Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

A flat storyline with a variation of the same plot seen hundreds of times, but with an excellent group of likeable characters and a truly amazing villain. The whole thing is dynamic, funny with some great scenes (the fat dragon) and a charismatic lead in Chris Pine. It's obvious that it was made by someone who has a feel for the material and a respect for fantasy. The potential for a sequel or saga is there, but next time it should be either darker or more original. (06/30/2023)

I've never played D&D, and the movie adaptations from 2000 and 2012 passed me by (fortinately?), so I approached Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves with a clean slate and as a complete ignoramus. I commend the film for not focusing only on the action-fantasy level, but also for giving enough space to the likeable characters, of which I would single out the snarky bard Edgin and his cruel but sharp friend Holga. The character of Simon was quite unbearable: firstly, I found him annoyingly clumsy and secondly, it's really hard to like the actor. The film could definitely have been a quarter of an hour shorter, but I still enjoyed the screening in the cinema immensely, whether thanks to the aforementioned characters, the regularly dosed action, the demonic Sophina, or more than one humorous scene – the graveyard confrontation with the dead and the with the "chubby" dragon were the most amusing. I believe that if I were a player or fan of the game I would give it full marks, but as a non-player I can honestly say that I would definitely not be averse to a sequel in the future if the quality remains at a similar level. (03/26/2023)

We haven’t had such a fine film for a long time. This fantasy popcorn flick, playing to the rhythm of Guardians of the Galaxy, is set in a new, unfamiliar world full of new characters, and yet is somewhat pleasantly familiar. It starts with a scene that quotes Jurassic Park, but then goes its own way, and it does it very well. The plot is pleasantly straightforward and keeps to the ground, it doesn't even matter that it's not particularly surprising, because originality is all around. The characters have real believable relationships with each other, the humour is not hammy at all costs and when the script wants to, it can even slow the film down a bit and give room for other emotions, like in one scene with a cameo by a very famous actor who isn't even listed in the cast yet, and I hope it stays that way for a long time. The actors and actresses are great, apart from Chris Pine I was especially pleased with Michelle Rodriguez (she really nailed it) and Sophia Lillis, and I feel Hugh Grant had as much fun during the shooting as I did in the cinema. The production design is appropriately fantastic and uncluttered, the action scenes are often imaginative, and Lorne Balfe composed the first ever soundtrack I'm happy to listen to in its entirety. I really hope we’ll get a sequel, because this is a world I would love to go back to. (03/31/2023)

An old-school adventure blockbuster that hasn't been done for at least the last ten years. From every dialogue and skit, you can feel that the authors mainly want the viewer, both knowledgeable and unfamiliar with the lore, to enjoy watching it. The characters are very cleverly written to implement all the necessary ills of a modern Hollywood production but at the same time fit perfectly into any D&D campaign. Although the quality bar was not set too high compared to previous attempts at adaptation, I was still pleasantly surprised and left the cinema satisfied while discussing with friends an innumerable number of easter-eggs in the movie. 85% (03/24/2023)

Excellent stuff! The jokes, the visual effects, the twists, everything works to perfection. The smart script and the pinpoint direction of John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein are supported by great performances. The perfect chemistry of the protagonists, comparable to Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy, pulls the whole film forward. Chris Pine is great, he truly enjoys his role as a Harper, and in the strongly dramatic sequences he doesn’t leave a single eye dry. Michelle Rodriguez as the female version Conan the Barbarian is having an incredible career comeback. The heists, the exploration, the rescues and the fights are executed with incredible wit and inventiveness. Balfe's music is top-notch. This is something you can count with almost any time, and I am already looking forward to watching it again. (04/01/2023)