Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

The height of fantasy worlds expands. On May 21st, 2023, I watched the fantasy adventure movie Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, based on the tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. Directed by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, it takes place in a medieval world and was released on March 31, 2023. Starring Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, and Justice Smith, it is rated PG-13.

A group of heroic thieves form together to pull off a necessary heist. Things do not seem to be working out for them, with their plans constantly going wrong. With their family and dignity at stake, as well as constant arguing, they must find a way to make it work. Can they succeed in their goals and prove that they are not failures?

People really did not know what to expect from this film before it was released. It is based on a role-playing game, which does not leave much story to be adapted. There is also the fact that the previous film adaptation, released in 2000, was hated by pretty much everyone. However, a new version provides a new opportunity. Plus, the trailers made it look cool, so it was best to wait until it came out. While I was unable to see it when it was still in theaters, I finally can give my opinions now.

They really take advantage of what they can do in a fantasy world. From the several different locations to the different kinds of species our characters represent to the different rules and powers the movie runs on, it is an engaging fantasy world to add to the other well written ones. In addition to that, the adventure of the film makes it fun to watch. Journeying to make a heist work is a thrilling ride, topped off by nice powerups and some cool action scenes. All brought together by mostly amazing special effects.

The performances in this movie are strong. Chris Pine plays Edgin Darvis, the leader who is well-intentioned but still has some growing to do. He is an interesting character brought to life by Pine’s charm, channeling his role as Captain Kirk from the Star Trek movies. Michelle Rodriguez plays Holga Kilgore, portraying both an awesome and likable companion. Justice Smith plays Simon Aumar, a sorcerer who is lacking in talent and is not happy about it. As someone who disliked Smith’s performance in the Jurassic World movies and liked his performance in Pokémon Detective Pikachu, this is my favorite role of his yet, thanks to a mixture of comedy and sympathy. Sophia Lillis plays Doric, who manages to be a cool character with good dialogue. The rest of the cast does a good job with moving the story forward.

The story is an interesting one. One of the best parts of any story is seeing our characters grow into people different than how they were at the beginning. That is well established here, as failure upon failure has not done well for their mentality, yet it is the continuing toward their goals that make them stronger. Edgin in general has a lot to fix due to his mistakes in the past and we root for him all the way. Plus, the story is put to the addition of great comedy. When you are not enjoying the action or the character development, you are laughing at the humor.

Overall, a movie that could have just been lame instead turned into an action packed and funny adventure. This should be worth it for any moviegoer, Dungeons & Dragons fan or not.