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Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

‘Dungeons & Dragons’ Overcomes Its Flaws With a Dash of Chris Pine

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★★★☆☆

It has been a big few years for game adaptations. From “The Last of Us” and “Sonic the Hedgehog” to “Arcane” and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” audiences cannot seem to get enough of seeing their favorite piece of playable IP on the big screen. 

Johnathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley’s “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” released March 31, capitalizes on this recent trend, coupling impressive practical effects with a charming ensemble cast to produce a flawed yet fun-filled romp. 

The film begins in a comically secure prison nestled in an arctic tundra, where cunning rogue Edgin (Chris Pine) and his musclebound colleague Holga (Michelle Rodriguez) must plot their escape. Arrested trying to steal this movie’s MacGuffin, the “Tablet of Reawakening,” in an attempt to resurrect his late wife, Edgin is desperate to return home to his daughter and finish his failed heist. Unfortunately, he quickly runs into a number of formidable obstacles. 

When the film shines, it shines brightly, mostly by virtue of its leading man — the bard Edgin, played by the roguish Pine. While Pine has unfortunately been associated with the controversial “Don’t Worry Darling,” “Dungeons & Dragons” constitutes an impressive return to form. Here, he is full of swagger and tragic melancholy at the loss of his late wife and estrangement from his only daughter. 

Pine’s chemistry with his costars is a significant point of joy in the film. The ultra-violent Holga, played by Rodriguez doing her best Drax the Destroyer impression — both in terms of martial prowess and comical bluntness — complements Pine’s Edgin particularly well. So too does amateur sorcerer Simon, portrayed by full-time nebbish Justice Smith, whose bumbling ineptitude contrasts nicely with Edgin’s suave manner and bordering-on-megalomaniacal confidence. 

Much like the source material, the film’s “party” of adventurers soon come face-to-face with a host of terrifying opponents and challenging situations, the most formidable of which is the menacing Red Wizard (Daisy Head) and her partner in crime: con artist and Egdin’s former accomplice, Forge (Hugh Grant). 

Plenty of colorful monsters complement the film’s human antagonists, paying homage to the iconic rogues’ gallery of creatures that continue to populate many a “Dungeons & Dragons” campaign. 

Impressively, unlike 2016’s “Warcraft,” the film uses practical effects to animate a surprising number of “Dungeons & Dragons” creepy-crawlies, avoiding the pitfalls of poorly done CGI.

However, Goldstein and Daley’s creation is far from perfect. 

Pine, Rodriguez, Smith, Head and Grant do well in their leading roles, but other less-accomplished cast members frequently let them down. Sophia Lillis, who plays Doric — a tiefling (half-devil, half-human) druid with a bone to pick with Forge — is largely unnecessary to the plot. 

Xenk Yendar, a virtuous paladin played by Regé-Jean Page, gets a few laughs here and there, but he appears far too briefly to feel like anything other than a footnote in the larger narrative. 

Speaking of narrative, the “Dungeons & Dragons” script constitutes another weakness of the film. At times, the writing is brilliant, expertly skirting the line between self-parody and self-awareness. More frequently, though, “Dungeons & Dragons” veers into well-worn tropes that diminish the effectiveness of its tongue-in-cheek humor. Specifically, the film’s ending is too pat, feeling less like the conclusion of a postmodern tour de force and more like the final acts of a Michael Bay movie — that is, dominated by over-the-top, gratuitous action sequences. 

Indeed, for much of its running time, “Dungeons & Dragons” is an odd mix of too ambitious and not ambitious enough. There’s a good film in there somewhere — perhaps a tighter spun, more personal narrative that leans on Pine’s inherent charisma — but it keeps getting overpowered by larger, blockier elements that feel like market-tested additions. 

“Dungeons & Dragons” has never been about story symmetry, easy resolution or effortlessly redeemed characters. Rather, its popularity is a product of its world-building, its insanity, its imperfections and the personal connection it forges with participating players. A “Dungeons & Dragons” movie should unequivocally pay homage to these core aspects of the source material, not waffle over them. 

Audiences and critics alike never expected “Dungeons & Dragons” to set the world alight, and it is a serviceable, inoffensive popcorn movie for all ages. Nevertheless, it could have been so much more, so I am hoping that any sequels address the original’s issues.

