
Dungeons and Dragons' aims to recapture 80s film magicThe makers of Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves wanted their blockbuster to be a throwback to the classic family films of the 1980s.
by Agence France-Presse
27-03-2023 08:37
in Entertainment
Image from Twitter by Jerome!
More jokes and less reliance on computer effects the makers of Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves wanted their blockbuster to be a throwback to the classic family films of the 1980s.
--
In transferring the beloved role-playing game to the big screen, directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein said they wanted the mix of earnest fun and absurd comedy of their childhood favourites like Raiders of the Lost Ark , The Goonies and The Princess Bride .
They were also bored of overly serious fantasy fare.
We've seen stoic, humorless portrayals of fantasy characters in almost every other film and television show, and this was our reaction against that, Daley told reporters in Paris.
--
ALSO READ | BAFTA red carpet rolls out for All Quiet' and Banshees'
The film stars Chris Pine as a reformed thief, with Hugh Grant as a slimy villain and Bridgerton heart-throb Rege-Jean Page in a scene-stealing turn as warrior Xenk, who is completely impervious to irony or sarcasm.
Pine has experience with cherished fantasy properties, having played Captain Kirk in the recent Star Trek reboots, but said he was unafraid of upsetting the D&D fanbase.
--
One should be wary of taking anything on, especially with the internet now being so angry and loud and acerbic, he told AFP.
But we made a really fun film and we've heard we've put enough in there for diehards, and even people who have never played are surprised how much they like it.
ALSO READ | The Queer Superhero sings their love letter to the queer community
Gelatinous Cube' It helps that Dungeons and Dragons is a role-playing game in which players to a certain extent make up the story as they go along.
We weren't beholden to anything other than satisfying certain desires of audiences to see a Gelatinous Cube or an Owlbear, said Pine, referring to two of the game's more bizarre creatures.
And the fact that it is a critical hit suggests they have pulled it off. IndieWire declared that its heartfelt story, enchanting characters, dazzling visual effects, and fun-filled nature will allow the film to be a treasured classic .
The directors, who made their names as writers on comedy Horrible Bosses and Spiderman: Homecoming , said the script was a priority.
ALSO READ | Babes secures' Uthando Lodumo: Life After Mampintsha'?
And that was oddly not very common in the world of blockbusters, said Daley.
Often you hear from studios: It's greenlit, let's get to work, we'll fix the script along the way.' And that's a really shortsighted way of working.
Puppets and real-life effects were used where possible to recreate the feel of classic films.
Audiences have gotten a little tired of over-reliance on CGI (computer-generated images), said Goldstein.
Pine's genius' As for Grant, he said he was relieved to no longer be playing the hero.
ALSO READ | Ant-Man': stumbles but still tops North America box office
No one wants to play the good guy, the British actor told AFP.
That's why Chris Pine is such a genius because he isn't annoying or nauseating or too-good-to-be-true.
Co-star Michelle Rodriguez, known for action franchises such as Fast and Furious , was grateful for some softer scenes between the action set pieces.
My favourite part was being able to grow some armpit hair and fight, she said.
But as I get older, it comes more naturally to be softer. The soft power of a woman is not exploited enough, especially in action movie world.
By Eric Randolph Agence France-Presse
How much of a rugby fanatic are you? FIVE simple answers could win you R1 000 in cash!
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
06/04/2026
Michigan legends bring a new voice to the broadcast as TNT Sports and CBS Sports...
06/04/2026
From high school sports all the way up to the major leagues, building high-quali...
06/04/2026
Quickplay, an AI company for the media and entertainment industry, has been accepted into the Advanced tier of the TwelveLabs Ecosystem Partner Program. Quickpl...
06/04/2026
Grass Valley has announced the Future Playmakers Program, a global initiative to...
06/04/2026
El l der de operaciones impulsa la producci n en estudio mientras encuentra insp...
06/04/2026
The ops leader helps lead the charge in studio for the Spanish-language broadcas...
