USA TODAY International Edition
You don’t need to be a gamer to revel in ‘ Honor Among Thieves’
The “Lord of the Rings” movies, “Game of Thrones” and other fantasy fare have plenty of expansive worldbuilding and eye- popping visual effects. “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” is where you turn to have some of that and laugh your lute off too. Based on the popular role- playing game and far better than that forgettable 2000 “D& D” big- screen outing, “Thieves” ( ★★★☆ four; rated PG- 13; in theaters Friday) is a clever and often hilarious action adventure that overcomes pacing issues with well- crafted characters and a host of wondrous creatures both stunning and icky. It’s also a good fantasy film for people who don’t really care for fantasy, led by a winningly goofy turn from Chris Pine.
Dungeons & Dragons’ embraces the game’s group dynamic
Doing time in an icy prison for thieving and skullduggery, Edgin the Bard ( Pine) and his barbarian partner Holga ( Michelle Rodriguez) pull off a daring escape with the best of intentions: Edgin wants to reunite with his daughter Kira ( Chloe Coleman) and also find a resurrection tablet that will bring his wife back to life after she died courtesy of a cursed blade. Now on the run, Edgin and Holga find that their old partner, the rogue Forge ( Hugh Grant) – who’s been looking after Kira as her guardian – is now the greedy lord of a kingdom working with a shady red wizard named Sofina ( Daisy Head).
A betrayal leads to Edgin and Holga plotting both a rescue and a heist, and for that, they need a motley crew with specific skills. They track down an old insecure sorcerer friend of theirs, Simon ( Justice Smith), and then recruit Doric ( Sophia Lillis), a shapeshifting druid who’s distrustful of humans. When they figure out they need a magical helmet, the gang finds help in the form of paladin Xenk ( Regé- Jean Page), a bit of a charming know- it- all.
Chris Pine moves up in the all- important Hollywood Chris rankings
Writing/ directing duo John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein (“Game Night”) put together an inspired cast for “Thieves.” Pine, a highlight of 2022’ s rather woeful “Don’t Worry Darling,” is a silly, lute- strumming gem as Edgin but also gives the thief enough heroic pep to make you care about him. Grant finds a nice balance between smarmy and treacherous, Head is deliciously overthe- top evil, Rodriguez enjoyably crushes so many dudes, and Lillis’ character is the real scene- stealer, spending time as everything from a deer to a fearsome ( and seriously cool) owlbear.
The fantasy visuals are pretty slick, especially when it comes to the magical creatures that populate the world. There are assorted dragons ( obviously, they’re right there in the title) but also our heroes meet a panther- type thing with tentacles, a monstrous chest with some nasty teeth and an impressive tongue, and a gelatinous cube that traps people and slowly eats them alive.