★★★✩☆

It has been a big few years for game adaptations. From “The Last of Us” and “Sonic the Hedgehog” to “Arcane” and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” audiences cannot seem to get enough of seeing their favorite piece of playable IP on the big screen. 

Johnathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley’s “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” released March 31, capitalizes on this recent trend, coupling impressive practical effects with a charming ensemble cast to produce a flawed yet fun-filled romp. 

The film begins in a comically secure prison nestled in an arctic tundra, where cunning rogue Edgin (Chris Pine) and his musclebound colleague Holga (Michelle Rodriguez) must plot their escape. Arrested trying to steal this movie’s MacGuffin, the “Tablet of Reawakening,” in an attempt to resurrect his late wife, Edgin is desperate to return home to his daughter and finish his failed heist. Unfortunately, he quickly runs into a number of formidable obstacles. 

When the film shines, it shines brightly, mostly by virtue of its leading man — the bard Edgin, played by the roguish Pine. While Pine has unfortunately been associated with the controversial “Don’t Worry Darling,” “Dungeons & Dragons” constitutes an impressive return to form. Here, he is full of swagger and tragic melancholy at the loss of his late wife and estrangement from his only daughter. 

Pine’s chemistry with his costars is a significant point of joy in the film. The ultra-violent Holga, played by Rodriguez doing her best Drax the Destroyer impression — both in terms of martial prowess and comical bluntness — complements Pine’s Edgin particularly well. So too does amateur sorcerer Simon, portrayed by full-time nebbish Justice Smith, whose bumbling ineptitude contrasts nicely with Edgin’s suave manner and bordering-on-megalomaniacal confidence. 

Much like the source material, the film’s “party” of adventurers soon come face-to-face with a host of terrifying opponents and challenging situations, the most formidable of which is the menacing Red Wizard (Daisy Head) and her partner in crime: con artist and Egdin’s former accomplice, Forge (Hugh Grant). 

Plenty of colorful monsters complement the film’s human antagonists, paying homage to the iconic rogues’ gallery of creatures that continue to populate many a “Dungeons & Dragons” campaign. 

Impressively, unlike 2016’s “Warcraft,” the film uses practical effects to animate a surprising number of “Dungeons & Dragons” creepy-crawlies, avoiding the pitfalls of poorly done CGI.

However, Goldstein and Daley’s creation is far from perfect. 

Pine, Rodriguez, Smith, Head and Grant do well in their leading roles, but other less-accomplished cast members frequently let them down. Sophia Lillis, who plays Doric — a tiefling (half-devil, half-human) druid with a bone to pick with Forge — is largely unnecessary to the plot. 

Xenk Yendar, a virtuous paladin played by Regé-Jean Page, gets a few laughs here and there, but he appears far too briefly to feel like anything other than a footnote in the larger narrative. 

Speaking of narrative, the “Dungeons & Dragons” script constitutes another weakness of the film. At times, the writing is brilliant, expertly skirting the line between self-parody and self-awareness. More frequently, though, “Dungeons & Dragons” veers into well-worn tropes that diminish the effectiveness of its tongue-in-cheek humor. Specifically, the film’s ending is too pat, feeling less like the conclusion of a postmodern tour de force and more like the final acts of a Michael Bay movie — that is, dominated by over-the-top, gratuitous action sequences. 

Indeed, for much of its running time, “Dungeons & Dragons” is an odd mix of too ambitious and not ambitious enough. There’s a good film in there somewhere — perhaps a tighter spun, more personal narrative that leans on Pine’s inherent charisma — but it keeps getting overpowered by larger, blockier elements that feel like market-tested additions. 

“Dungeons & Dragons” has never been about story symmetry, easy resolution or effortlessly redeemed characters. Rather, its popularity is a product of its world-building, its insanity, its imperfections and the personal connection it forges with participating players. A “Dungeons & Dragons” movie should unequivocally pay homage to these core aspects of the source material, not waffle over them. 

Audiences and critics alike never expected “Dungeons & Dragons” to set the world alight, and it is a serviceable, inoffensive popcorn movie for all ages. Nevertheless, it could have been so much more, so I am hoping that any sequels address the original’s issues.

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