‘Dungeons and Dragons’ is a fun and funny adventure

By DAVE MASON NEWS-PRESS MANAGING EDITOR

‘Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” is in dire need of more dungeons and dragons.

Other than that, the Paramount Pictures movie, which topped the box office in its first weekend, is a great story with unexpected plot twists and strong acting. While more mythical creatures would be nice, the movie has a lot of fun with magic and pays some effective homage to the Hasbro Bros. game that inspired it.

Directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein do a great job with the film’s pacing and bringing out the best from the cast. Mr. Goldstein, Mr, Daley and fellow writer Michael Gilio have crafted a strong story with a great blend of action, character-driven drama and humor.

In fact, the movie will make you laugh, keep you on the edge of your seat and will lead you on a great adventure without a lot of blood and gore. (It’s rated PG13 for some language, action and fantasy violence, and young kids might get scared. You don’t need to have played “Dungeons and Dragons” to enjoy the story.) Studios should make more

FYI movies like this one. email: dmason@newspress.com perform the

“Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” is screening at Paseo Nuevo Cinemas in downtown Santa Barbara and Camino Real Cinemas in Goleta. See showtimes at metrotheatres.com.

It’s also playing at Regal Edwards Santa Maria & RPX (regmovies.com) and Movies Lompoc (playingtoday. com).

“Dungeons and Dragons” is rated PG-13 for fantasy violence, some language and action. Its running time is 2 hours, 41 minutes.

Chris Pine stars as Edgin, a widowed father and thief who joins another thief, Holga (Michelle Rodriguez of the “Fast and Furious” franchise) on a quest to find a special relic. Edgin leaves his daughter Kira (the talented Chloe Coleman) in the care of his friend Forge (Hugh Grant), but in trying to steal that valuable relic, Chris and Holga get caught and imprisoned.

It’s not spoiling too much to say Edgin and Holga escape from prison and recruit the help of notso-great sorcerer Simon (Justice Smith), the wise and literalminded Xenk (Rege-Jean Page) and Dorci (Sophia Lillis), a druid or shape-shifter.

From there, “Dungeons and Dragons” is like a theme park ride, going from one adventure to another, and the characters run into plenty of direction and misdirection as they try to save the day.

It’s a motley crew. They make mistakes, and a lot goes wrong. And they’re up against dragons and other menaces, but these characters prove to be heroic in the best ways.

In fact, “Dungeons and Dragons” has a lot of heart. Ultimately it’s about family, the kind you’re born into and the one you choose. And Mr. Pine deserves a lot of credit for that as an actor with a knack for combining bravado with vulnerability. It’s why he made a great successor to William Shatner as Capt. Kirk in this century’s “Star Trek” movies, and it’s why he is the perfect choice to play Edgin.

Ms. Rodriguez also stands out for her ability to be funny simply by being totally serious. She also gets some great fight scenes (defeating a lot of bad guys by herself), and there’s no doubt her character is the toughest hero in this film.

Mr. Grant does a good job of playing a character who has an unexpected role in the story.

Company

6 through April 23 at The New

The calendar appears Mondays through Saturdays in the “Life & the Arts” section. Items are welcome. Please email them a full week before the event to Managing Editor Dave Mason at dmason@newspress.com.

TODAY

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. “Storytelling:

Native People Through the Lens of Edward S. Curtis” is on display through April 30 at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, 2559 Puesta del Sol, Santa Barbara. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays through Mondays. For more information, visit sbnature.org. 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. “SURREAL

WOMEN: Surrealist Art by American Women” is on display through April 24 at Sullivan Goss: An American Gallery, 11 E. Anapamu St., Santa Barbara. The gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily. For more information, www.sullivangoss. com.

By appointment on weekdays: “Holly Hungett: Natural Interpretations” is on view through May 20 at the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara’s gallery, 229 E. Victoria St., Santa Barbara. The gallery is open 1 to 4 p.m. Saturdays and weekdays by appointment. For more information, call the foundation at 805-965-6307 or go to www.afsb. org.

Noon to 5 p.m. “Clarence Mattei: Portrait of a Community” is on view now through May at the Santa Barbara Historical Museum, which is located in downtown Santa Barbara at 136 E. De la Guerra St. Admission is free. Hours are currently from noon to 5 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays and from noon to 7 p.m. Thursdays. For more information, visit www. sbhistorical.org.

7 p.m.: The Wynton Marsalis Septet will perform a variety of jazz music at The Granada, 1214 State St., Santa Barbara. Tickets cost $46 to $131 for general admission and $20 for UCSB students with ID. To purchase, go to www. artsandlecturesucsb.edu or call Arts and Lectures at 805-893-3535. You can also buy tickets at www. granadasb.org or by calling The Granada at 805-899-2222.

APRIL 5

7:30 p.m. Singer-songwriter Colin Hay, the former lead vocalist for Men at Work, will perform at the Lobero Theatre, 33 E. Canon Perdido St., Santa Barbara. The concert will feature his songs varying from “Now and the Evermore” to “I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself.” The evening will also feature special guest Lazlo Bane. Tickets cost $59 and $69 for general admission and $106 for VIP seats, which include a pre-show reception. To purchase, go to lobero.org or call the Lobero at 805-963-0761 between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays or 1-888-4562376.

APRIL 6

7:30 p.m. Stacie Burrows will perform her one-woman dark comedy “Bulletproof Unicorn,” which she wrote, at the Center Stage Theater, upstairs at Paseo Nuevo in downtown Santa Barbara. Ms. Burrows, a Los Angeles comedian, tells how she went to Texas to fix everything that was wrong with her dysfunctional family. It was a challenge. Tickets cost $30 for general admission and $50 for a patron ticket, which

By DAVE MASON NEWS-PRESS MANAGING EDITOR

“Jurassic Park” and its sequels handled dinosaurs much better.

That’s what stands out about “65,” starring Adam Driver as Mills, a spaceship pilot who crashes on Earth 65 million years ago in the age of dinosaurs. He and a young girl named Koa (Ariana Greenblatt) deal with this dangerous world as they try to reach their spaceship and get off prehistoric Earth.

“65” features some intriguing scenes between Mr. Driver and the talented Ariana Greenblatt, whose character, Koa, speaks a different language than Mills. They find ways to communicate as they strive to survive in the worst circumstances. As usual, Mr. Driver effortlessly becomes the character he’s playing.

As the movie progresses, viewers learn more about the backstory for Mills and his daughter Nevine (Chloe Coleman).

Otherwise, the film is about Mills and Koa using their wits and some technology, such as explosive balls and Mills’ pulse gun, to battle and outsmart dinosaurs of various sizes. The best scenes come toward the end when they approach their spaceship, and one thing after another goes wrong. But there have been many better movies about dinosaurs or two people stranded together on a planet. “65” is lacking in terms of story.

It’s a good film to see at a discount theater or at home if it lands on a streaming service, where you can fast forward through some of the slower parts. The film was directed by Scott Becks and Bryan Woods. By the way, there is a local connection. The movie has a good orchestral score, and the end credits list Jessica Guideri as the concertmaster. The talented musician is also the concertmaster of the Santa Barbara Symphony, and she’s in the orchestra that recorded the score for the upcoming “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” email: dmason@newspress.com