Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Rekindles RPG Magic

There was more riding on this movie being a success than a skill check on a door riddled with traps. And much like any skill check, the result was uncertain at its launch.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves gives us a group of characters that are relatable to how players would act during a campaign. Some are overly charismatic (Chris Pine’s Bard, Edgin), others are grouchy (Michelle Rodriguez’s Barbarian, Holga). All of them bring something to the table.

The characters were delightful to watch, as they had great chemistry together and the story wasn’t too demanding of them. The plot was easy enough to follow and it all played out precisely how you would expect with some predictability, but the movie was not made to make you think. It was created for fans of the game and for general audiences to enjoy lots of eye candy between magic and monsters. There’s plenty of action to keep general audiences busy, and most fans of fantasy will enjoy the world, even if they didn’t play D&D.

The most disappointing thing about the movie is the fact that AMC Theaters drastically underestimated the deman for the 20-sided Dice Popcorn bucket.

Dialogue 3.5/5

There were a lot of really good things about the dialogue in this movie. The actors had good exchanges and the jokes landed perfectly, for the most part. Some of Chris Pine’s dialogue suffered in the beginning as it was hard to understand what he was saying (sound issue?) and Michelle Rodruiguez had the worst line in the movie; as appropriate as it was, it just felt really awkward. Hugh Grant suffered through constant rambling that you reminded you of the one person at the table who just liked to hear themselves talk.

Acting 4.5/5

Everyone did a fantastic job with the material they were given and there was even a surprise appearance by a particular actor who is most notable for being a ‘trash panda’. It appeared that everyone embraced their character’s nuances and really seemed to enjoy being a part of the film. Even the young Chloe Coleman, who is a rising star, did an exceptional job portraying her conflict and confusion as the story evolved around her.

Sound 4/5

As I mentioned earlier, the beginning of the movie had some sound issues that made some of the dialogue hard to understand. I was at an AMC theater with Dolby Digital sound and the rest of the movie seemed perfectly fine. But where the sound failed the actors, it absolutely excelled as a compliment to the visual effects and action. 
 

Visual Effects 4.5/5

I wanted to give this 5 out of 5 because everything from magic to fantasy creatures were so beautifully done. The biggest blemish were scenes of Pine and Rodriguez on horseback and you could absolutely tell they were NOT on horseback. They were clearly on some rig and being bounced around irregularly and it just looked awful and at some points took me out of the movie.

Cinematography 3/5

Nice visuals for wide shots and the movie benefitted from excellent lighting. Nothing appeared to be washed out of any scene. It wasn’t horrible and it wasn’t Oscar worthy, it just ‘was’. And for a movie like this, you didn’t need it to win an award, you just needed it to be a part of the movie; which it was.

Was it a BLAST or a BUST? Overall this movie was a BLAST and worth the price of admission. If you're hesitant about the cost (as prices on everything continues to rise) treat yourself to a matinee. What did you think of the movie? Feel free to comment below.