DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: HONOR AMONG THIEVES (2023) | First Time Watching | Movie Reaction
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- Опубліковано 2 чер 2024
- Thanks for checking out my reaction to Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves! Let me know what you thought of the movie down in the comments 😊
Also, I need to call out that dry as hell lipstick. I noticed halfway through but couldn't stop mid-reaction.
Thank you for your patience while I learn the recording and editing process. They can only get better going forward!
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00:00 Intro
01:18 Reaction
40:11 Discussion - Розваги
The red dragon breathes fire, but there's a game mechanic on display in the movie basically showing it cant endlessly shoot flame. Basically showing it as a gun misfiring so simon provided the ignition source. Also his name is Themberchaud, pulled directly from game lore
The dragon showed earlier in the movie during the backstory of the helm (talking to the dead people), was a black dragon and they do not shoot flames like the red instead they shoot powerful acid (that black gunk). The game has 10 main dragon types split between evil color dragons (red=fire, blue=lightning, green=poison gas, black=acid, and white =ice) and good metallic dragons (gold=fire, silver=ice , copper=acid ,brass=sleeping gas ,bronze=lightning).
To put it one way; at the start, Themberchaud was just letting out some smelly gas and when it touched Simon's wee candle flame *imitates explosion*
That said, Themberchaud actually has in-lore problems of igniting his flamebreath because he is so fat.
Themberchaud is based on an incident during a game with the game designer where his cat jumped on the table to attack the figures and dice. The designer rolled with it as a surprise appearance of a dragon that the players needed to fight.
To answer some of your questions about Xenk, I believe because he was not fully immersed in the spell it didn't fully turn him into an undead servant, but it gave him an extended lifespan. Even though he is a human he has lived for hundreds of years and still looks to be in his 30s. Aside from that, he is not a wizard like Sofina. He is a Paladin, which is sort of like a holy warrior or a knight in the service of an oath to a god or an ideal.
Oh, and about Thayans vs Red Wizards:
Thay is the nation that the Red Wizards come from, and its people are under the tyrannical rule of a Lich (undead magic user) named Szass Tam (the guy who looks like Voldemort) and his Red Wizards. Because of that, most people in Faerun just assume Thayans are all bad... kinda like how alot of people tended to make assumptions and generalizations about most Germans back in the 1930s/40s because of Hitler and the Nazi party. Xenk is a living example that not all Thayans are evil, and that they have no real say in how their nation is being ruled.
Thank you for all the info! Xenk sounds like he got a pretty good deal out of that honestly 😅 although I guess there’s a debate to be had on whether you’d want to live that long lol
A wizard is a job. They study really hard and learn to manipulate magic to cast spells. Being a Red wizard (of Thay) is just a wizard who was trained in Thay (Think SS or any other highly trained force that are bad guys).
Sorcerer is also a job (Simon) they can manipulate magic through some inborn power. Simon is a wild magic mage, this means sometimes his spells get away from him and weird things happen (when we first meet him).
Paladin is a job (Zenk). Paladins are holy warriors of a chosen god or goddess. (the game has a complex pantheon of gods and goddess like roman or greek mythology). Zenk as mentioned was only partly effected by the beckoning death spell which basically halted his ageing, but did not make him immune to death like the other Thaian assassins (guy with green flame blade).
The lore and history of the movie seemed to be pretty good (I know the world they are in a little bit and to me it all fit together). The ideas behind the characters in the movie were good but they did bend and twist some of the rules to make the movie awesome. The game Dungeons and Dragons is being revised currently and the new version may allow players to be move like the characters in the movie.
Not sure if that helps or not but the game of dungeons and dragons has been around since the late 1970's so there is a lot in it and it evolves every 10 or so years to a new version with changes and updates.
