Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves is the adventure quest we deserve

Whether we’ve been naughty or nice, we always deserve Chris Pine and his megawatt charisma.

Not long ago – and probably still in some quarters – the name Dungeons & Dragons triggered cruel sniggers.

The image long associated with the role-playing game is that of caped nerds sitting around a table and casting spells from cards. But that’s all changed and now what was on the fringes is decidedly in the mainstream. Maybe the meek didn’t inherit the Earth but the geeks certainly inherited pop culture.

Since Game of Thrones became the biggest TV show and Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings and Marvel movies dominated cinemas, what’s nerdy is now cool.

And there’s no greater marker for cool than Chris Pine, a man who can confidently stride through an airport in mustard brown Carhartt overalls as if he was born in them. If Pine can make Star Trek cool – and he can and did – then he will cement D&D’s status as desirable property.

Pine is a genius bit of casting, because he not only brings goodwill but also his casual, unimposing swagger and a cheeky sense of frolic.

That’s exactly the vibe Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves is going for – and achieves. Unlike the terrible Jeremy Irons movie released in 2000, this is a fun and comedic adventure quest, brimming with charismatic actors and an irreverent tone that never takes itself too seriously.

Chris Pine, the king of cool.

This may not be exactly the big studio comedy that used to be one of the pillars of cinema releases, as it’s still relying on existing intellectual property, it’s about as close as audiences will get, at least at the moment.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves is more about the vibe and the antics than it is about the story, but there is one. And a somewhat unnecessarily complicated one at that.

Pine plays Edgin Darvis, a man who turned to thievery after his wife was murdered, leaving him on his own to raise his young daughter, Kira. He joins up with a band of fellow small-time crims – warrior Holga (Michelle Rodriguez), sorcerer Simon (Justice Smith) and con-artist Forge (a deliciously devilish Hugh Grant).

When an ambitious heist goes wrong, Edgin and Holga are imprisoned for their crimes, before escaping two years later. In order to win back the trust of his daughter, Edgin must complete a quest for a resurrection tablet while exposing Forge’s true self and stopping an apocalyptic event.

There are, obviously, a lot more details – so, so many – involving corpses, zombies, enchantments, a magical helmet, teleportation devices and underground worlds.

Hugh Grant has really moved into his deliciously devilish villain stage.

And if you find that intimidating, be assured that directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, who co-wrote the script with Michael Gilio, balance out the demands of D&D devotees and regular folk who have no idea what to make of all those high-concept fantasy elements.

If you’ve never even heard of D&D before, the broad strokes of the adventure work perfectly well. You don’t need to understand the minutiae and the history of the Hither and Thither Staff to get what’s happening. But if you’re a superfan, there are Easter eggs galore and it’s undoubtedly a richer experience.

It’s not an easy feat to achieve that equilibrium so you really have to hand it to Goldstein and Daley for figuring out the magical formula of bringing in newbies without alienating loyalists.

It’s really down to Goldstein and Daley’s ability to synthesis all those components, stage elaborate action set pieces, and capitalise on their ridiculously charming cast – which also includes Rege-Jean Page and Sophia Lillis – while imbuing it with a loose and goofy humour.

This is the filmmaking team behind Game Night, one of most likeable and eminently rewatchable comedies in recent years, so they know how to make a funny, boisterous movie.

They also know that if you have Chris Pine, the least you could do for audiences is have him playing the lute, singing folk songs and knitting. Who wouldn’t want to watch that all day and every day?

Rating: 3.5/5

Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves is in cinemas now

Originally published as Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves is the adventure quest we deserve