In April 1997, TSR sold the rights of the original game property to Wizards of the Coast, who were displeased with the film project. Wizards filed a lawsuit against Solomon, but settled it on the condition that he use an earlier script that had previously been rejected and filming had to begin within a few months. Solomon and his grandfather Joe Smuckler co-signed a $25,000 bank loan and raised $30 million from investors, but with less than half the $100 million needed, CGI and prop heavy scenes had to be cut from the movie and the script re-worked around the cuts. Advancements in technology and Prague as a shooting location, which had many medieval-era-looking places and cost five times less than the United States, made the film a reality. At the time of its release, Dungeons & Dragons (2000) was the biggest-budget independent film produced.
Just some really interesting drama and backstory behind this production. It's also kinda sad to see someone working so hard to make their passion project a reality, only for it to fall apart due to circumstances outside their control.
Spoiler Warning: I am going to give a synopsis and my opinions at the very end.
Summary:
Over sweeping shots of Sumdall, the capital of the Izmir Empire, the narrator explains how the land is ruled by an elite group of Mages. Anyone without magical abilities is treated as a second-class citizen. Beneath Sumdall, an evil mage named Profion is attempting to create a magic scepter that will allow him to control gold dragons. The scepter is likely based on the Dragon Rod from 3.5 edition, which was created by a wizard to taunt the gods. The rod combines two dragon eggs to create a single hybrid creature that imprints upon the rod's wielder. Most dragons view the rod as blasphemous and either wish to claim it for themselves (chromatics), hope to save the wielder from themselves (metallics), or actively seek its destruction.
While his attempts initially appear successful, upon hearing of Profion's plans to crush the empress, the enslaved dragon breaks free and sets several of Profion's minions ablaze. Profion is forced to kill the dragon to stop its assault. The dragon's blood seeps into the nearby river, causing the water to boil and catch fire, which draws the attention of Sumdall's inhabitants.
Profion holds a meeting with the Council of Mages to discuss the controversial views of Empress Savina, who believes that all people should be given equal rights. Profion convinces the council to confiscate her scepter, one that controls gold dragons. Under the advice of her advisor, Vildan Vildir, the Empress seeks out another rod - the "Rod of Savrille", which has the power to control red dragons. Profion learns of this development through an imp spy and sends his blue-lipped henchman Damodar, chief of the Crimson Brigade, to assassinate Vildan.
Meanwhile, a pair of thieves - Ridley Freeborn and his best friend Snails, break into the Sumdall Magic School having assumed most of the guards would be away investigating the river fire. However, they are discovered and apprehended by Marina Pretensa, Vildan's assistant. Damodar arrives and slays Vildan, forcing all three to escape through a magical portal. They crash land in a pile of garbage that also happens to be the home of a dwarf named Elwood Gutworthy. Damodar gives chase, seeking the map with the location of the rod in Marina's possession, but the group escapes through the sewer. Damodar frames the group for the murder of Vildan and as punishment for his failure, Profion places a tentacled monster inside Damodar's head.
Left: A running gag would've had Elwood "rage" every-time the small tuft of hair under his helmet was exposed, but every scene except for one was cut. Right: Profion's evil lair was filmed in the Sedlec Ossuary. As a side note, the "ear-worms" Profion implants in Damodar are reminiscent of the Eberron earworm symbionts (parasites).
Ridley and Marina are sucked into the map where a wraith reveals they must find a ruby called the "Eye of the Dragon" that can then be used to open the door to the Dragon Temple containing the sceptre. The "Eye of the Dragon", they learn, is held by the thieves' guildmaster, Xilus, in the city of Antius. Xilus runs a maze full of puzzles and traps that he uses for entertainment. The "Eye of the Dragon" is the prize awaiting anyone able to solve it.
The fear on Ridley's face as he
jumps out of the way of the pendulum blades is genuine as the actor was
nearly hit by the 300 pound contraption.
Ridley completes the maze just as Damodar arrives to capture him and his friends. Marina is captured while Ridley, Snails, and Elwood escape with the ruby. They are later confronted by an elf named Norda who works for Empress Savina, whom they inform of Profion's plans.