@@cinemawithsteph Also, Mordenkainen was a wizard character created by the creator of D&D himself; the late and great Gary Gygax
What I really appreciate about this film is how much they were able to finesse so many elements of the D&D table top experience into the film while also simultaneously making it extremely accessible and relatable to someone who may have zero experience with the game. The choice to make it a heist film, which is a film genre most people are familiar with and kind of know what to expect, was a really clever choice. There are so many details in the film that tie directly back to the game, and if you're aware of them, it really enriches the experience. But if you're not, the film still stands on its own as a fun comedic action/fantasy film, with just enough heart written into the script to make you care about the characters. Really fun and enjoyable movie going experience.
I absolutely love that people get so moved at the end, even though they telegraph Holga's death from a mile away
There's an extra bit to Kira's perspective. The only heist she had a problem with was the last one because it was dangerous, and she didn't know what they were going after. Forge told her afterwards it was a 'tablet of riches', remember? She never knew it was to try and bring her mum back. So she was well within her rights to feel like it was unnecessary...
As for Thayan and Red Wizard, I believe all Red Wizards are Thayans but not all Thayans are Red Wizards. Thayans are the people of the land/country of Thay, Red Wizards is the class of magic users.
This was a good movie, makes me want to try out D&D.
I'm a professional DM. I've been running games for over 30 years. HMU...
Absolutely do! Even if you don't 100% know what you're doing it can be an absolut blast! There's a bunch of resources you can find online to help you get started as well.
If you get a good group where The whole table kind of has the same vibe, this movie is a pretty good representation of the feel of a good d&d game. (It's also extremely faithful to the in-game rules, but that matters more to the nerds who've been playing for awhile.)
Getting the right group of people and everyone having the same expectations is way more important than anything else in a d&d game.
If you get a good group where The whole table kind of has the same vibe, this movie is a pretty good representation of the feel of a good d&d game. (It's also extremely faithful to the in-game rules, but that matters more to the nerds who've been playing for awhile.)
Getting the right group of people and everyone having the same expectations is way more important than anything else in a d&d game.
The writing team really did a good job picking which elements of D&D to feature. In the arena, for example, you had (in order) a Displacer Beast, Mimic, and Gelatinous Cube, each one showcasing what they are best known for: a Displacer Beast fools prey with an illusion of itself somewhere else, a Mimic is disguised as something else (more often than not, a treasure chest), and Gelatinous Cube slowly dissolves anything that gets stuck inside it.
Sophina's robes change colour because her red robes and head tattoos are a sign of her hard earned power and status as a Red Wizard, however as she's under cover in an enemy nation she's forced to hid them. Sophina's pride is wounded by this so she shows off her status whenever she can just to make herself feel better.
Two pieces of behind the scenes info. During the bridge scene, Xenk (Regé-Jean Page) was asked to adlib his lines to say a difficult string of sentence, Simon (Justice Smith) was told to be the cutoff point for a hilarious moment so Xenk’s look at Simon was a look of a thank you that was exhausting. And Second the scene in which Xenk leaves he kept walking in a straight line because he never heard the director say Cut.
No way!! I would never of thought that the speech was made up like that!
Must admit I thought everyone had at least heard of D&D 😆 Great reaction, thank you! The chunky dragon was a stroke of genius.
Thank you for watching! I knew it was a game but that was pretty much it lol
Funny enough, that chunky dragon is a real dragon in the lore of the campaign setting they were using for this movie. His name is Themberchaud, and he got that pudgy because he has not needed to go out and hunt for food in a long long time. Long story short, he was given tribute in the form of constant food and treasure by a society of deep dwelling, evil dwarves in return for him lighting their forge fires for them. His inclusion was so much fun.
Thay is actually a country (Thayans being the people of that country) and the Red Wizards are the ones who seized power there. Think of the Thayans like Russians and Putin like a Red Wizard.
Thanks!! That cleared up a lot :)
The complaint that they used too much CGI feels very weird considering how many practical effects were used in the film. Jarnathan, the Hobgoblin at the start, all the Dragonborn, the Fish, the Tabaxi(cat people), the Corpses... there was a TON of practical that wouldn't normally be practical. They only used CG where it had to be used.
