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…
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“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.
“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.
