(2 Movie Collection)
Warner Bros. | 2000-2005 | 2 Movies | 212 min | NR
First published in 1974, “Dungeons & Dragons” had been the number one role playing game for a quarter of a century as well as a favorite on-line computer simulation when New Line brought it to the big screen in 2000. Despite a huge built in audience, a budget of $35,000,000 and lots of dragons, the result was a box office bomb that is probably among the cheesiest films ever made.
Not to be deterred, another company, Studio Hamburg Worldwide Pictures, took another shot at making D&D into a successful film with 2005’s, Dungeons & Dragons: Wrath of the Dragon God. The result was the same: an unmitigated disaster. However, in case there are a few people out there who actually liked these films, Warner Bros./New Line has released both movies on Blu-ray in a collection.
Dungeons & Dragons
While the film has the feel of a story that was made up as they filmed, the setting is is Izmer, a fantastical world governed by a council of mages, magicians, and an Empress, Savina (Thora Birch). Savina wants equity and justice for everyone in the kingdom, while head mage, Profion (Jeremy Irons), just wants the kingdom for himself. In order to accomplish his goal, Profion plans to take down the Empress and ascend to power by controlling the dragons that roam the land. The only problem is, he hasn’t quite figured out how to control them yet; thus the dragons refuse to bend to his will. He needs a special artifact, a magical rod, to command them, a rod he hasn’t got but badly wants, and sends his henchman, Damodar (Bruce Payne), to find it.
To that end, two thieves named Ridley (Justin Whalen) and Snails (Marlon Wayans) sneak into the kingdom’s magic school and insert themselves in Profion’s plan to steal the rod. Along for the ride are a beautiful young magic student, Marina (Zoe McLellan), and a dwarf, Elwood (Lee Arenberg), and an elf, Norda (Kristen Wilson). Yeah, it’s even more confusing than it sounds. The main point is that Ridley, Snails, Marina, Elwood, and Norda are the good guys and Profion and Damodar are the baddies.
The whole thing is sort of like a terrible Lord of the Rings, complete with a bad script, bad acting and a bad director. The story has absolutely no continuity, jumping from one point to another for no particular reason. Heck, the only reason to stay awake for this one is occasionally interesting visuals–towns, castles; costumes look straight out of a comic book.
Dungeons & Dragons: Wrath of the Dragon God
Smaller budget, same cluttered, cheesy result. Jeremy Irons has left the building. Starring Marc Dymond and a returning-from-the-dead Bruce Payne as Damodar. Damodar is out for revenge after the death of Profion and sets out to get the magical orb that will give him the power to destroy the world. There are five heroes standing in his way: Berek (Dymond) the fighter, Lux (Ellie Chidzey) the barbarian, Dorian (Steven Elder) the cleric, Ormaline (Lucy Gaskell) the wizard, and Nim (Tim Stern) the rogue. Much of the film deals with what happens as they work their way towards the inevitable showdown.
Unlike the first film, which moved along fairly quickly, Wrath of the Dragon God is burdened by a very slow pace. To make matters worse, likely due to the meager budget, the whole thing looks decidedly cheap. You can’t even let yourself get lost in the visuals. While you will learn that the stomach acid of a purple worm will eat through anything, I can’t imagine that’s much of a draw for many viewers.
Both films are presented in 1.85:1 1080P transfer. Dungeons and Dragons suffers from wildly differing picture quality, with nighttime shots particularly grainy with low levels of detail. Daytime shots are better, with vibrant colors and a good level of detail. Shot digitally, rather than on film, Wrath of the Dragon God looks “made for TV”. The image is sharp, but lacks depth, despite a colorful transfer.
The audio does more to impress, with the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack containing some oomph, particularly in the climactic moments of Dungeons and Dragons. The cheaper nature of the sequel’s production means the sound mix is far flatter, and offers less use of rear speakers.
Each film has its own set of special features. First, Dungeons & Dragons:
Audio Commentaries: Two feature-length commentaries are available: one with director/producer Courtney Solomon, actor Justin Whalin (Ridley Freeborn) and game co-creator Dave Arenson, and one with Solomon, Arenson and director of photography Doug Milsome. Both tracks are meant for diehard fans of the film; everyone else should skip them altogether.
Let the Games Begin (SD, 15 minutes): More profile than legitimate history, this “Profile and History of Adventure Gaming” delivers a quick overview of the origins of Dungeons & Dragons, its popularity, its publications and creatures, and the cast and filmmakers’ earliest encounters with the game.
The Making of Dungeons & Dragons (SD, 21 minutes): Solomon hosts this decent behind-the-scenes documentary that digs into the genesis of the film, the unorthodox process of translating a role playing game to the big screen, shooting the live action sequences, creating creatures and kingdoms via CG, and bringing it all together.
Deleted Scenes with Optional Director Commentary (SD, 19 minutes): Solomon reveals the reasoning behind cutting or trimming eleven scenes: “D&D Creator Cameo,” “Extended Council Meeting,” “In the Sewers,” “Inside the Scroll,” “Into the Thieves’ Guild,” “Extended Guild Fight,” “Norda & Snails,” “Norda & Marina,” “Ridley’s Vision,” “Waiting for Ridley” and an “Alternate Ending.”
Special Effects Deconstruction (SD, 13 minutes): Four deconstructions are included — “Opening Scene,” “Dragons Attack,” “Savina Leads Dragons” and “Dragon Dogfight” — each one offering a three-stage look at the film’s visual effects.
Theatrical Trailer (SD, 3 minutes)
Dungeons & Dragons: Wrath of the Dragon God has the following slate of special features:
Audio Commentary: Wizards of the Coast D&D special projects manager Edward Stark, Dawn Akemi and John Frank Rosenblum deliver one of the weirdest commentaries I’ve ever listened to. The trio stays in character for the duration of the track as iconic D&D game characters Krusk (a half-orc), Lidda (a halfling rogue) and Jozan (a human cleric). It’s obnoxious. Avoid!
Rolling the Dice: Adapting the Game to the Screen (SD, 22 minutes): The direct-to-video sequel’s cast and crew discuss the game, its rules and appeal, and the challenges in bringing it to life on screen.
The Arc: A Conversation with Gary Gygax (SD, 17 minutes): D&D creator Gary Gygax reflects on his life’s work, chats about the game as he developed it, discusses the importance of story and character, discusses Wrath of the Dragon God.