I suppose it’s that the CGI moments stood out so much to me, but I’m glad to hear there were so many practical effects used!! 👏🏻 thanks for watching :)
I don't think there's anything weird about it. When a particular effect doesn't work for someone, it simply doesn't work. I don't think it matters how many practical effects were used in other scenes. And that would also go in reverse as well. If the practical effects looked cheesy to her, that's still gong to stand out in her mind, even if the CGI was top tier. The bottom line is once something takes you out of your suspension of disbelief and the film watching experience, that's simply it and its likely to stick out in your mind after the film is over. Its just the way it is. Getting special effects right in a film is a challenging undertaking.
Funny detail about why Edgin giving his daughter a pair of mittens. Neverwinter is called that way because it literally is never actually winter there. The city has a pact with fire elementals (that volcano they rode by) and the elementals basically keep the city nice and warm all year through. Thus... never winter.
Her getting a gift of mittens for the cold is, well, pretty useless.
yeah, but Edgin hardly knew she was there when he made them, and he either gave her them or nothing...
21:50 No, he isn't. He is a paladin, not a wizard.
To understand the basics behind that you need to know that in the D&D RPG every character has a character class which defines his or her abilities and sometimes also their personality.
The classes in this movie:
- Edgin is a Bard (storytellers; they are good with knowledge skills, can boost their companions with their music and can cast spells)
- Holga is a Barbarian (good at fighting)
- Simon is a Sorcerer (the name is actually an Easteregg - it refers to an old video game named Simon the Sorcerer. Soverers in D&D are powerfull spellcasters like wizards, but their powers come from their ancestry while Wizards learn them at academies)
- Doric is a Druid (shapechangers and using nature magic)
- Sofina is a Wizard (see sorcerer)
- Forge is a Rogue (in older editions this class was called Thief. They're good at lockpicking, pickpocketing and stuff like that)
- Xenk is a Paladin (holy warriors)
There are more character classes, but they don't directly appear in the movie, at least not among the named characters; all the soldiers Holga beats up in the movie are most likely low level (=inexperienced) Fighters.
22:30 Yep that gnomish trap...that's something dungeonmasters come up with for the players. The dungeomaster is the person in and RPG group who tells the story and portrays all the NPCs (= Non-Player-Characters) and monsters. The rest of the players each have an individual character.
44:19 Thay is a country. This country is ruled by an order of wizards known as the Red Wizards of Thay. Basically wizards are the nobility in Thay. The vast majority of people in Thay are just ordinary people - farmers, craftsmen, merchants etc. Xenk and Sofina have nothing other in common than being from the country Thay.
Holy smokes, thank you so much for all the info! That lays it out in a much clearer way to understand. Much appreciated!
@@cinemawithsteph You're welcome ;-)
The Chunky Dragon was a Gas Dragon, he needs an external force to ignite his gas for it to work, you see this for the first time as they're running away from Chonk by the lava waterfall.
Ooooh that makes more sense, thank you!
@@cinemawithsteph you're welcome! 😊
Well he is a red dragon (breathes fire) but is unable to spark his own flame. I think that's canonically due to his obesity.
@@nimz8521a dragon has to reroll a 5 or 6 to regain it's breath weapon. He already did it once and then failed his attempt to regain it.
Nope, not a "gas dragon", a straight up Red Dragon. He just can't light his own fire right now (the sparks like a failing lighter in the back of his throat). He used a lava spill to ignite it at one point, and Simon ignited it in the dead end cave to cave in the ceiling so they could swim up into the bay.
I agree, Edgin and Helga have such a great relationship, I'm glad they didn't try to force any romance into it. I think this movie was well written and the cast was excellent. Thanks for a great reaction!
Thank you for checking it out!
This comment is kinda long and boring but I thought I'd leave it anyway. There's a funny thing I noticed about Simon's arc here, and frankly a lot of stuff in this movie: it is not just using settings, magic, creatures, etc, from the game, but actual game mechanics.
