Paramount Pictures Dungeons and Dragons, Honor Among Thieves

I've been playing Dungeons and Dragons on and off since the Eighties (admittedly, mostly off. It's not always easy to find a group.) I've seen the cartoon that was on when I was a kid, and both of the earlier movies. Admittedly, I missed the Dragons of Autumn Twilight movie, but that's because the reviews were terrible. I have no idea how many D&D setting based novels I've read, but it's a bunch. No small amount of them were set in The Forgotten Realms, just like the latest D&D flick, Dungeons and Dragons, Honor Among Thieves. I have to say, I'm in love with this movie.

Seriously, someone took some time and put some care into this movie. Honor Among Thieves actually uses the source material appropriately. I mean, if you don't want to slap the writers of the I, Robot flick then you either haven't read the book, haven't seen the movie, or both. And if you haven't read the book then you probably know as much about Asimov's writing as the guys who wrote the script for I, Robot. Seriously, read the book. It's good.

Honor Among Thieves isn't like that. Honor Among Thieves reads like it was written by a fan, but it's not fan fiction. Here you'll find the Harpers, the Red Wizards of Thay, get visuals of Neverwinter (for all you gamers out there who aren't into the lore yes, this is the Neverwinter of Neverwinter Nights.) We get mentions of Baldur's Gate (yup, that one) and Waterdeep (from the Warriors of Waterdeep cell phone app.) We get multiple character classes that fit with the subject matter for the most part, and we get  abilities that match things you would see in game. There's even a quick dip into the Underdark, which no D&D movie would be complete without. Of course, Honor Among Thieves is its own story and not everything is straight from the rulebooks. 

I can already here some D&D fans out there crying. Someone at Paramount decided not to adhere too closely to the rules as written for D&D and I'm okay with that. If you haven't homeruled something in your life you've never been a dungeon master. Telling the rules to piss off is the second best part of the gig. (The first being creating your own world.) So one or more of the writers didn't follow the rules. Big deal. I don't either and I do DM. Homebrew, house rules and The Rule of Cool have been part of the Dungeons and Dragons game since it debuted in the Seventies. And, while I may not allow a druid to Wild Shape into an Owlbear at my table, I can't deny how awesome it was to see it on screen. I'm a bit bitter because the writers can homebrew magic items better than I can. I'll get over it though. Eventually. Probably. Maybe.

So kudos to the writing team for writing this thing the way it needed to be written and not the way the rules called for. I mean, I never saw anything about a diety following the party down a staircase and healing them every time things got too intense with no limit on spells either, but I allowed it. My players better be glad I did, too. They needed the help. What party of third level characters charges down stairs guarded by hoards of ogres? Goofballs.

But I digress.

Then again, isn't digression my strong suit? I mean, unless this is your first time here you're probably used to it. I go off on more tangents than a trigonometry book. Just don't ask me to calculate one. Interpolation isn't my thing. Or was that square roots? It's been awhile.

Huh? Calculators? TODAY'S KIDS ARE A BUNCH OF WIMPS!!!

Anyway...

While I'm feeling cranky, I'm going to whine. I'm good at that.

OMG, WHERE IS ELMISTER? HAS ANYONE SEEN CADDERLY? WHAT ABOUT DRIZZT?

Okay, I'm over it. 

Yes this is an all new cast of characters, but I like it that way.  There is no mention of any of these people in the existing canon, so Paramount was free to do what they wanted, make them look how they wanted, etc. without spitting in the fans' faces. They used the broad strokes of the setting masterfully and created something new for the fans to enjoy. 

Did I spell Cadderly's name right? It's been a minute since I've read The Cleric Quintet. Seriously though, next time you're bored, find something with the name R.A. Salvatore written on the spine. I mean that.

We do get to see some old friends. If you haven't been spoiled yet, I won't tell you who they are, but I got a real kick out of it. Then again, my buddy David didn't notice them, so if you go and don't see them it's not because I'm full of crap. You just missed it. I had a good time with it though. It took me back to my childhood. 

If every single member of the special effects team for Honor Among Thieves doesn't get a raise, the whole world is a fraud and someone needs to hit the reset button. This was one of the most beautiful movies I've ever seen. The magic effects, the scenery, the fight scenes, that one axe thing, it's awesome. 

Also, while I'm busy praising people I don't see on screen, can I show some love to whoever choreographed these fights? (Trick question. My blog. I make the rules.) Of course I can! I'd love to know how they did it and what goes into planning something like that. These guys could put on a clinic and I'd pay to show up. The brawls are just that amazing. Of course, let's not forget about the people doing the stunt work, too. They were awesome.

I should probably mention the cast as well. I mean, they're the ones people pay to go see, right?

Chris Pine was amazeballs as the bard Edgin, but we all expect that, right? I mean Steve Trevor is pretty...

Uhh.. 

Captain Kirk totally sold me...

Yeah, so Pine's a geek icon and I would've been totally disappointed if he hadn't delivered but he totally did and I loved it.  Michelle Rodriguez was just as good as Holga. I'm still trying to decide if she's a warrior or a barbarian but it doesn't matter. Rodriguez owned that role. Seeing Hugh Grant in a movie I actually enjoyed and not some chick flick romcom was a pleasant surprise. Sophia Lillis blew me away as Doric. I have a thing for tieflings though. Justice Smith as Simon was not only fun, he was the guy a lot of D&D players can probably identify with and he pulled it off with aplomb. I can't wait to see this movie again.

Bottom Line: 5.0 out of 5 Homebrewed Magic Items

I usually don't do this, but per Margaret Weis's Facebook page, Gary Gygax, and Dave Arneson, creators of Dungeons and Dragons, are not credited in the movie, nor is Ed Greenwood, creator of the Forgotten Realms D&D Setting. I find this to be troubling. It didn't affect my enjoyment of the movie since I didn't notice it, so I didn't include it in my rating but this is a loser move by Paramount. Hopefully, they can fix this before the movie goes to streaming. Gene Roddenberry gets credited in every Star Trek movie or episode because it needs to happen. The same principle should apply here.

Dungeons and Dragons, Honor Among Thieves
Paramount, 2023

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