his character pretty interesting, but I really can’t say why without spoilers.
If you like D&D creatures, you’ll probably find this fun. My husband is really hopeful our seven-year-old might watch this film in the theater. He keeps playing up the “chonky boi dragon,” sure this will get his attention. (“I want to know the backstory of that dragon,” my husband said. I replied, “I want to know why they stabbed it in the head and then were outraged it got mad at them!”)
We get to see all the stuff my kids adore most—a mimic, an owl bear. (My husband somehow managed to work a shocking number of owl bears into our campaigns just because the kids love them so much.)
While the plot is not exactly wildly original—because it’s supposed to feel like a real D&D campaign, and usually those do follow certain beats—the story concludes in a pleasingly neat way. I like the way an object they acquire, a vow they make, and a conspicuous trait of a character are integral to the resolution. That’s how D&D should work. And the human story—the part that made both my husband and me actually cry—is a welcome bonus I never expected.
Also during one intense scene when everyone is running through a maze, I suddenly noticed, “The score is certainly ratcheting up the peril here,” so I should add that Lorne Balfe’s music did enhance my viewing experience.
The film is full of beautifully decorated sets, elaborate costumes, and gorgeous locales. Had it been released when I was a fantasy-loving child, I would have died of joy.
Best Action Sequence:
Action is not usually the part of a movie that excites me. But…I was once a little girl who loved magic. (And now I’m an adult woman whose novels always seem to involve covens.)
And boy do I love that hither/thither thing! I found that sequence with the wagon and the painting just riveting. It’s magical to watch. I’m also big on schemes and antics! So this scene just ticked all the boxes for me.
Best Scene Visually:
One scene fairly early on—when Edgin and Holga (Rodriguez) are waiting to be received by Forge (Hugh Grant) looks so impressive on screen that I made a point of remembering it. I love the angles of the castle interior, the framing of the shot. Elements of their positioning seem a bit symbolic to me, as well.
I also love the moment when Sofina (Daisy Head) notices a spy in the room. Her reaction becomes so…next level. (How is everyone not more alarmed to be around her?)
Best Scene:
I was surprisingly won over by watching Plan A) evolve into Plans B-D). (Were there more plans? I can’t remember.) As this all happened, I couldn’t decide if it annoyed or pleased me, but finally I found I respected the moral delivered by this sequence.
Best, though, is the tear-jerker finale. (“I never expected that to happen,” my husband noted. “And I never expected to cry.” I replied, “I did think it might happen. His apology to his daughter sort of sets it up, but I wasn’t sure that’s where the movie was going. And I didn’t expect to cry either.” Yet we were both sitting there with tears streaming down our cheeks.)
The Negatives:
After the movie, I said to my husband, “You know I love witches, and I think Sofina is cool, but is that dumbest scheme in the world?” Certain elements of the villains’ wicked plot rely on very specific things happening (or, more accurately, not happening). Given the level of relentless evil planned, the scope seems weirdly limited. It seems like this could have gone wrong on its own without interference from anyone. If I were planning evil on such a large scale, I’d cast a wider net when executing my scheme.
I wish that Sofina got more development in general. I love the way that Daisy Head plays her. And she is actually in the movie quite a bit. And I guess we do get a pretty deep peek into her plans. (Actually I don’t know what I’m complaining about. I just love evil sorceresses, so I always want more, I guess.)
My second complaint is much more minor. Given the promise of the scene with the bodies in the coffins, I think the sequence could have been much, much funnier. It still works well in terms of narrative. I like the running joke of the flashbacks, and the story progresses smoothly. It’s just—it’s a set up so rife with promise of hilarious jokes. And they could do more with it. I’m sure they could.
All told, I have few complaints about Dungeons & Dragons. It far exceeded my expectations. Initially, I was happy to go with husband to a movie he was so excited about, but based on the trailers and the concept, I was wary. I shouldn’t have been. This is a pretty good movie. If you go wanting to like it, I don’t see why you wouldn’t.
Overall:
My husband loved Dungeons & Dragons, and I liked it, too. We’re probably going back on Saturday to see it with the kids (if we can drag along our Tabaxi companion who because of an enchantment is a child in an adult’s body and has an erratically short attention span). I think I can honestly say this is the best Dungeons & Dragons movie I’ve ever seen (and possibly the only one I’ve ever seen because I may be mixing the other one up with Eragon). This seems like a promising start to a franchise. I’m curious to see what (if anything) they do next.