After ten years of planning and production, the first Dungeons and Dragons movie came out in 2000 but the movie, described as the "Star Wars of the fantasy genre," ended up being a complete failure due to its cheap budget, mangled tone, and bad everything. Dungeons and Dragons was spearheaded by Courtney Solomon and starred Jeremy Irons and Thora Birch. The film has received a weak 10% on Rotten Tomatoes and is overwhelmingly disliked by Dungeons and Dragons fans and regular movie watchers alike.
Dungeons and Dragons was the first-ever movie adaptation of Dungeons and Dragons and so hopes were high that the film would succeed and breathe life into the then-dying fantasy genre. Dungeons and Dragons takes place in the kingdom of Izmer and follows the warring Empress Savina and Mage Profion as they both try to locate the Rod of Savrille for control over the kingdom and the dragons of the land. Unfortunately, the film ended up having too many problems that made it instantly unlikable to viewers, and other outside factors also seemed to affect the outcome of the film.
6 2000's Dungeons & Dragons Was A Victim Of Bad Performances
One of the most blatant problems with Dungeons and Dragons was its questionable and mostly bad acting. Of the many complaints given by critics and viewers, the acting is always mentioned, especially in terms of Jeremy Irons and Thora Birch. In particular, Irons is cited as having overacted his role as the evil Profion while Birch simply didn't act at all while playing the Empress Savina, merely repeating her lines without emotion. Overall, this lack of consistent acting led many viewers to be pulled out of the story and made them struggle to take the film seriously.
Another aspect of Dungeons and Dragons performances that likely made it suffer was its lack of a clear lead. Besides Irons and Birch, the film didn't have any major stars in it, and due to the aforementioned bad acting, the movie ultimately didn't have a strong protagonist to root for. This too could have pushed audiences away, especially Dungeons and Dragons fans who may have expected a solid ensemble to portray the classic sort of party that plays the game.
5 The Special Effects Weren't Good Enough For The Franchise
At a time when the fantasy genre was introducing groundbreaking technology in films like Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Courtney Solomon's disastrous Dungeons and Dragons movie didn't come close to impressing fans with its special effects. In fact, the film's effects were seen as cheap and not up to the standard of a fantasy feature film. The dragons in particular had an outdated and obvious look. Not only were viewers expecting better visual effects from this type of film, but it also kept them from enjoying the Dungeons and Dragons world which relies heavily on its setting and monsters.
4 Dungeons & Dragons' Director Was Inexperienced
An outside factor that definitely affected Dungeons and Dragons success was its leader and director Courtney Solomon. Though Solomon had a seemingly endless ambition to create this film, he lacked a lot of the expertise necessary to make it. Solomon had no experience in the film industry besides his mother's role as a production coordinator on a television series. Additionally, he had played Dungeons and Dragons in the past but wasn't an expert in its tricks and rules. It seems that Solomon simply had a good idea and ran with it.
Originally, Solomon wasn't even supposed to direct Dungeons and Dragons. At a certain time, major directors like Francis Ford Coppola and James Cameron were linked to the project though they eventually dropped out. Solomon asserted that he was forced to direct the film after almost ten years of working with investors to get the movie made. Whether this is true or not, Solomon certainly wasn't the right choice of director for Dungeons and Dragons, and his lack of experience likely made the movie suffer.
3 2000's D&D Story And Tone Were Inconsistent
It's true of any new Dungeons and Dragons movie that it's important to create a story that caters to both lovers of the game and viewers who have never played it before. In this way, a film needs to balance lore and inside jokes with a story that is easy to understand and exciting for anyone. Solomon's Dungeons and Dragons completely failed in this aspect due to its lack of specificity, its inconsistent tone, and jumbled story. Rather than adding strong details from the game and themes of action and comedy, Dungeons and Dragons skirted between taking itself too seriously and unsure moments of sudden humor.
A factor that may have led to this messy story was the script. According to Solomon in an interview with IGN, the movie's final script was an amalgamation of moments from 16 separate drafts. This patchwork of different scenes definitely could have contributed to the confusing tones. Ultimately, Solomon seemed unsure of what sort of fantasy movie Dungeons and Dragons would be, and this hurt the movie deeply because audiences didn't know what to make of it.
2 The D&D Sets And Costumes Looked Cheap
Dungeons and Dragons didn't do a better job of impressing audiences with its real sets and costumes. Once again, the low budget for the film led to costumes that were unconvincing and strangely similar to outfits from earlier successful fantasy movies. Additionally, instead of portraying lush forests or sweeping castles, the film looked quite basic and didn't convey the exciting elements of being in a fantasy world. Furthermore, some characters had odd additions to their looks, the most memorable being Bruce Payne's bright blue lipstick. Similar to the lacking special effects, the costumes and sets removed viewers from the world and left them wanting more.
1 Dungeons & Dragons Lacked A Connection To The Tabletop Game
Likely the most significant problem for the failed Dungeons and Dragons movie was its lacking connection to the original Dungeons and Dragons game. Though Solomon had the idea to adapt the game on-screen, his final product lacked the specific details needed to thrill fans. In fact, the movie remained mostly generic and rarely referenced the game at all. Rather than bringing Dungeons and Dragons to a whole new audience, Solomon, unfortunately, disappointed everyone. The film lacked accuracy and clarity.
All in all, the 2000 Dungeons and Dragons movie was a major flop due to its slim budget, inexperienced leader, and lack of tone and motive. While the film could have been a vital project for the fantasy genre and the gaming community, it seems that the world wasn't ready for a major Dungeons and Dragons adaptation quite yet. Although Dungeons and Dragons failed, there is still hope as Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves hits theaters with an already promising cast and story ahead of it.
Source: IGN