After starring in Stranger Things and the Enola Holmes films, Millie Bobby Brown is back on Netflix with a brand new project. Damsel hit the streaming site this weekend, and the movie sees Brown as a young woman who agrees to marry a prince before discovering she’s been tricked into fighting a dragon. The film is officially up on Rotten Tomatoes with mixed reviews. At the time of this writing, the movie is on the review site with a 59% critics score and a 77% audience score. You can read what some of the critics are saying below…
“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 (RogerEbert.com) wrote.
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“Too childish and shallow for adults, yet too brutal and gory for kids, this is one Damsel that really does need saving, after all,” David Opie (Empire Magazine) shared.
“There’s a simple, mechanical satisfaction to watching an underdog fight her way back from the depths, driven by a familiar current of revenge,” Benjamin Lee (Guardian) explained.
“If you can get past the clunky computer-generated environments you may be moderately entertained by this story of a girl trying to survive the elements and the threat of a hungry dragon,” Emily Zemler (Observer) added.
“While the story is a bit predictable as all fairytales are known to be, Brown is such a captivating lead that you can’t wait to watch her survive,” BJ Colangelo (Slash Film) wrote.
“Damsel is a lifeless experience. The filmmakers assembled the constituent parts of a fantasy adventure film, but the connective tissue is paper-thin,” Alexander Harrison (Screen Rant) shared.
“As with the Enola Holmes movies, Brown is the best part of this feminist spin on what’s usually a boys’ adventure narrative involving slashing swords and slaying beasts,” David Fear (Rolling Stone) praised.
What Is Damsel About?
In Damsel, a dutiful damsel agrees to marry a handsome prince, only to find the royal family has recruited her as a sacrifice to repay an ancient debt. Thrown into a cave with a fire-breathing dragon, she must rely on her wits and will to survive. In addition to Brown, Damsel will star Angela Bassett (Gunpowder Milkshake, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), Robin Wright (Wonder Woman), Ray Winstone (Black Widow), Nick Robinson (Maid), Brooke Carter (The Irregulars), and Shohreh Aghdashloo (X-Men: The Last Stand). The film will be directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 Weeks Later), with a script written by Dan Mazeau (Wrath of the Titans).
“It’s a thrilling adventure with a really dark twist to put you on the edge of your seat,” Fresnadillo explained in the same interview. “As a filmmaker, one of the things I always want to do is surprise the audience with a new take on a story. Especially this kind of [traditional story] — we have to modernize those tales with new takes, more modern and real ways, to connect with the audience.”
Damsel is now streaming on Netflix.
