I didn't know there was a Dragonlance Movie.
I remember this being HUGE when I was a kid. Nerds all read it and knew it. There were a lot of books (it turns out more than 150 titles have been released). It was a series of trilogies, a lengthy format designed to be as long and escapist as possible.
I didn't like the books, though I dutifully read the first three. The story hasn't stayed with me. I do remember the cover art: brooding handsome men and big-hair girls in armor. And that gold guy in the red robe.
So now there's a movie on pay-per-view. It has a cast of Names: Keifer Sutherland, Lucy Lawless, Michelle Trachtenberg.
It's not good. The animation isn't anywhere near what I expected; this is a low-budget production, but they went with traditional cel animation instead of toon shaded 3d. There are a few 3d creatures, but mostly this movie feels like a 1980's after-school show.
Actually it feels more like the Heavy Metal movie; it's PG-13. There are many stabbings and eviscerations. Also, there's an early sequence with a voluptuous barmaid ("Tika Weyland") where she jiggles her boobs around in her Renfair "wench" dress, blushes as she realizes she's doing it, then sashays off while the camera ogles her robust, poorly animated rump.
The movie has the same problems that the books do: too many characters and a bad plot. Also, let's face facts here and admit that names like Flint Fireforge, Sturm Brightblade and Tasslehoff Burrfoot don't help anything.
I like fantasy stories, but this movie is how people who DON'T like it must see the genre. Some of the female characters are introduced with lingering cleavage shots before the camera gives us a look at the girl's face. The monsters are quite stupid-looking, especially the orcs. The not-hobbit, Tasslehoff, is unsettling.
I'd say something about how legions of fans are crushed and disappointed by this, but the movie seems to have come and gone without anyone knowing about it. There are forums and sites like Rotten Tomatoes that have a few discussions about Dragonlance. Mostly, though, this didn't get released. It escaped.
