D&D Movie/TV D&D Movie Moves Forward With Deal With Former Marvel Exec Jeremy Latcham

[Traycor]

I didn't see it as good storytelling, I saw it as cheap jokes.

I understand the need to lighten the mood, but none of the "mood lightening" they attempted in Endgames seemed to work. And frankly, you could have let the movie be heavy. Half of the population dying sounds heavy, but we aren't really shown it beyond empty houses and a few minor scenes.

But, like I said, I don't want to drag this into a discussion of the plot and characters. I had my multi-hour rants about it years ago, no need to drag things out about it.

It's fine if it didn't work for you, but in the theater audiences sure seemed to love it. I do think the discussion is relevant to the topic because we're discussing how they might use characters. Marvel is the strongest reference we have right now, both because of the team's experience and the article over a year ago that they wanted a "Guardians of the Galaxy" tone for the film.

 

[Chaosmancer]

It's fine if it didn't work for you, but in the theater audiences sure seemed to love it. I do think the discussion is relevant to the topic because we're discussing how they might use characters. Marvel is the strongest reference we have right now, both because of the team's experience and the article over a year ago that they wanted a "Guardians of the Galaxy" tone for the film.

Oh, I enjoy the Marvel movies for the most part. And sometimes they are really cleverly done. Guardians of the Galaxy was really good. Homecoming was pretty dang good too in fact: the inclusion of the stinger showing that it wasn't Nick Fury the entire movie was a bit of a stroke of genius. I'd spent most of the movie fuming that Fury was acting unreasonable and out of character. Well, turns out, that was because it wasn't him. Great bit of misdirect though I don't know if there were any clues to the truth before that.

Endgame Thor was a misstep for me though, as was Drax in Guardian's Two. Yondu was awesome in that movie though, I liked how they brought him in and explained how he was who he was and what happened. Loved Gomorra and Nebula too.

I also think Captain Marvel was a little more miss than hit, it wasn't bad, but it felt rushed and incomplete for me. Just not quite as good as say, Iron Man (which is still an amazing movie even all this time later. )

 

[atanakar]

If they can't make a movie as good or better than Willow they should just refrain. Willow is the best D&D movie ever made.

 

[Stormonu]

If they can't make a movie as good or better than Willow they should just refrain. Willow is the best D&D movie ever made.

Hell, Hawk the Slayer was a better D&D movie than the D&D movie...

I still wish they would do Dragonlance - with some actual effort put into it. The animated version pretty bad.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

I will always have a soft spot for Hawk the Slayer and its soundtrack.

I tried re-watching the animated Dragonlance and was shocked at how bad the animation quality was. Like, I knew it wasn't good, but it was far worse than I remembered.

If the second D&D movie had come out instead of the first, I think it would've been better-received. The series' reputation never really recovered from the damage the first one did. Heck, the first Mythica did a better job of being a D&D movie than the first D&D movie, on a vastly smaller budget.

Hell, Hawk the Slayer was a better D&D movie than the D&D movie...

I still wish they would do Dragonlance - with some actual effort put into it. The animated version pretty bad.

 

[Urriak Uruk]

The more relevant antecedents would be Guardians of the Galaxy and other MCU entries

Guardians of the Galaxy is definitely a good model. A lot of people already describe GoG as your typical D&D party (in space).

 

[Bohandas]

Although it may be over-exposed within the D&D community, perhaps a "Drizz't escapes from Menzo, makes his way to the surface, finds friends and hope, and a new home" might be a good starting point. There is (I assume) plenty of characterization and actual storyline to follow there versus "random adventuring party doing random stuff."

Yeah. Random adventurers doing random stuff in a random setting is probably the worst way they could do it.

The only way this is ever going to work is of they base it directly on an existing, popular, plot heavy, classic adventure.

Personally, I think their best bet would be to directly adapt Baldur's Gate.

 

[Dausuul]

I guess I'd have preferred someone with more experience, but at least he hasn't made a whole bunch of terrible movies or something.

Considering some of the names we've heard bandied about previously, "doesn't have a track record of actively sucking" is an improvement.

Best case, they turn out to have an amazing talent for this and the D&D movie puts them on the map. Worst case, we're no worse off than we are now. My biggest fear for a D&D movie is that it will be a slog of endless CGI combat scenes interspersed with wooden dialog delivered woodenly, and that doesn't seem to be how Daley and Goldstein roll; that alone is good enough news for me.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Yeah. Random adventurers doing random stuff in a random setting is probably the worst way they could do it.

The only way this is ever going to work is of they base it directly on an existing, popular, plot heavy, classic adventure.

Personally, I think their best bet would be to directly adapt Baldur's Gate.

No particular reason it has to be an existing plot - Baldur's Gate is basically Star Wars, and many classic adventures have no plot to speak of, beyond random adventurers doing random stuff.

Personally, I think art direction and music are as important as plot for a successful movie.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Worst case, we're no worse off than we are now.

I think the actual worst case is the movie is high-profile but really bad and embarrassing (and not long-forgotten like the previous D&D movie), and damages the D&D "brand" and people who play it by being so dorky.

But I think that is unlikely. If it is bad, it's much more likely it's just mediocre or dull and soon-forgotten.