For example, how Ed couldn't get out of his bindings; basically repeated failing dice rolls. Or, when Holga came up with that plan-- That's like her getting an unusually high dice roll on something requiring the character stat called Intelligence, which is not something her class, Barbarian, usually ever needs to worry about. Sometimes a whole party will roll on something difficult and sometimes the most unlikely thing will bring a successful action like that.
Well, Simon needed to believe in himself, right? Funny thing about Sorcerors. Wizards and Sorcerors are different, Wizards have to study to learn magic, but Sorcerors are sort of innately born with the ability to do magic and more need to learn to control it. The Helm, in Simon's first attuning attempt, is sort of giving the game away when it tells him magic choses who wields it. Technically it did, with Simon, being a sorceror. The kicker is: both Bards (like Edgin) and Sorcerors rely on the Charisma stat. One part of that would be charm- What Ed makes use of... And another part is confidence. So in a way, Simon's need to find his confidence as a character arc is actually directly tied to his class's ability to use magic effectively. It also makes sense why Ed recognized this first and kept pushing him on that.
So much of the writing of this movie is taken from things that DnD games are known and infamous for, and written into a story accessible and fun for anyone. I love it!
I haven’t played the game myself but given the explanation you provided, it definitely sounds like you’re right!
It's amazingly clever and very well written. I wish more people had given it a chance in theatres.
And now...The Legend of Vox Machina.
Is that related to D&D in some way?
@@cinemawithstephThe Legend of Vox Machina is an adaptation of Critical Role's first campaign. They're the most successful channel on Twitch and the most popular broadcast D&D game: where the players are all accomplished voice actors.
@unicyclist97 What the esteemed cyclist said. :)
@@cinemawithstephadditionally, it has proved successful enough, both with existing fans of Critical Role and with newcomers, that with two 12-episode seasons already aired, a third season has been greenlit by Amazon, as has a series based on Critical Role's second campaign, The Mighty Mein.
A Paladin is a "Holy Warrior" and swears service to his or her chosen Deity. Basically they cannot commit any sin in the eyes of that deity, so must adhere to the letter of their religious laws eg Do Not take the name of your lord/lady in vain, spealk no evil, do not lie etc. (Using a figiure of speech/colloquialismcan be construed as a falsehood or bending the truth.) Paladins can access holy magic associated with their beliefs but it is mostly used to assist in combat or to shield the innocent and cure wounds or disease.
Thayans are the people of Thay. The Red Wizards are an evil faction that rule Thay, But most people, like Edgin, associate all Thayans to the evil Red Wizards. And a lot of them are undead.
Thank you for the clarification, and for watching!
Zass Tam is a Lich. An undead Wizard
🐉🐉🐉🐉
Thay is the nation. Thayans jts people. Red wizardscare the ruling class
Apparently, Bradley Cooper's role in the movie is a Halfling (otherwise known as a Hobbit)
No way!!
yup, he’s a straight up mini cooper
@@cinemawithsteph Yup! I had the same reaction after reading what his character was
Halflings are Hobbits with the serial numbers filed off.
They are not Hobbits in the most important sense of all: The legally distinctive sense that kept the Tolkien estate from suing Gary Gygax into oblivion.
From my view this post vanished for a while. Very happy it returned
It did! And unfortunately it might go away again :( I was copyright struck for it, but they didn’t complete the necessary information. For now though, it’s back up as long as I can keep it there!
Rege Jean page is 🔥🔥🔥
You won’t find me disagreeing! 😂
Good cheeeseeee ❤
👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾💯
Thanks for watching!
Hi there
Hello!
I haven't seen this flick. It might be too soon for a watch. I wish I could give you that view to help the algorithm. all the best.
Thanks for that!
Have you watched it yet?
@@WolfHreda I have watched it. It had too many moving parts for a cohesive story.
Skulduggery, think cheating, running cons, etc.
(Did they tell u his name’s pronounced like Reggae - like Raygay Jawn (but make the J sound almost like ur shushing someone but still saying the J. Like zhuzhing a shirt tuck? U know what I mean?! Lol) Page. Raygay Zhawn Page.🤘
I think I’m following! Thank you for that, you’re actually the only person to have let me know :)