They went hard on the "misfit team" element because misfit team movies sell. The tone is also a lot like what you'd find and any given table, the face bard who tries to make plans, the paladin trying to go for those glorious kills, the to the point but generally chill barb. I bet the studio is hoping for grass roots advertisement from a lot of fans excited to see their table on the sliver screen.
This is it exactly. And the vast majority of the millions of people worldwide currently playing D&D will surely see it that way: "This is *my* tabletop D&D game up on the silverscreen. How cool is *that*!"
And I would wholeheartedly agree with them. It is D&D movies that should be about and leave you with a feel of TT D&D, and NOT a D&D cRPG.
Yeah. I have to disagree. Here's why: No single D&D movie has done well (at least that I know of). They all flop. Why? No one takes them seriously because those who create them don't create them to be a serious fantasy movie. They create D&D movies to be campy, (I don't know how else to put this) and cheesy. The story lines are lacking. The acting is usually not good, even from famous actors, the directing usually sucks, and I usually cringe the entire time I watch them.
If D&D wants people to actually pay to see their movies, and they want to make good money on them and make more, they need to stop goofing around with them. They need to make a high quality Lord of the Rings style fantasy story that captures people's attentions. Honestly, the Harry Potter series was made for children, and it was still full of goofy moments, but it captured the hearts and minds of adults as well. Why? It had depth and wasn't some cheesy story. It was serious enough to grab people's hearts and minds.
I know I'm pre-judging this movie. It could wind up being VERY good. I'm going to see it. I just have very low expectations based on D&D 2000, Warcraft movie, and others like them. Thus far, I see nothing that makes me think this movie won't be just like them - very cheesy and nothing like the serious fantasy stories D&D CAN and OFTEN is.
I'm just saying. Why don't they ever create movies based on stories like Demon Stone, Crystal Shard, Baldur's Gate 1 and 2 (imagine Irenicus on the big screen - wait. Nevermind. Video games never make good movies), Pool of Radiance, Dragonlance, the Ravenloft series, The Moonshae series... SOMEthing more serious and deep.
