Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (UHD Blu-ray) review

[David Vaughn]

Studio: Paramount
Release Date: May 30, 2023
 Rating: PG-13
 Film:  4/5
 
 Plot
 A charming thief and a band of unlikely adventurers undertake an epic heist to retrieve a lost relic, but things go dangerously awry when they run afoul of the wrong people in this hilarious and action-packed adventure.
 
My Thoughts
Growing up I played D&D a handful of times and never really embraced the game like some of my friends. That being said, I looked forward to seeing this film based upon the trailer and my daughter’s recommendation. The film revolves around a group of daring and morally ambiguous thieves who form an unlikely alliance in order to undertake a high-stakes heist, although some of the thieves have more to lose than others.
 
What really made this movie work is that it’s just plain fun. It never takes itself too seriously and there are plenty of LOL moments such as their adventure to an old battlefield and a clash with a dragon that has outgrown its own lair. Chris Pine does a great job of leading the team of thieves and it kept up entertained from beginning to end.
 
The presentation is extremely good in 4K and matches the experience I had when watching the 4K download from Kaleidescape. The video has plenty of detail, although this can be somewhat of a negative because the CGI effects don’t blend seamlessly with the higher resolution. The Dolby Atmos audio track is excellent as well with plenty of discrete effects and great use of the subwoofer channel.
 
Video 9.5/10 (AVC)
 Audio 9.5/10 (Dolby Atmos)
 
 Special Features: 
 

• From Dice to Dragons: Honoring the Lore
• Rogues’ Gallery
• Fantastic Foes
• The Bestiary
• Forging the Forgotten Realms
• Broadswords, Battle-axes & Badass Brawls
• Gag Reel
• Deleted / Extended Scenes
• UHD Blu-ray + Digital Code

 


 Conclusion
 This is the rare film that met our expectations after being so hyped up by our daughter. The chemistry between the characters is excellent and you can tell the actors had a lot of fun making the film. It had a strong first week at the box-office but then fell off a cliff once the Mario Brothers movie hit the cinema, so who knows if we’ll get a sequel down the line.  Regardless, if you’re into the genre or played the game in your past, it’s definitely worth taking a look.      
 

 Reference Review System:
 JVC DLA-RS3100 4K Ultra High-Definition Front Projector
(Calibrated with Portrait Displays CalMAN color calibration software & C6-HDR Meter from Portrait Displays)
Stewart Filmscreen - Firehawk 110” 2.35:1 Screen
Trinnov Altitude 16 Audio/Video Processor
ATI AT527NC Powering Bed Channels
ATI AT524NC Powering Atmos Speakers
Kaleidescape Strato + Server
Panasonic DP-UB820 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
System Controller: URC MX-990
M&K S-150 THX Ultra (R-C-L Speakers)
M&K SS-150 x4 (Surround Speakers)
Atlantic Technology IC6-OBA x 4 Overhead Speakers
SVS PC-Ultra Cylinder Subwoofer
SVS SB3000
HSU VTF-15H MK2 Subwoofer
M&K Sound X15+ Subwoofer
Mini DSP HD controlling all subwoofers
Audioquest and Monoprice - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
PureAV PF60 Power Conditioner

[bmoney]

Pleasantly surprised by this one 

[SRW1000]

I've had very mixed feelings about this movie.  I've been playing D&D (or variations of it) for over 40 years now, so part of me wants to watch it, but the other part of me knows how they've changed the spirit of the game to make it "fun", rather than making it true to it.

I'm sure that the movie can be enjoyed generically as a fantasy story, but in that case, why not just make a generic, funny movie and not attach the D&D name to it?

The problem now is that it creates an image in the public's eye that the movie is what the game is like, so the chance of a serious adaptation is remote at best.  It makes it unlikely that we'll ever see a Dragonlance, Forgotten Realms, or something that feels more like the Lord of the Rings movies, rather than a lighthearted, jokey version.

Well, that one nerd's perspective anyway.  Maybe I'll still rent it, if I can somehow divorce the movie from the brand.

Scott

[David Vaughn]

I've had very mixed feelings about this movie.  I've been playing D&D (or variations of it) for over 40 years now, so part of me wants to watch it, but the other part of me knows how they've changed the spirit of the game to make it "fun", rather than making it true to it.

I'm sure that the movie can be enjoyed generically as a fantasy story, but in that case, why not just make a generic, funny movie and not attach the D&D name to it?

The problem now is that it creates an image in the public's eye that the movie is what the game is like, so the chance of a serious adaptation is remote at best.  It makes it unlikely that we'll ever see a Dragonlance, Forgotten Realms, or something that feels more like the Lord of the Rings movies, rather than a lighthearted, jokey version.

Well, that one nerd's perspective anyway.  Maybe I'll still rent it, if I can somehow divorce the movie from the brand.

Scott

Scott,

My daughter is an avid D&D player (has been playing with a group weekly for about the past 8 years or so)--they started playing in college and now play over Zoom since they are spread around the country. 

[SRW1000]

Scott,

My daughter is an avid D&D player (has been playing with a group weekly for about the past 8 years or so)--they started playing in college and now play over Zoom since they are spread around the country.

That's cool.  Our current group has three of us that have been playing together since the early 80s.  We switched to Fantasy Grounds (think of it as Zoom, but specifically for role-playing games), when people moved away and then Covid hit.  But since the beginning of this year, we've been gaming in person for those of us that are local. 

If she's been playing that long and endorses it, I may give it a chance.

Scott

[bmoney]

Well Ive never played. And personally I would never equate it to the game. I don’t so that w movies. Like th jungle cruise movie was nothing like the Disney ride lol

[SRW1000]

Well Ive never played. And personally I would never equate it to the game. I don’t so that w movies. Like th jungle cruise movie was nothing like the Disney ride lol

I guess that's just something I don't understand.  Money is being spent for the rights to the property, but the property gets adapted into something that's just generically related what they've paid for?  

Instead, create an independent movie and give it an enticing title, the targeted audience will still see it if it's done well, normies won't care about any tenuous connection to an existing product or story.  The studio saves any licensing fees they would have paid and can actually make additional income on the rights to their new, original story and characters. 

Sounds like a win-win situation.

Scott

[Paul Heroy]

Scott, I started playing in my early 20s, but never was really hard core and haven't played for several years now since my last group evaporated in an unfortunate ego stinking cloud. But my friends who were more hard core than me saw and really liked it. It reminded us of some of the immature shenanigans we'd get up to with our characters. The early part of the movie has some pretty good recreations of D&D spells and so on. And as others mentioned, it's basically well done and fun. I had some minor quibbles with certain things (i.e. it almost seems to be required nowadays that the physically strongest character in a fantasy must not be a male) but not enough to derail enjoying it.