It was a pretty smooth affair but honestly I'm not sure I understand the difference between this any 90% of the MCU films. It's by that calculation a generic action blockbuster. I hear a lot of people saying this movie doesn't deserve to be this good with barely suppressed glee. I just don't see it. I'm a fan of science fiction and fantasy. I sporadically watched the D&D cartoon as a child. I enjoyed to an extent the previous D&D movie.

I just don't see anything in this movie worth getting overly excited over as someone who isn't steeped in D&D lore. That said this movie is like an MCU movie if it wasn't stuck with the framework of having to fit itself into a (at this point fairly rigid) context. It doesn't have to account for Captain America or give a nod to Marvel's Captain Marvel or have cameo by photograph of the Hulk or have Shield logo on some paperwork. This is an MCU movie if it wasn't beholden to the rest of the MCU. I mean there's a bloody hulk smashing scene at the end. Everyone loved that scene in The Avengers. it gets referenced every 5.8 MCU films. Here we have the fantasy version. It's still funny it's just.... well I've seen it before.

Maybe if you were into the D&D modern lore this might feel different. There were certainly nods I recognized by name only and certainly things I felt certain were nods I didn't understand. Unlike say Dune where I can understand how important a sandworm must be to this story even without reading it. I don't care about displacer beast. Looking back that was probably an audience clap moment. I was more impressed with the mimic myself.

But it's fun enough. I call it generic. I imply it's reductive but walking out of the movie I was very satisfied. Not the best thing I've ever seen. Not even the best blockbuster I've ever seen. But as a movie it was good and effective. I'd even watch it again. Even if it does have an overly-perfect-dead-wife trope.

For any who have pondered what it would look like in our post-_Lord of the Rings_, superhero blockbuster era if somebody tried making _The Princess Bride_, _Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves_ is your answer. It's an ambitious swing that results in a solid hit, if not a classic. And while it falls short of being a viable launching pad for a new universe of IP-based media content, it is an all-around fun watch that will entertain and perhaps even delight you, so long as you don't stare too hard at some of the frayed plot edges. The cast is all aces (though Chris Pine is - surprisingly - the weakest link among them), and the script from Jonathan Goldstein, John Francis Daley, & Michael Gilio is solid. Even when they're making jokes at its expense, the filmmakers show a deep respect for the source material, though they're not always interested in being 100% faithful to it. Genre films that don't take themselves too seriously can be lots of fun. See the afore-mentioned _The Princess Bride_ or _Eric the Viking_ (which clearly had an influence here) for great examples. But the flip side of irreverence is a deprioritization of world-building. Case in point, there's no sense of place, as the team jumps from region to region and nothing is explored. Another issue is magic- one moment we're getting an explanation of why magic can't just solve everything, and - literally - the next we get the introduction of a new magic MacGuffin. ("See? You **can** magic your way in!" one character says.) Magic has rules, apparently, but they are almost never explained or followed- except when they serve to present an obstacle for the characters to overcome. There's an order of spies & supposed defenders of justice that one of the main characters was once a part of, but we never see any of them. At the center of the plot is the fact that there's a vast kingdom bordering the region of Neverwinter that's ruled by an all-powerful cadre of Red Wizards who command an army of the undead. Yet why isn't the entire society on a war footing? All of this and more is glossed over in favor of jokes and madcap adventure. To be clear, the madcap adventure is fun and the fan service is subtle enough to be accessible to novices (a really neat trick, that), but as I was watching I just kept feeling like this could be so much _more_.

Tolkien's work demands dedicated, detailed craftsmanship from the people who want to translate it to the big screen. Why is it that _Dungeons & Dragons_ doesn't warrant the same kind of effort? And what would a movie (or prestige TV series) from this talented team of filmmakers look like if it did? I hope that we can find out someday.

Silly and cringe at times, but the good kind, the kind that's mixed in with some clever and genuinely funny comedy. A fun time from beginning to end, I was laughing throughout and the runtime went by quickly. The action sequences are intense and some of the best i've seen this year, my favorite was the [spoiler]animal transforming to get out of the city[/spoiler] it was butt clenching and so thrilling. The characters are fun, likable and I like the interactions. Michelle Rodriguez's Holga is my favorite and damn is she good in action sequences, an instant badass.

As a casual D&D player I enjoyed what they did with it. There's this thing when you play a game of D&D where you can pretty much make your character do anything you want to beat whatever the game throws at you. However crazy the idea the player has, all that's required is 1. The game master has to approve that it's understandably logical within his game. And 2. Roll the dices and let fate choose if it's a hit or a miss. They did that a lot in the movie. Some of the things the characters do feel jarring, silly and sometimes hella convenient for what's happening but from a D&D perspective it makes total sense. You think your character conveniently has the object that solves the current problem hidden in his bag, sure just roll the dices.

I hope this gets a sequel!

The numerous manuals on my shelves for 1st to 5e speak volumes of my familiarity with the game, as does the novels I own, and the numerous D&D computer games I've played, so I was ecstatic seeing the places, people, and creatures I know very well. I've heard others who have played the game say they wished they had done a movie about characters like Elminster, Drizzt Do'Urden, or Alias instead. While they would have been nice to see, those characters are from the lore not the game. What I was more hoping for was that the characters in this movie felt like the characters the players play, the adventures they go on, and the antics they get themselves into. This movie felt like that in spades, and it was an absolute joy to see. I watched this and was constantly reminded of the crazy things I did as a player or watched others do as their DM, and more importantly the fun we had playing the game we all loved. This is why I give it my highest recommendation to all others who have played the game, and especially to those who have not so they may see for themselves what Dungeons & Dragons is really about. 8/10

FULL SPOILER-FREE REVIEW @ https://www.firstshowing.net/2023/review-dungeons-dragons-honor-among-thieves-is-a-delightful-surprise/

"DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: HONOR AMONG THIEVES is one of the best fantasy films of the most recent years. Chris Pine is the MVP of an incredibly charming cast with such natural chemistry that the comedic moments become truly hilarious - the graveyard scene will be replayed over and over again. An adventure blockbuster in all its purity, containing action set pieces filled with fantastical elements and accompanied by remarkable visual effects and score. One of the most fun, enjoyable, surprising theater experiences of the year so far. Impossible not to recommend it to any type of viewer."

Rating: B+