Dungeons And Dragons Proves Hollywood Is Sleeping On Michelle Rodriguez
Contains spoilers for "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves."
In the wake of the release of Paramount Pictures' somewhat-sleeper-hit "Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves," you're probably going to read and hear a lot about how the film proves Chris Pine can sell just about anything. It's a valid commentary that slightly undersells the delightful script, performances, and visual style, but acknowledges the staggering credibility and charisma Pine lends the project as he makes it more accessible for "D&D" newcomers.
But to focus just on the former Lord Devereux would be truly missing the forest for the Pines, as the entire cast of "Honor Among Thieves" works surprisingly well together. Hugh Grant looks like he's having the time of his life as the cartoonishly greedy Forge Fitzwilliams, while Regé-Jean Page's Xenk Yanadar threatens to steal the entire film (despite being written out way too early). But the greatest performance in the movie for our platinum is neither Pine nor Page, but a long-overlooked Hollywood legend hiding in plain sight — Michelle Rodriguez.
As Holga the Barbarian, Rodriguez is the true and uncontested core of "Honor Among Thieves" in every single way. She has the most impressive action sequences, the funniest gags, and the most heartfelt scenes. Pine may be selling the film with unparalleled gusto, but Rodriguez is the film. While Pine grounds "D&D" in knowing smirks, she lives within its zany world earnestly. Any discerning fan will fall in love with her character and should be crying out for Rodriguez to finally get her due from an entertainment landscape primed to showcase action stars.
She's the hero we deserve
Michelle Rodriguez's scene-stealing turn as Holga debuting just after the magnum opus that is "John Wick: Chapter 4" is revealing. In watching Rodriguez's performance, one can't help but compare her to the growly showing of Keanu Reeves as the titular Boogeyman. Both have previously proven themselves to do perfectly fine essence acting — to perform as their charming selves in heightened circumstances. Yet, they choose to commit wholeheartedly to these exaggerated, stoic personas that strangely work within their respective worlds. If Rodgriguez can do this in a genre-bending fantasy film, why couldn't she do it in a "John Wick"-esque action franchise in which she stars?
For the past two decades, Rodriguez has made the most of what little combat is afforded to her character Letty Ortiz in the "Fast and Furious" franchise, in which her potential is mostly restricted by the films' odd constraints of only having her fight other female action stars one at a time (this trend seems to be continuing in "Fast X"). In "Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves," however, Rodriguez gets to fight half a dozen heavily armed foes in one go, taking them down in hilariously heightened and brutal ways. While her combat sequences may be aided by a skilled stunt double, Rodriguez still nails the physicality and intensity when it's obviously her on screen.
We can no longer keep pretending as a society that Rodriguez is a supporting player. Directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein wisely showcased her capabilities as a strong co-lead, but it's high time she gets a chance to drop the "co" qualifier in a high-profile action film of her own. Until that movie finally comes along, "Honor Among Thieves" delivers a healthy dose of Rodriguez action that's just enough to keep fans satisfied.