In his castle, Damodar interrogates Marina using his head worms to extract the information he seeks. Ridley and Snails attempt a rescue by slipping through a side door while the beholder guards are distracted. Ridley frees Marina from her cell while Snails looks for the map in Damodar's chamber. They are discovered and a fight ensues with Damodar and the Crimson Brigade, including an abnormally tall man (possibly a goliath). Snails is killed by Damodar in the battle and thrown off the castle wall. Infuriated, Ridley tries to avenge his friend, but is disarmed and stabbed. Marina uses magic dust to create another portal, escaping through it with Ridley.
Norda takes Ridley to an elven healer, who uses magic without spells. He explains to the group that dragons bring new magic into the world, and should enough die, the world would be irreparably damaged.
Still feeling remorseful over his friend's death, Ridley and Marina fight over having left Snails to die instead of saving him, the power difference between mages and the common-folk, and what the empress is doing to change it. Marina convinces Ridley that Snails' death was not in vain and the two reconcile. The next day the team retrieves the rod from Savrille, a skeleton in the Dragon Temple. Savrille was the creator of the rod, now cursed for trying to control red dragons. He warns that "anyone who wields the power of the Rod shall suffer a horrible fate" just as Damodar arrives and takes it.
Meanwhile, the Empress Savina refuses to give up her rod to the council, leading to war over control of Izmir. Damodar returns to Sumdall with the Rod and has the worm removed from his head. Profion then uses the Rod to summon red dragons, which battle the Gold dragons.
Ridley duels Damodar, wounding him before throwing Damodar off the tower to his (presumable) death, finally avenging Snails. He then attacks Profion, who disarms him. Ridley's companions then arrive to fight Profion, distracting him long enough for Ridley to retrieve the fallen Rod and use it to halt the red dragon assault. Realizing the Rod's power will corrupt him, Ridley destroys it. Empress Savina silently arrives, summoning a gold dragon to devour Profion, ending the battle.
Ridley, Marina, Elwood, and Norda visit Snails' grave together to say a few words before placing the "Eye of the Dragon" on the grave marker. Snails' name disappears from the stone and the ruby glows. Norda tells Ridley not to question his abilities - that his friend is waiting for him. The group dissolves into light and vanishes.
Final Thoughts
This isn't a Dungeons & Dragons movie, not really. Outside of a few small references there isn't much to tie it to the tabletop property. Dragons are portrayed as dumb beasts, beholders don't do much, and there is some strange 3-eyed "Hyphen" thing... person. But if you ignore the Dungeons & Dragons branding, this is actually a pretty decent, low-budget, silly-fun fantasy film. The sets are very impressive and imaginative considering the budget. The character's personalities are a step above most B-movies, the plot moves along at a steady pace, and the simultaneous over-acting and lack-of-acting just adds to the entertainment value. I mean, there is a blue-lipped tough-guy and Jeremy Irons appears to be having the time of his life in a film he knows is gonna bomb. Its so bad its good, and I love me some premium B-movie cheese.Out of the three live-action D&D film adaptations this one is hands down my favorite. It gets a lot of flack for having the D&D branding and yeah... I don't like bad adaptations of my favorite franchises either, but this movie is so far divorced from anything related to the tabletop game that I don't even consider it to be an adaptation of D&D, and maybe that's the key to enjoying this beautiful disaster.
Some random tidbits I came across:
- The Dungeons & Dragons DVD includes a printable PDF file for a "Fast-Play" game based on the movie called "The Sewers of Sumdall".
- Dungeons & Dragons: The Movie is a novel written by Neal Barrett Jr. It is basically just the film in book form. Nothing new was added.
- Richard O'Brien, who played Xilus the guildmaster in the movie, hosts a UK game show called "The Crystal Maze" in which contestants complete a series of challenges with the promise of a crystal prize at the end.
- Jeremy Irons accepted a role in the movie because his castle - Kilcoe Castle in Ireland (originally built in 1450), needed renovating.
- Thora Birch as Empress Savina - who arguably gave the flattest performance (and isn't a D&D fan), was nominated for the "Young Artist Award for Best Supporting Young Actress".
- According to a fan theory, the film is actually a D&D session played by stereotypical players, only two of which are taking the whole thing seriously and another that doesn't really play D&D. It's why everything is so campy and everybody "goes home" at the end.
Have you seen Dungeons & Dragons (2000)? What were your thoughts on the movie? If you haven't seen it, do you plan to?
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