Recently, I watched the movie Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. The film is based on the original tabletop game “Dungeons & Dragons,” also known as D&D. D&D does not have a traditional plot and is more of a tool for players to create their own worlds and stories to play in, which encourages creativity and problem-solving. Since the plot of D&D games can be bent to the will of whoever plays it, you are probably wondering how they could make a movie based off the game, and more importantly, if a person can enjoy this movie, if they have never played D&D before. My answer to the latter question is, yes, you can enjoy this movie, even if you have never played D&D before. I have never played D&D, but I was still thoroughly entertained watching the movie. However, for D&D fans who are curious if it is enjoyable for the hardcore players out there, I asked a friend of mine, Tim Cantrell, who is an avid player of D&D and also watched the film. He said, “When I saw a trailer of the movie, I assumed it would be mediocre, but I gave it a chance, and I’m glad I did! It was much better than I expected. The movie honors the source material with a lot of cool references, and the core themes of playing D&D, like determination and creativity, are also themes in this movie.”

The main character is Edgin, who used to be a peacekeeper, but turned to thievery after his wife was killed by soldiers. His best friend is Holga, a stern warrior who left her family, because she felt like she didn’t belong there. In the opening scene of the movie, Edgin and Holga are imprisoned for robbery after being double-crossed by an ex-partner in crime who’s name is Forge. After many failed attempts, they successfully escape from prison. Now free, the duo look for Edgin’s daughter, Kira, and they find her in a city that is now ruled by Forge, only to find that Forge has adopted Kira and has told lies to her, to make her resent her father. Determined to save her; Edgin, and Holga enlist the help of a sorcerer named Simon, and Doric, a forest elf who can shapeshift into various animals. Together the group go on an epic journey to rescue Kira and defeat Forge. 

What I enjoyed the most about this film was the humor. It had the fun cheekiness of a Marvel movie, but it knew when to restrain the goofiness so it never became overbearing, which some` Marvel films tend to suffer from. My favorite part of the movie is a scene set in a graveyard where the group interviews resurrected corpses that can answer only five questions before they’re dead again. Comedic hijinks ensue, with the team interviewing one dead person to the next, with most of those interviews being a waste of time, until they find the dead guy they were looking for. While the movie was funny, it still had some emotional depth to it. Not a lot, but still enough to make you feel connected to the characters. Throughout the film, Edgin struggles with the mistakes he has made in the past and present, and the consequences that follow; some of which still haunt him, like his wife being killed, and his daughter being taken from him. These themes really humanize Edgin and make him a more interesting character. Overall, I found the film to be fun and well-made. It’s not a groundbreaking film, but it’s got a good mix of comedy and heart. I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for an entertaining and light-hearted movie.