Porcelain.Ivory.Steel

Everyone involved-- writer, actor, director, wardrobe, camera, EVERYONE-- understood the assignment.

There is no attempt to apologize for the fact that it's an ensemble fantasy comedy-adventure movie.

The plot is clever without being Too Clever. All of the major twists are well-telegraphed, and while it surprises you in a couple of places, it doesn't try to shock you.

Given that the archetypes of the fantasy genre came to us from Tolkein, Dungeons & Dragons, and Tolken-by-way-of-D&D, you will not need any context for the game and the lore that is not provided by the film itself. If you aren't familiar with the lore, there are no jokes or plot points you will miss.

If you are familiar with the Lore, there are references galore, but they're not fan service, they're the byproduct of the fact that the movie is set in a known location in a richly developed world. For example, despite that the fact that it's set in Neverwinter, at no point do any characters utter the phrase "Neverwinter Nights".