Dungeons & Dragons: Special Edition (2000)

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General		Extras
Category	Fantasy	Main Menu Introduction Main Menu Audio & Animation Scene Selection Anim & Audio Audio Commentary-C Solomon (Dir/Prod), D Milsome (DoP), D Ameson (RPG Creat) Audio Commentary-C Solomon (Dir/Prod), J Whalin (Act), D Ameson (RPG Creator) Theatrical Trailer Featurette-B-Roll Featurette-Making Of Production Notes Biographies-Cast & Crew Alternate Ending-+/- Director's commentary Deleted Scenes-11 +/- Director's commentary Featurette-Let The Games Begin Multiple Angles-Special Effects Demonstration (4x3) CD-ROM-Baldur's Gate II Demo Interviews-Cast-Accessed through biographies
Rating
Year Of Production	2000
Running Time	103:26 (Case: 107)
RSDL / Flipper	RSDL (81:31)	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Courtney Solomon
Studio Distributor	Magna Home Entertainment	Starring	Justin Whalin Marlon Wayans Thora Birch Zoe McLellan Kristen Wilson Lee Arenberg Bruce Payne Jeremy Irons
Case	C-Button-Version 2-Dual
RPI	$34.95	Music	Justin Caine Burnett

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 5.1 (384Kb/s) English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s) English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s) English dts 5.1 (768Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.85:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.85:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	None	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

    Dungeons & Dragons is the grand-daddy of all Role Playing Games (RPGs). For those that do not know, an RPG is a game usually played in groups. Each player takes on a character, or "role", that they will guide through the forthcoming adventures. The game is not so much about beating up on enemies, although there often is a lot of that as well, as attempting to remain faithful to the character in every situation. Where do these situations come from? They are either taken from source material, or created anew by the game "referee" - the all-powerful player who is in charge of ensuring that the game is as interesting as possible. The referee (known as a Dungeon Master in Dungeons & Dragons) can place characters for the players to interact with, treasure for them to find, and perilous situations for them to encounter. These games can take place in any setting it is possible to imagine. Since its inception in the early 70s, Dungeons & Dragons or D&D as it is generally known, has progressed through many forms and revisions, but of late has been seen as somewhat passé, for its generally combat-oriented gameplay stunts real character growth. But in late 2000, with new Third Edition rules having just been released that gave the game a dramatic overhaul, D&D was almost ready to make a comeback. It was into this environment that Dungeons & Dragons was released.

    Set in the nation of Izmer, created especially for this film, Dungeons & Dragons is the tale of two thieves, a mage, a dwarf, and an elf who by a twist of fate must help the Empress Savina (Thora Birch) wrest control of the Council of Mages from the evil archmage Profion (Jeremy Irons). Izmer society is dominated by mages - while ruled by an Emperor (or Empress), it is governed by the Council of Mages. Empress Savina wants to redress this balance, and give the non-mage residents of Izmer a say in determining their own destiny. Understandably, Profion does not like the idea, and would rather do away with the Empress to wrest full control of Izmer for himself. There is only one problem - the Royal Scepter controlled by the rulers of Izmer. The Scepter give the wielder the power to control Gold dragons (in the worlds of D&D, Gold dragons are intelligent, and good creatures), and Savina could use it to enforce her views upon the Council. To overcome this problem, Profion convinces the council to ask for the Empress to hand her Scepter into their keeping. Desperate for a solution, Savina is told by her advisor Vildan (Edward Jewesbury) of the Rod of Savrille, an artefact that, like her Scepter, can control dragons (Red dragons, considered to be the most evil type of dragon in the world of D&D). Unfortunately, Profion learns of the existence of the rod as well, and sends the leader of the Crimson Brigade, Damodar (Bruce Payne), to beat its location out of Vildan.

    It is at this point that the paths of thieves Ridley (Justin Whalin) and Snails (Marlon Wayans) cross that of Vildan's apprentice, Marina (Zoe McLellan). Unfortunately for the three of them, they witness Damodar's interrogation, and Vildan sends the map with the Rod's location to Marina - instantly making them the next target. What follows is a race to find the Rod of Savrille first, with the winner gaining the top spot in the struggle to control Izmer. Along the way, the three heroes are joined by the Dwarven berzerker Elwood (Lee Arenberg) and the Elven tracker Norda (Kristen Wilson), encountering many of D&D's favourite creatures including Orcs and my personal favourite - Beholders, and in the best tradition of D&D, there is even a trap-filled dungeon.

    Dungeons & Dragons is one of the most entertaining adventure films released in a long time, and certainly the best this year (and is certainly better than its genre-partner The Mummy Returns). I'm not saying it is a quality film - it is not. What it is, is an exquisite piece of entertainment. It always surprises me when people go into a film like this and come out complaining that they didn't see award-winning performances and a script masterpiece. The acting is both terrible (I'm looking at you Bruce Payne) and very good. The story is really too epic - it should have concentrated on a smaller topic than the fate of the empire, and it cannot be denied that there are a few too many moments where it tries to be serious. For the most part however, the script doesn't take itself too seriously, usually allowing entertainment value to come first over pretensions of a theme and teaching the audience a message. The one aspect that really lifts this film however, is a gutsy plot move that you do not see coming. To reveal what that is would destroy one of the key sequences of the film, so you will have to trust me.

