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Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Movie

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

2023 • Action, Adventure, Comedy

Woke Score
3.4
out of 10

Plot

A charming thief and a band of unlikely adventurers embark on an epic quest to retrieve a lost relic, but things go dangerously awry when they run afoul of the wrong people.

Overall Series Review

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is a fantasy adventure film that centers on a charismatic but flawed human thief, Edgin, and his quest to reunite with his daughter. The core dynamic of the main group features the barbarian, Holga, as the primary fighter and emotional protector, while Edgin is the planner and heart of the group. The party itself is intentionally composed of diverse fantasy races and a diverse cast, including a half-elf sorcerer with low self-esteem and a tiefling druid who harbors justified distrust toward humans. The film does not overtly inject political lectures or deconstruct Western civilization. Instead, it maintains a lighthearted, action-comedy tone. A notable theme is the gender dynamic, where the male lead is purposefully non-physical and emotionally-driven, and the female lead is the combat expert. However, the narrative ultimately focuses on the importance of family, friendship, and moral redemption, with clear lines between good and evil.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics4/10

The main party exhibits racial diversity through fantasy species (Human, Half-Elf, Tiefling) and the actors' real-world demographics, aligning with a diverse-by-design casting approach. The Tiefling character, Doric, distrusts humans due to past poor treatment of her kind, introducing a minor narrative thread of fantasy-race-as-oppressed-group. However, the main conflict is personal and character-driven, focusing on personal flaws like Edgin's guilt and Simon's lack of confidence, not systemic vilification of any one group.

Oikophobia2/10

The central conflict is a classic good-vs.-evil fantasy plot where the heroes must save the world from an evil faction, the Red Wizards of Thay, who are clearly villains. The narrative celebrates the formation of a chosen family unit. There is no deconstruction of an ancestral or home culture, and the institutions of good (like the Paladin's code) are presented as a source of strength against chaos.

Feminism6/10

The gender dynamics are intentionally structured for comedy, where the male lead, Edgin, is depicted as physically incompetent compared to the hyper-competent female barbarian, Holga. Holga is the party's muscle and is given a maternal role towards Edgin's daughter, which balances the 'Girl Boss' trope with a positive, protective portrayal of female vitality and caring. The directors noted a desire to 'emasculate' leading men for humor, which partially fulfills the category's definition.

LGBTQ+1/10

The movie does not contain any overt centering of alternative sexualities, gender identity politics, or sexual ideology lecturing. The main emotional core of the film revolves around a traditional father-daughter bond and the construction of a new family unit, adhering to a normative structure without political messaging.

Anti-Theism4/10

The Dungeons & Dragons world is inherently polytheistic with a clear moral structure where good and evil gods and their followers exist. The Paladin, Xenk, is a paragon of virtue and competence, representing faith and objective goodness as a positive force. The antagonist's goal is purely villainous and lacks a higher political or spiritual justification, preventing the narrative from becoming a vehicle for moral relativism or anti-theistic messaging.