In the run-up to the release of Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein (Game Night) have made it clear that they’re big fans of the iconic tabletop role-playing game, and it shows.
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is a fun fantasy romp that throws us in with a ragtag band of adventurers as they set off on an action-packed and very funny quest that lives and breathes the spirit of the game.
Before unpacking the film, it’s worth noting that fans unfamiliar with D&D’s history shouldn’t shy away from the movie. Whilst there are plenty of references that longtime fans will no doubt appreciate, you won’t lose out if you don’t know your owlbears from your displacer beasts before you sit down in the movie theater.
The plot of Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves effectively takes the form of a heist movie, with the welcome ability to incorporate plenty of elements of the game’s weird and wonderful magical world.
Transporting us to the typical high fantasy world of the Forgotten Realms, the D&D movie introduces us to the bard Edgin Darvis (Chris Pine) and fearsome warrior, Holga Kilgore (Michelle Rodriguez).
Along with the hapless sorcerer Simon Aumar (Justice Smith) and roguish fop, Forge Fitzwilliam (Hugh Grant), they carried out a series of thefts in the past. After a job to retrieve an artifact capable of bringing Edgin’s wife back from the dead went south, the group subsequently disbanded.
Following their escape from prison, Ed and Holga set out on a quest to recover the item for a second time, and assemble a new party to do so, bringing Simon and the object of his affection — a shapeshifting druid called Doric (Sophia Lillis) —into the fold. From there, Ed's crew puts their powers to use to try and get the artifact back all over again.
Our extremely likable cast is the highlight of the film. The chemistry this found family shares on-screen really helps the film capture the same feeling as a session of Dungeons and Dragons, with each member of the core group showcasing their jokes, skills (and flaws!) throughout. Holga’s brawn is shown off in brutal fight scenes that don’t cheat the action with quick cuts, Simon frequently tests his magical mettle, Doric employs her shapeshifting magic to crunchy effect, and Chris Pine’s winning charisma serves as the glue that holds the group together.
The standouts, though, were the film’s secondary characters. Rege-Jean Page’s humorless Paladin, Xenk Yendar, clashes perfectly with the chaotic vibe that our core four puts out. Xenk’s so strait-laced that he only walks in a straight line and can’t comprehend irony but loves a stirring speech. Meanwhile, Hugh Grant draws on the same energy he put on display so brilliantly in Paddington 2 as Forge Fitzwilliam, delivering another gleefully glib performance in the process.
Tonally, Honor Among Thieves is far lighter than your typical fantasy flick, so it’s good to know it impresses on the comedy front. Wisecracking comedy is so common in big-budget movies these days, but it’s very refreshing to have the jokes land quite as frequently as they did here. The team also finds time to poke fun at the quirks of the original game, such as in a sequence that had the whole audience in stitches where the party wrestles with the limitations of a spell when forced to resurrect the dead for information.
Visually, the film’s a genuine treat. Daley and Goldstein have made use of the vast array of fantasy settings, spells, and creatures available and conjured them up in vivid detail through a combination of practical and digital effects, paired with beautifully detailed real sets that make the world really come alive.
Admittedly, those effects do vary in quality at points but the creativity that’s gone into bringing things to life on screen more than makes up for such a small quibble. In particular, the masterfully executed final duel with Sofina (a genuinely menacing Daisy Head) that sees everyone using their unique powers against her stands head and shoulders over the typical act three slugfest you might be used to in films of a similar ilk.
If there was a downside to find, it was the story. There are slightly too many MacGuffins that the group needs to get hold of in order to advance in their quest, and occasionally the forward momentum was interrupted by sudden exposition dumps. The action sequences peppered throughout more than makes up for these dips in energy, but the occasional baggy narrative does run counter to the rollercoaster ride that Honor Among Thieves otherwise is.
Minor grumbles aside, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves exceeded my expectations and delivered a royally fun fantasy flick that serves as a real love letter to the source material. Anyone looking for an early start to this year’s blockbuster season should gather their own party and give it a go.
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves hits theaters on Friday, March 31.