06/04/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
06/04/2026
The National Hockey League (NHL), in partnership with Verizon and the New Jersey Devils, today announced the opening of the NHL Innovation Lab powered by Verizo...
06/04/2026
Rock League, a new professional curling league, has announced that ESPN+ will stream its inaugural 2026 season for fans in the United States. The first Rock Lea...
06/04/2026
Advanced Systems Group has announced the appointment of Andrea (Andy) Cummis as Vice President of Systems Design and Engineering. In this role, she will lead de...
06/04/2026
Backed by Bolt Ventures, the venture brings Bryson DeChambeau, Grant Horvat, and...
06/04/2026
With this environment we can start that collaboration even earlier because we ca...
06/04/2026
Like the immortal lives of vampires, some stories never really end. That's t...
06/04/2026
As podcasting continues to evolve, growth increasingly means building beyond aud...
06/04/2026
Multiband dynamics plug-in enhanced
California-based developer FSK Audio have released a significant update for their innovative multiband dynamics processo...
06/04/2026
Share official & user-created full-rig presets
IK Multimedia's latest TONEX update makes it possible for users of the popular amp and effects modelling ...
06/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/04/2026
Dalet Showcases Dalia Agentic AI and End-to-End Media Workflows at NAB Show 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Dalet, a leading technology and...
06/04/2026
OpenDrives Shows Off Sports Expertise in Sports Business Hub located in NAB Show...
06/04/2026
Proton to Demonstrate 3D Application at NAB 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Yet further creative potential unleashed through innovation in ...
06/04/2026
Autoscript Highlights Voice-Driven Prompting and PTZ Solutions at NAB 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Experience Autoscript Voice, PTZ prom...
06/04/2026
Mediaproxy Highlights Significant Enhancements to its LogServer suite at NAB Sho...
06/04/2026
Wayne, N.J., April 6th, 2026 Phantom High-Speed announces the release of PCC 4...
06/04/2026
April 6th, 2026
TRIBECA STUDIOS AND LILLY ANNOUNCE WINNERS OF INAUGURAL VITAL...
06/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Expands Kids Entertainment Lineup With Playground App ...
05/04/2026
Tackles all reported bugs!
SoundBridge have just announced the launch of a new update that introduces a couple of minor changes to their remote collaboratio...
04/04/2026
The University of Arizona's Men's Basketball team has only loss twice th...
04/04/2026
1080p HDR arrives, a new generation of storytelling tools takes center stage, an...
04/04/2026
Michigan legends bring a new voice to the broadcast as TNT Sports and CBS Sports...
04/04/2026
Faster, cleaner and more intuitive than ever
The control software for Flock Audio's digitally controlled patchbay systems has just been treated to an up...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
DHD Introduces AI-Based Audio Noise Reduction to XD3 IP Core
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
The accompanying image shows the rear panel of the ...
04/04/2026
Macnica Redefines ST 2110 Flexibility with Two Speeds on One Card
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
New for NAB Show 2026, MEP100 SmartNIC now sup...
04/04/2026
Unified Media Workflows for Story-Centric Production
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
Framelight X unifies field capture, editing and publishing ...
03/04/2026
Michigan's Fab Five will reunite for an alternate presentation of the Mich...
03/04/2026
Avid will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (April 18-22, Booth N2226, Las Vegas Convention Center), demonstrating its Content Core platform and new AI-driven workflow c...
03/04/2026
Mark Roberts Motion Control (MRMC) has announced the appointment of Nick Barthee as Chief Operating Officer.
The announcement follows MRMC's transition fro...
03/04/2026
Interra Systems has announced that Elite Media Technologies has selected its BATON file-based QC solution for media workflows. Elite Media Technologies speciali...
03/04/2026
Ateme has announced that Moldtelecom has deployed Ateme technologies across its streaming workflow, covering encoding, delivery, operations, and analytics.
Mol...
03/04/2026
Grass Valley will demonstrate Framelight X, its content management platform, at NAB Show 2026. The platform connects capture, ingest, editing, and publishing in...
03/04/2026
Encompass Digital Media and Techex have announced a cloud-native Master Control ...