2024 Movie
Dir. Juan Carlos Fresnadillo · Spain, United States of America · English
Millie Bobby Brown turns from titular lady to survivor in this fairly entertaining, though safe, fantasy flick
Historically, noble ladies get married to lords in order to strengthen existing alliances between their family’s domains. At best, they are able to broker peace, but at worst, they are hostages to the stronger family they married into. Damsel cleverly depicts a twisted version of this relationship through a reversed version of the fairytale, where instead of a wedding being the ultimate endgoal, it is the start of the princess’ misfortunes, placing Millie Bobby Brown into a fantastical survival stand-off against a dragon. It’s an intriguing idea, though the film mostly sticks to its PG-13 lane, leading to a fairly entertaining dark fantasy flick without delving deep into its horrors.
A young woman's marriage to a charming prince turns into a fierce fight for survival when she's offered up as a sacrifice to a fire-breathing dragon.
"More than a fantasy adventure, Damsel is a grisly and at times even touching tale of endurance and survival. It’s sweaty, snarly fun."
— Bilge Ebiri
"Even on the smaller screen, though, the fresh, female-led take on the traditional tale, including a bit of a sisterhood-is-powerful twist near the end, makes it worth a watch."
— Nell Minow
To save her destitute village, noblewoman Elodie agrees to marry a handsome prince only to discover that she’s to be a sacrifice tossed into a dragon cave.
Damsel is definitely a vehicle for Millie Bobby Brown– all the scenes have the titular lady, and it’s great to see a different, more fantastical side to her acting. It’s great to see Netflix invest in the young stars that helped make them big. However, in focusing the film primarily on Elodia, plenty of the other roles are sidelined, which isn’t necessarily bad, but it feels like a waste of the talents of the rest of the cast, especially for Oscar nominated Angela Bassett.
It doesn’t slay as much as it could have, both literally and figuratively, but it’s still pretty fun.
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Isabella Endrinal is a curator at A Good Movie to Watch. She's now free from the corporate night shift. Previous articles have been published in outlets such as NANG Magazine. She's currently catching up on some classic films… if she isn't coping with the fact that the Haikyu anime will end soon.
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