Of course I played Dungeons and Dragons as a kid. It shouldn’t be that surprising. I grew up in the Reagan-era 1980s, a nerdy kid who didn’t respond to sports, couldn’t relate to insecure machismo, and had a father who was a product of the World War II generation. He wanted me to play sports and likely envisioned a son who was a strapping he-man. Instead, he got Dweebosaurus Rex, which I’m sure was a source of…ah…let’s go with consternation.

Of course I play Dungeons and Dragons as an adult. In fact, I’m in a D&D campaign right now. A group of us from college meet about once a month. Our long-suffering and underappreciated dungeon master Keith* has to reckon with a couple of clerics who worship occasionally unhelpful deities, a sorcerer with a slight problem with wild magic, a stoic paladin, and a relentlessly cheerful monk with the impulse control of a toddler. Does the experience bond us all together tightly as a group and as friends? I’m not sure I’d go that far, but it’s definitely an experience that’s frequently misunderstood and frequently loved.

If you’re someone with an awareness of American culture, you surely remember the Satanic Panic of the 80s. The kinds of people making life awful for trans kids now are the same kinds of people who were certain that D&D was a one-way path to Beelzebub and the lake of fire. It never was, of course, but those people were only ever fueled by fear. They could never understand the rush of imagination, the feeling of a group collectively telling and reacting to a story.

Maybe you want to experience that rush for yourself. The best way to do it is to join a D&D group.** The second best way is to watch Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, a fast and funny blockbuster that restores the battered franchise*** back to its pride of place.

Jail sucks. Edgin (Chris Pine) can attest to that. He’s a smooth-talking bard, who’s not quite smooth enough to keep himself out of the pokey. Edgin has been cooling his heels for two years, and the possibility of a pardon looms. At least he’s not alone, since he’s got Holga (Michelle Rodriguez) to keep him company. She’s both his sister from another mother and a tough-as-nails barbarian, so when his mouth gets them in trouble, her fists get them out.

As much as jail sucks, what really sucked were the circumstances that landed them there. After the death of his wife, Edgin was desperate to raise his daughter Kira (Chloe Coleman) in a decent environment. Along with Holga, he put together a team including the slimy rogue Forge (Hugh Grant) and the confidence-challenged sorcerer Simon (Justice Smith). They embark upon a quest to gain both treasure and a resurrection tablet, with which to bring Edgin’s beloved back from the great beyond. Unfortunately, Forge has partnered with the Red Wizard Sofina (Daisy Head), with betrayal in mind. He double-crosses them, which lands Edgin and Holga in jail. Rubbing salt on the wound, he also decides to raise Kira as his own daughter, which is kind of a dick move.

Anyway, after a daring and possibly pointless jailbreak, Edgin and Holga are free. They quickly learn that Forge has done very well for himself, so much so that he’s become the Lord of Neverwinter. Sofina has some extremely unpleasant plans afoot, but what does Forge care? He’s got Kira, the resurrection tablet, and a breathtaking amount of treasure secured within what looks like an impenetrable castle. He’s also got an escape plan, for when things go in an apocalyptic direction.

Our heroes decide it’s time to form a team to perform a heist/rescue. In short order, they coerce/bully Simon into joining them. They also welcome to the party Doric (Sophia Lillis), a shape changing druid and Xenk (Rege-Jean Page), an annoyingly noble paladin. The team will speak to the dead, try to nab a mystical helm, and encounter a winged beastie who clearly needs to learn about portion control. 

After reading that plot summary, you might be thinking, “Hey, this doesn’t sound like a bunch of Bilbo Baggins-type nonsense! You’re talking about a heist movie!” Very astute, Imaginary Commenter, I am! There are people out there for whom the idea of a Dungeons and Dragons movie is an unreasonably heavy lift. Directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein have made some very canny decisions that honor the legacy of D&D while welcoming newcomers who don’t have the foggiest idea what THAC0 is.

First, Goldstein and Daley know that the primary component of D&D is fun. Instead of a grimdark Game of Thrones approach, Honor Among Thieves has a brisk pace paired with a charming and light touch. Their goal was to make a kick-ass crowdpleaser, and in that respect, they succeeded admirably. The other challenge that Goldstein and Daley were faced with was balancing the “regular” audience with the fanbase. Consider that as of this January, around fifty million people played D&D, and those people know a thing or two. As a result, Goldstein and Daley struck a particular balance by neither mocking the lore of D&D nor stomping on the brakes to yell, “HEY, NERDS! LOOK AT THE THING!” You don’t need to know what a displacer beast is, but it’s in there all the same. There were so many references and critters that meant nothing to me, but the way they’re presented goes beyond fan service. It helped to create a world that feels lived in.

In a way, the screenplay by Goldstein, Daley, and Gilio is like a D&D roleplaying session come to life. There’s a feeling of watching an adventure run by a playful dungeon master and played by people champing at the bit to think outside the box. As a result, that also creates a bit of an episodic narrative, where the characters must perform a bunch of side quests in order to win the main quest. That’s a feature instead of a bug, and in less skilled hands, it would feel like a slog. The script’s puckish sense of humor keeps things lively, as well as the entertaining characterization.

By and large, the cast does good work and digs into the meaty script. Chris Pine and Michelle Rodriguez as Edgin and Holga are the comedy team I never knew I wanted. Granted, having Pine play a wiseass and Rodriguez a badass isn’t exactly novel casting. But the chemistry they have with each other brings out some dimensions in them I haven’t seen before. That’s particularly true with Rodriguez, who doesn’t often get to be funny in other roles. Here, she’s got a sly wit that pairs nicely with Pine’s quipping.

Hugh Grant has moved on from the stuttering Englishman in rom-coms portion of his career, and in recent years he’s graduated to the oily son of a bitch phase. As Forge, he’s having a ball playing a conniving scumbag. I liked Justice Smith’s Simon, and it’s almost as if he’s the comic relief to Pine and Rodriguez’s comic relief. The only performance that felt lacking was Sophia Lillis as Doric. She’s not the problem, it’s her underwritten role that’s a problem. Everyone else has some degree of a character arc, whereas Doric has vague broad strokes about not trusting humans and fending off the clumsy romantic advances of Simon. If Lillis’ role had been more defined, I’m confident she would have nailed it.  

Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is an absolute blast of a blockbuster. It sets out to entertain its audience, and completes that quest with wit and good cheer. As much as I think you’ll dig it, I really hope it inspires you to take the plunge into D&D tabletop gaming. 

 

*Keith, our group doesn’t owe you a beer. We owe you all the beer.

**How are you supposed to do that? First, take a look at D&D Beyond, which allows you to take a look at the rules, information, and easily create a character. Next, for info on finding a group, check this out.

***It’s true, prior to this film, there have been three previous movies in the D&D franchise. They are, and I’m putting this as kindly as I can, not ideal.

Tim Brennan
Tim has been alarmingly enthusiastic about movies ever since childhood. He grew up in Boulder and, foolishly, left Colorado to study Communications in Washington State. Making matters worse, he moved to Connecticut after meeting his too-good-for-him wife. Drawn by the Rockies and a mild climate, he triumphantly returned and settled down back in Boulder County. He's written numerous screenplays, loves hiking, and embarrassed himself in front of Samuel L. Jackson. True story.  
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