Swords & Wizardry Light - Forum

▼

Sunday, December 2, 2012

What Movie Best Represents "Dungeons & Dragons" in Your Eyes?


This question came up in last night's / this morning's game session. Yeah, we are pretty good at derailing game sessions, even those that are not rail roadie in the least ;)

In any case, for me it was Hawk the Slayer. Cheesy as all shit, but it was nice to see a true Crossbow of Speed in action. Maybe I'm still looking at it with the eyes of a teenager, but it rocked back in the day.

Besides, it has Jack Palance - need I say more?

So, what movie best represents D&D to you and why?
at

17 comments:

  1. faoladhDecember 2, 2012 at 4:03 AM

    Hawk the Slayer is a fine choice, indeed, but I don't think that any movie can well represent the action of a D&D game. The picaresque nature of the games almost requires a TV series. I'd pick Kröd Mändoon and the Flaming Sword of Fire, which has the mix of semi-ineptness, dumb humor, adventure, picaresque, and overall arc of a D&D campaign.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousDecember 2, 2012 at 5:10 AM

    The Mummy (1999) reminds me of D&D in play - has an adventuring party of Fighting Man, Magic-User, Rogue and Cleric. It has a range of undead and an insect swarm. Hirelings die easily. There are traps and betrayals.

    ReplyDelete
  3. JeremyDecember 2, 2012 at 5:12 AM

    When I started playing, which was while AD&D was in the process of coming out, we basically had the 2 Sinbad movies and Monty Python and the Holy Grail as inspiration. It's the latter that represents D&D to me the most, especially how Sir Robin would run away.

    ReplyDelete
  4. SimonDecember 2, 2012 at 5:40 AM

    Hawk the Slayer is definitely up there; a Fighting Fantasy gamebook on the big screen!
    For the feel of being 14 years old and running solo Chaotic Evil or CN(E) campaigns for my friend Fergus over the summer holidays, though, no film can match "Deathstalker"!

    ReplyDelete
  5. thekelvingreenDecember 2, 2012 at 6:00 AM

    Krull.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. faoladhDecember 2, 2012 at 9:54 PM

      Yes. Especially so with the science-fantasy kick that has swept the OSR.

      Delete
  6. AnonymousDecember 2, 2012 at 6:22 AM

    Conan the Destroyer - a couple of Fighters, a Thief and a Magic-User undertake a quest on behalf of a Queen, raiding a Wizard's castle and an ancient temple for magical artefacts, before battling an awakened god. How much more D&D can you get in a movie? :-)

    ReplyDelete
  7. RoboDecember 2, 2012 at 7:37 AM

    "Hawk The Slayer" is a good choice, but, the first live-action movie that came to mind was Mr. Macauley's pick: "Conan The Destroyer.". If we can add animation, I'd say the old animated "The Hobbit."

    ReplyDelete
  8. Digital OrcDecember 2, 2012 at 9:24 AM

    I asked the same question on my gaming blog in July: http://digitalorc.blogspot.com/2012/07/what-movie-your-d-game.html

    ReplyDelete
  9. Matthew SchmeerDecember 2, 2012 at 12:27 PM

    1. Krull
    2. Hawk the Slayer
    3. Conan the Barbarian
    4. Barbarian Queen
    5. Zardoz
    6. Flash Gordon (the one with the soundtrack by Queen)
    7. Ice Pirates
    8. Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone
    9. Damnation Alley
    10. Star Wars


    yeah, I like my D&D gonzo with a hint of post-apocalyptic space opera

    ReplyDelete
  10. AnonymousDecember 2, 2012 at 12:33 PM

    'Hawk the Slayer' is one of my favorite fantasy movies for all of its flaws and I think it does do a good job of showing D&Dish adventure. 'Conan the Destroyer' is another good choice, very party/adventure structured. I also rather liked 'Your Highness' as a D&Dish movie, though some people dislike (justifiably) the crudeness of some of the humor in it.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Sean RobsonDecember 2, 2012 at 1:12 PM

    The Golden Voyage of Sinbad will always be my exemplar of a D&D movie.
    Here's why: Demons of Darkness

    It's ironic, though unsurprising, that no one has chosen Dungeons & Dragons as the best D&D movie.

    ReplyDelete
  12. KergillianDecember 2, 2012 at 1:12 PM

    While not really D&D, the crew of Firelfy's Serenity is definitely a gaming group. I can imagine people I know playing those characters.
    [IMG]http://i674.photobucket.com/albums/vv102/cheesegirl33/GIF/GIF%20Firefly/gtfo.gif[/IMG]

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. faoladhDecember 2, 2012 at 9:52 PM

      When I first saw the advertising for Firefly, my first thought was "they're making a Traveller TV series!" I was hooked from that moment, before ever seeing an episode of the show.

      Delete
  13. The DaveDecember 2, 2012 at 5:08 PM

    Before I even read the post.. the first thing that popped into my head after reading the title was 'Hawk the Slayer'

    ReplyDelete
  14. AosDecember 3, 2012 at 8:45 AM

    A second for the Golden Voyage of Sinbad. I think that it is still just about the best S&S movie ever. Also, you have to make a save against heaving, glistening cleavage every five minutes while watching it.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Reverend DakDecember 3, 2012 at 5:16 PM

    Pretty much anything by Ray Harryhausen.

    Sword & the Sorceror!

    A couple of my favorite 80's movies are pure pulp action adventures with weird bad guys and ensemble casts as heroes, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension and Big Trouble in Little China.

    ReplyDelete