Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

Excellent stuff! The jokes, the visual effects, the twists, everything works to perfection. The smart script and the pinpoint direction of John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein are supported by great performances. The perfect chemistry of the protagonists, comparable to Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy, pulls the whole film forward. Chris Pine is great, he truly enjoys his role as a Harper, and in the strongly dramatic sequences he doesn’t leave a single eye dry. Michelle Rodriguez as the female version Conan the Barbarian is having an incredible career comeback. The heists, the exploration, the rescues and the fights are executed with incredible wit and inventiveness. Balfe's music is top-notch. This is something you can count with almost any time, and I am already looking forward to watching it again. (04/01/2023)

I didn't really expect to like this, so it was an even more pleasant surprise. The plot formula is clichéd, but it’s dressed up with a lot of imaginative and likably playful details, including dialogue devices showing that the movie’s creators are more clever than is usually the case with such farces. This will turn out to be a successful franchise if it keeps the quality at this level. (06/23/2023)

We haven’t had such a fine film for a long time. This fantasy popcorn flick, playing to the rhythm of Guardians of the Galaxy, is set in a new, unfamiliar world full of new characters, and yet is somewhat pleasantly familiar. It starts with a scene that quotes Jurassic Park, but then goes its own way, and it does it very well. The plot is pleasantly straightforward and keeps to the ground, it doesn't even matter that it's not particularly surprising, because originality is all around. The characters have real believable relationships with each other, the humour is not hammy at all costs and when the script wants to, it can even slow the film down a bit and give room for other emotions, like in one scene with a cameo by a very famous actor who isn't even listed in the cast yet, and I hope it stays that way for a long time. The actors and actresses are great, apart from Chris Pine I was especially pleased with Michelle Rodriguez (she really nailed it) and Sophia Lillis, and I feel Hugh Grant had as much fun during the shooting as I did in the cinema. The production design is appropriately fantastic and uncluttered, the action scenes are often imaginative, and Lorne Balfe composed the first ever soundtrack I'm happy to listen to in its entirety. I really hope we’ll get a sequel, because this is a world I would love to go back to. (03/31/2023)

A perfect blend of fantasy and comedy, the likes of which we rarely see these days. It's packed with nods to legendary games like Baldur’s Gate, Icewind Dale, and Neverwinter Nights, stirring up a huge wave of nostalgia. The creators really nailed it. The story is solid, set in a wonderfully crafted D&D world, overflowing with ideas that almost made my head spin. Missing even a second would mean missing out on another brilliant concept, as the film delivers one after another in rapid succession. This film is an absolute blast, with characters you’ll love and one of the most fantastical cinematic rides in recent years. An absolute gem! (10/23/2023)

A thoroughly easy-going feel good fantasy flick that manages to entertain with its sappy humour, charm with its typical characters and surprise with its simple action. It's a bit rushed, because a world like this simply wouldn't fit into one film, it’s more appropriate for a serial format, but as a basis the film works well. To cement it more firmly in my memory so I won’t just remember it as “that good fantasy flick”, the film needs a spectacular battle of armies, and I'm also slightly bothered by the sloppiness of the script and a few sketchy details, but otherwise I had a good time and since the fantasy genre is almost dead nowadays, a quality Dungeons & Dragons definitely deserves a fourth star. (03/27/2023)