Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (Review)

There is a harrowing bridge to cross midway through the film where Regé-Jean Page’s knight in shining armor, Xenk, explains the precise formula to avoid the bridge’s Gnomish trap.

One must begin at the center, using odd number blocks only, moving forward with each step, except for every fifth step, which must be a lateral move.

The “quite simple” formula represents everything I loathe about the D&D game.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is an adventure film based on the popular roleplaying game of the same name that follows a charming band of unlikely heroes who embark on an epic heist that goes dangerously awry.

Chris Pine stars as Edgin, an honorable bard turned smooth-talking criminal due to losing his wife. Incarceration and escape, along with Michelle Rodriguez’s fierce warrior Holga leads to a team-up with Justice Smith’s floundering sorcerer, Simon, and Sophia Lillis’ brave shapeshifter, Doric.

I’ve played D&D three times in my life. I loathed every second of it. Why couldn’t I use the magic shield to thwart an attack from Xanathar and its multiple floating eyes while Reid Davenport killed it by casting a level 5 spell while forcing a guild war.

What the heck is a guild?

For a brief stint In my early 20s, I was a bouncer at a sports card store that hosted D&D and Pokemon card games. I met the owner, who was impressed that I was a pro wrestler in training and offered me the Saturday afternoon gig, where arguments aplenty ensued, and fists would occasionally fly. A fake fighter was securing fake battles; I could not make this up if I tried.

There was one kid in particular who thought he was Fred Durst, backwards red Yankees hat and black t-shirt included. Fred was older than most of the kids who played the game, and he was also the best player. He won every game, was snarky as the day is long, and talked way too much trash.

The trailers for the film made me believe Chris Pine’s character would essentially be Fred, minus the Yankees’ hat. I’m happy to report I couldn’t have been more wrong. As for the rest of the movie, the aspersions cast based on my loathing of the game were unfounded, making for a delightful experience.

In many ways, Pine’s Edgin is precisely what the film needed by providing a levity that is amusing, a little snarky, and like the film, doesn’t take himself too seriously while simultaneously taking things seriously enough where viewers can have carefree fun while invested in a high stakes fare.

The film’s use of magic was also a breath of fresh air. Many who know of D&D lore peripherally might think casting spells, citing enchantments, or waving a magic wand is the answer to every problem. Thankfully, that was not the case in the film. There are rules and levels to various incantations.

Villainous Red Wizards sit at the hierarchy of magic wielders, and the shrewd schemer Sofina (Daisy Head) is the worst of the worst. She’s aligned with Hugh Grant’s Forge, a cunning con man who used to work with Edgin and Holga until fortune pushed him to sell them out relatively easily.

The heist aspect of the film evokes an Oceans 11 vibe. Edgin, Holdga, Simon, and Doric each have a specialty, which serves them well during various moments of the job. Complex security systems and unpickable vault locks are replaced with unbreakable spells and mystical booby traps. Of course, what would a heist be without twists and turns that subvert expectations, which the film does exceptionally well considering, you know, magic.

Lucasfilms’ Star Wars sequel trilogy and The Mandalorian relied on the fetch quest narrative to a near-nauseating degree. D&D is kind of where the concept originated. The license to have our heroes get one item, to get another item needed to pull off the heist, here, is done well and fits within the story instead of feeling like a crutch to move the plot along.

One part, in particular, saw the protagonists dig up a dead body and use a spell to resurrect the corpse to ask five questions before the body goes back to its eternal rest. One dug-up body turned into several dug-up bodies as each fallen soldier only knew part of what the crew needed to know. The hilarity and frustration were entertaining despite the good guys disturbing a mass grave.

Humor, heart, and an engaging, well-paced adventure makes Dungeons & Dragons the surprise of 2023 thus far and more than worth 134 minutes of your time.

The script and direction impeccably maintain a balance that is accessible to viewers who are unfamiliar with and even opposed to the source material. Those who love all things D&D will enjoy various plot points that translate to real moments you’d see at a gaming table with the usual tropes, familiar names, places, and monsters.

How do I know this if I don’t play the game? I was the best man and Reid Davenport’s wedding, and he was at mine.