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I watched the second D&D movie recently and thought it was pretty good, despite the crappy CGI effects. It had some decent acting, writing, and stayed true to the D&D universe. It made me want to see more. So I ordered the first D&D movie, the one that was actually released in theaters.... Ugh. Well, let me start by saying I didn't expect much. I heard it was pretty bad and that it didn't really have much to do with D&D, it was supposed to be a generic fantasy movie with the Dungeons & Dragons name slapped on it. Still, I wanted to see some friggin' CGI beholders, so I bought it for five bucks. I think it was probably worth a little less than that, considering I bought the second one for only two. Anyway, I just finished watching it and let me tell you, the acting was really, really bad, as was the writing. In fact, I'd say the movie is probably better suited to be a comedy, because it barely takes itself seriously throughout the whole duration of the film, which is probably a good thing. Once I adjusted, I actually found I liked the comic relief black thief guy, probably because he solidified the fact that this movie wasn't supposed to be taken seriously. The dwarf was immediately likable, since dwarves are awesome, but he got really annoying quickly. He was pretty much just there so they could have a dwarf in the movie. The elf lady was okay, but her armor's breasts really stand out. It's kind of disturbing. The empress was actually well done, she reminded me a lot of Amidala from The Phantom Menace, and in fact I think she could have played that role even better than Natalie Portman. She didn't have much screen time though. The main villain was crappy and never did anything, but his minion Damadar was pretty awesome, and he was easily the best actor in the whole film, plus his character actually had some depth to it. He makes a return appearance as the main villain of the sequel. The main hero was absolutely the worst actor in the movie, and the mage girl he gets with was absolutely unnoticeable and totally useless. That being said, let's move on. The whole movie is about getting a magical rod that controls red dragons. I didn't quite understand this, because the good guys already had one that could control gold dragons. There was also this running theme about the common folk hating the mages, which didn't make much sense and got annoying quickly. Other than that, I had no idea what was going on. There were a lot of scenes where the two thieves were acting goofy, a lot of scenes where the mage was being preachy, and a whole lot of action scenes. The action scenes were the best part, but they weren't very well done--basically it was what you'd expect while watching Hercules the Legendary Journeys with Kevin Sorbo, and the special effects were no better than that show's either. Just crappy CGI. Other than that, there were a lot of little parts that seemed out of place, like the dwarf making sexual references about bearded women and the mage suddenly falling in love with the main character for no reason. It made me yell at the screen a bit. This movie just doesn't feel like a good movie, and it definitely isn't D&D material. It has some redeeming parts, and some camp value, but it really is only worth about $2.50.Read full review
I remember having seen this film in theatres and thinking it was pretty good. It may have been the big screen making the dragons look cool, or perhaps I was a niave teenager. Jeremy Irons and Thora Birch are horrendous. In one specific scene they are each suppose to make a rousing speech to sway a group to their respective favor... It was so rousing that I had to fast forward through it. Marlon Wayans is horribly miscast in this role and would be much better off sticking to In Living Color-esque comedies. If you sick in bed with a fevor that is making you delirious and can view it for free it may be worth it to see the dragons battle at the end and the thieves guild gauntlet scene, but keep your finger hovering over the fast forward button.
Halfway through the movie I was like "What would be better? Sitting through the rest of this garbage or receiving a chinese water torture? Atrocious computer-generated zooming up and down gaudily-colored castles and cloud-capped palaces. FAKE A MUNDO! The sound is so brutal with those sharp rings as swords clash, glitter dust swirls, and magic spells go WHOOSH that sleep is not a viable option. Why are the main characters dressed like Tolkien's rangers but sound like The Real World, some gaudy hybrid of Conan the Barbarian and Star Wars: Episode I? It's impossible to look at the Empress Savina (Thora Birch) without thinking Natalie Portman's headdress. Say what you will about the George Lucas film, Portman did manage to appear regal. Birch, on the other hand, comes off as a bubble-head Valley Girl. In the opening shot across the sea, while dragons fly underfoot, we hear a ponderous voice-over throwing out strange names and places. yet not introduced to anyone yet, hard to make sense of it. Mages are attempting to overthrow the Empire of Izmer, while the commoners struggle for equal rights. Profion seeks the scepter to control the power of the Golden Dragons, but we also learn of an equally powerful rod which unites the Red Dragons. I'm already confused. Then we meet the two young thieves, Ridley (Justin Whalin) and his silly afra-american sidekick, Step 'n' Fetchit (Marlon Wayans). Actually, the Wayans character is called Snails, who will sacrifice anything, even his life if need be, to save Massah. Spike Lee would have a field day with Wayans' performance. (ugg...) Ridley and Snails sneak into the inner sanctum of a wizard who has some sort of secret scroll that the bad guys are after. As they set off on their adventure, they team up with a young magician (Zoe McLellan) who never actually uses her magic -- she's too busy waiting for the boys to rescue her. Since Jeremy Irons only wants to pick up his money for this film, he sends the sinister Damodar (Bruce Payne) in hot pursuit. The thieves,young magician and a few other sidekicks run through a series of hoops, with the crazy kids wandering through forests and towns, thieves' mazes, and enemy castles. To keep things entertaining, they never let up on their sarcastic repartee, slapping each other high-fives. Meanwhile, Snails ponders the immortal question, "Massah, why do you always get to save the girl while I go after the dwarf?" (OH BOY!) All builds up to an elaborate, but incomprehensible, dragon war. Buildings are smashed, swords are drawn, sky runs red with blood (actually, computer generated clouds that might have been swell in Tomb Raider but won't fool anyone here). Jeremy Irons gets to stand at the top of a tower cackling, contorting his face, and, ultimately, destroying his career with such $hi+ , that I wonder when he'll work again. Nothing good can be said about this movie. Fans of the role-playing game will be dissed when they see their beloved world contorted into a travesty. Those who loved the Saturday morning cartoon will be upset too. It's bad! 1 good thing about the film, but little interest to anyone who never saw the British sci-fi show, Doctor Who. Tom Baker, who played the doctor throughout the '70s, makes a cameo appearance in D&D as the Lord of the Elves. It's nice to know that he's still getting work. (LOL!) Deleted scenes actually explained the movie better. GRADE F )-: Save your $$.Read full review
This is the first of the Dungeons Dragons movie (2001) made. And in my opinion the best one. The storyline and the acting was/is very good. There are action scenes, magic and a bit of romance.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
This movie should be on every director school from Hollywood to Canes as an example of how NOT to make a movie. As a Dungeons and Dragons fan, I need to say that the director did not even bother to read the Players manual, much less the Dungeon Master Manual. In the movie you will see orcs drinking with elves and some more things that will make any fan of D&D blood boil. As a movie, it lacks acting, and direction. That said, the effects are not impressive either. You will see a good movie for the 80's. If you have come this far of the review, stop wasting your time on this movie, its not even worth writting about it... ooops...
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