    Performance-wise, the main cast do a superb job. Justin Whalin in particular is excellent as Ridley, but that may have something to do with the fact that he had been attached to this project for over three years, earning himself an Associate Producer credit. Zoe McLellan is very good and perfectly cast for the role of Marina, being believably pretty, vulnerable, and powerful all at once, and refreshingly is not blonde! Marlon Wayans is the real surprise here. His performance is able to hit both comic relief and the necessary emotional depths - and this is especially impressive when you consider that he was only available for four days of shooting. From there, the performances go down hill. Kristin Wilson is passable as Norda, while Lee Arenberg proves that he was cast as the dwarf Elwood simply due to his lack of height, and not for any ability at acting. Bruce "over the top" Payne is at it again here, delivering some of the most ham-fisted attempts at appearing menacing that have ever been recorded onto film - but I still cannot resist enjoying his performances. It is in the big-name, glorified cameo roles that the least entertaining performances are found. I can only reason that Jeremy Irons and Thora Birch have become used to having the luxury of many takes to get it right, and that simply was not available to them on this film. Having to deliver lines such as "All people deserve to be free and equal, whether commoner or mage!" with any form of sincerity certainly would not have helped however.

    As you can probably guess, I love this film. It is pure B-grade, and pure entertainment at its best. Expect bad, and you'll have a ball, and probably be pleasantly surprised to boot. If you find yourself thinking "this is totally unbelievable", remember that the title is Dungeons & Dragons.

Video

    Presented in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1, this transfer is 16x9 enhanced.

    The sharpness of the transfer is where the only worry about its quality lies. While all foregrounds are very sharp and nicely detailed, backgrounds often quite indistinct. This would seem to be a problem with over-compression, as the backgrounds almost continuously display a light amount of pixelization. While this never really becomes overly obvious (largely due to the nicely detailed foregrounds), it has more of a "sub-conscious" effect giving the impression that the transfer is just slightly off. There is also a small problem with grain, although it really only breaks out wholesale on sky shots during the fight sequence at 59:47. The shadow detail is brilliant, displaying even very fine detail in the darker scenes. The transfer exhibits no low-level noise.

    The colours are brilliantly rendered, coming up in sumptuous detail. The scenes in the magic school (such as at 11:08) are particularly impressive, whilst forests come up in beautiful green detail.

    As mentioned previously, there is a constant level of background pixelization present that is most likely due to the squeezing of the DTS soundtrack onto this disc. There is also a small amount of aliasing, but it is mostly minor, the worst offenders being at 1:40 on a rope, and 29:25 on some lattice-work roofing.

    This disc contains no subtitles at all.

    This disc is an RSDL disc, with the layer change occurring at 81:31, during Chapter 14. It takes place just after a scene change on a brightly lit frame, and is extremely obvious, although as no dialogue was disrupted, it could have been worse.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    There are four audio tracks available on this DVD. The original English dialogue is available in both Dolby Digital 5.1 at the standard bitrate of 384 KB/s, and DTS 5.1 at half bitrate. In addition, two audio commentary tracks are available, both in Dolby Digital 2.0, surround encoded. I listened to all soundtracks in their entirety.

    Dialogue is clear and easy to understand at all times, which is no mean feat given the battle scenes later in the movie, with effects never drowning out dialogue. In general, sound mixing was superb, with the score, effects and dialogue all coming together to produce a very impressive audio experience.

    There were no problems with audio sync whatsoever during this transfer.

    The score is provided by Justin Caine Burnett, and what a score it is. This is the most sumptuous and sweeping orchestral score that I have ever heard, and for me it ranks as my pick for greatest movie score of all time. The main Dungeons & Dragons theme is one of the most moving pieces of music I have ever heard, and as it recurs later in the movie, it sends shivers down the spine. For this reason, it is somewhat of a shame that an isolated score could not have been included in place of one of the audio commentaries. An interesting side note is that the score was recorded at the ABC studios in Perth by the West Australian Philharmonic Orchestra, but is not available for purchase in Australia. The only downside is the 4% PAL speedup, as it changes the dynamic of the score at some points, which is somewhat disappointing.

    Were you wondering why you bought a surround-sound system? You won't be after you play this disc. The surround channels are used constantly throughout, providing score, ambient effects and action sequence effects. This soundtrack contains the most obvious stereo rear imaging I have ever encountered, and will become your new demo disc to prove to your friends why surround sound is so good.

    The subwoofer track is superb, adding bass to both effects and the score. The rumble released when the dragons start their thing will simply blow you out of your chair.

    Comparing the DTS and Dolby Digital tracks is quite interesting. I would have to say that the honours go to DTS this time, although only just. The DTS track simply has more depth and carries the score just a little better. One factor in favour of the Dolby Digital track is that it appears to have better imaging in the surround channels, although again, only just.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

Feature Commentary - Courtney Solomon (Producer/Director), Doug Milsome (Director of Photography), and Dave Arneson (D&D Game Creator)

Feature Commentary - Courtney Solomon (Producer/Director), Justin Whalin (Actor/Associate Producer), and Dave Arneson (D&D Game Creator)

Theatrical Trailer (2:30)

Featurette - Let The Games Begin (14:37)

Featurette - Making Of (19:25)

Deleted Scenes - 12 (including alternate ending)

Special Effects Deconstruction - Multi-Angle (4 scenes, 3 angles)

Production Notes

Biographies - Cast & Crew

B-Roll (9:44)

DVD-ROM - Demo Baldur's Gate II

• DVD-ROM extra: D&D Fastplay Game
• English Subtitles

• B-Roll
• Cast and crew interviews
• DTS soundtrack

    The video quality is brilliant, falling just short of reference quality thanks to a few problems with background detail loss.

    The audio is absolutely of reference quality, and is easily the best DVD soundtrack I have ever heard.

    The extras are phenomenal, being one of the most comprehensive extras packages I have encountered on a single disc. There is well over 6 hours of entertainment here, not including the Baldur's Gate II demo that includes some 30 hours of play time.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall