- Location: Justin and Gina's
- Directed by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is a much better movie than anybody should have expected. Sure, it's not the most intelligent or surprising film and large parts of it come across like Lord of the Rings fan fiction, but these are exactly the traits that also make it a faithful adaptation of the role-playing game. Except without all the arguments, lookup tables, and calculations, I guess. Admittedly, I've never been a big D&D fan.
- The heroes of the story are a bard named Edgin (Chris Pine), Holga the barbarian (Michelle Rodriguez), sorcerer Simon (Justice Smith), a shapeshifting druid named Doric (Sophia Lillis), and the famed paladin Xenk Yendar (Regé-Jean Page). There is also a rogue named Forge (Hugh Grant), although the fact that he's a rogue probably means he shouldn't be trusted, especially since his chief advisor is a weird sorceress (Daisy Head). Of these, Pine and Rodriguez deliver surprisingly sincere performances while Grant has fun being completely smarmy. Relative newcomers Lillis and Smith are also strong - there's honestly not a bad performance in the film.
- The title also serves as the plot in that there are indeed dungeons, dragons, honor, and thieves. The most inventive sequence is probably a CGI-driven shapeshifter chase scene, although the more tactile fight scenes are also compelling, thanks largely to Rodriguez's commitment to her role. While the characters' backstories occasionally threaten to derail the action (again, just like the game!), the film is creative and fun enough that these minor problems can be overlooked. D&D devotees likely noticed far more easter eggs than I did, but I'll admit to smiling when the gelatinous cube, mimic, and 80s cartoon characters all showed up near the end.
- Featuring Bradley Cooper as a halfling, for what that's worth.
