The Mosley Review: Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Like all of you, I have been starving for a good high fantasy epic that was fun, feels fresh and tangible. I too was there for the opening night of what would go down in history as one of the worst representations of a beloved fantasy game. The 2000 version of Dungeons & Dragons was........well, garbage. I had fun with certain aspects of that film as a kid, but even I didn't know what the film was trying to accomplish. Fast forward 23 years later and the titular game has reached a new height in popularity. I myself have never played but thanks to shows like Critical Role, Stranger Things, and my entry point The Legend of Vox Machina, I have become a little more versed in the terminology, creatures, classes and rules. I learned that anything goes as you the player are thrust into a new world that the dungeon master has crafted and how the roll of the dice determines your fate and the fate of your fellow party members. That's exactly the feeling I got from this film and I was happy to see that the filmmakers did their homework and made a fun experience of a film. Did it always hit its mark as an engaging and compelling story though? Not really. Yeah there is alot of cheesy storytelling and dialogue in the film that I felt could've flowed better. The film had hilarious moments of comedy and joy, but lacked the necessary depth that could've been mined from such a rich set up. The story was incredibly predictable and there was so much happening at times that it was dizzying. It couldn't truly hone in on what tone they were going for. A number of characters were very surface level and a particular characters' story payoff wasn't earned at all and rushed.
Chris Pine was fun and charming as the bumbling bard Edgin Darvis. I loved his sense of humor along the adventure and how he played an unconventional type of hero which was that was refreshing. Chloe Coleman is always a joy to see on screen and as his daughter Kira, she was good. Their chemistry was good in the film as we get to see their strained relationship play out. Michelle Rodriguez was really fun as the barbarian Holga Kilgore. She's gets the majority of the action sequences in the film and she handles them as great as you'd expect. Her friendship with Edgin was the soul of the film and her motherly bond with Kira was great. Justice Smith was good as the half-elf sorcerer Simon Aumar. I liked his mixture of using practical items and actual magic. He struggle to become self-confident was interesting to watch, but it felt extremely rushed as he reaches a resolution that didn't feel earned. Sophia Lillis was decent as the tiefling druid Doric. I thought her escape sequence was amazingly shot and the variety of animals she changes into was well executed, but she was a very one note character. Her backstory gives the reason for constant stoic nature, but doesn't really give her much to do outside of that. Hugh Grant was mostly playing himself as the rogue con man Forge Fitzwilliam. He was good, but he felt more like a greedy game show host that kept his word, but in a round about way. Regé-Jean Page was perfect as the paladin, Xenk Yendar. He truly had fun being the stereotypical pure hearted hero to the point where it is almost comical how straight and narrow the character was. He had an awesome fight scene in the second act of the film and it was wonderfully shot. Daisy Head was very much the antagonist of the film Sofina, a Red Wizard of Thay. She had one mode in the film and that was be creepy while rarely blinking. She nailed it and she felt like the mid level boss in a video game that has some challenge, but is easily defeated once you see the pattern.
The score by Lorne Balfe was epic and fun in the best way. There were moments where the score overpowered the sound in the film that it almost drowned out the dialogue. Visually the film is stunning and the effects were excellent. The dragon sequence and final battle of the film were a visual spectacle. What I truly loved was the practical creatures in the film and how gorgeous they looked. The opening scene blew me away with the use of more practical locals and creatures. The sound design in the film was good, but unbalanced when it came to dialogue and the surrounding thunderous sounds made it hard to understand what was said. As I said before, the character growth was truly rushed and the tone was a bit all over the place. The extremely predictable plot and weak villains made for an almost inconsequential finale. So the real questions need to be asked. Was it better than the 2000 film? Alot better. Was it the best high fantasy storytelling I've seen a long time? Nope. Was it enjoyable? Yeah, in that streaming on Netflix type of way. To me this was good matinee film that plays it safe and doesn't leave you with anything that’s particularly memorable. I would like to see a sequel or another film under the D&D brand, but this time more focused and a little bit more serious. I liked the fun aspect of it, but there were times where it seriously needed to grow up. Let me know what you thought of the film or my review in the comments below. Thanks for reading!
