A charming thief and a gang of unusual adventurers embark on an epic quest to recover a lost relic, but things take a dangerous turn when they bump into the wrong people.
History has not been kind to movies inspired by games, which prompts many moviegoers to not get excited at all when a big-budget blockbuster based on such a game is announced. After a much-maligned screenplay featuring Jeremy Irons as the antagonist was released in 2000, Dungeons & Dragons gets justice with Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves/Dungeons & Dragons: Brotherhood of Thieves, a far-fetched fantasy extraordinary, but which is as agreeable as possible. Although the film is officially released on March 31, it is in the cinemas’ preview schedule from today.

Probably the first thing to appreciate about the new screening is that it doesn’t force you to enter the cinema hall informed and can entertain you even if you don’t have the slightest idea (our case) about the game that inspired it. Of course, fans of the game will have the joy of recognizing some of its popular elements, but everything is very well packaged for the uninitiated as well. How about fantasy adventures combined with heist movie elements, another popular genre. And how can you not like it when various extremely valuable goods are stolen with the help of… magic?

The story begins in a fantasy middle age, where several races and communities coexist in peace, although a formidable threat lurks not far away. We meet the heroes, Edgin (Chris Pina) and Holga (Michelle Rodriguez, in a brief escape from the Fast and Furious franchise), while they are in prison, and we immediately realize that the former is able to escape from any trouble with the help of crafty words, while the second is equally skilled, but in the matter of weapons. We also now find out that the heroes ended up in prison after trying to steal an incredible magical object that was supposed to bring Edgin’s wife back to life, a plan that ended on Saturday because of a necromancer witch, Sofina (Daisy Head, very well helped by makeup). The two protagonists escape and gather together a motley group of adventurers for Edgin to recover his daughter and bring his wife back to life.

Dungeons is the kind of movie that goes as clearly as possible in only one possible direction. It’s like a train ride with a good friend whose conversation can no longer surprise you, but whose presence is always pleasant to you. Its story, about accepting mistakes and (self) forgiveness amid well-choreographed skirmishes with various enemies, recycles known and re-known interactions from other films with wizards, elves and dragons, but the characters have charisma, the dialogues are funny and here and there a surprise is also served to keep you hooked. If you like, this premiere is the equivalent of the new Jumanji movies, where the funny conversations and the motley group of characters somehow manage to avoid the boundaries and familiarity of the genre.

And the Brotherhood of Thieves has not only humor, but also emotion. In fact, in addition to the rather repetitive sequence of tests that the characters have to pass, they each have to learn their lesson. For example Simon (Justin Smith, a new generation Jay Baruchel) is very clumsy with casting spells left and right and has to solve his self-confidence issues to become a reliable ally to his colleagues, and Doric (Sophia Lillis, still best known for her lead role in the two IT films) must overcome her mistrust of those around her.

Together, all these elements make Brotherhood of Thieves a pleasant visit to the cinema. Unfortunately, we don’t know if the same will be true for The Super Mario Bros. Movie, whose unexciting trailer is assiduously shown before the films in the cinema schedule.