Netflix just premiered a new movie starring Millie Bobby Brown, titled “Damsel”. I will say that I really wanted to love this movie. Millie is one of the most talented young actresses out there right now and she did a wonderful job acting, but the entire plotline of the movie was a little weak to be honest. The plot for this movie revolves around a royal family that lives in a barren wasteland where their people are starving and cold. Then out of nowhere they receive a letter from a very wealthy and bountiful nation faraway that wants a union with their daughter. In exchange they will give them a lot of gold and means to take care of their people.
While there is an all-star cast, including not only Millie Bobby Brown, but also Angela Bassett and Robin Wright, it still doesn’t do a lot to improve the storyline. Once the “poorer” royal family visits the nicer kingdom, there is a change in the father. He has a meeting with the new in-laws about the “terms” of the betrothal and suddenly he is not himself. Although the step-mother, played by Angela Bassett, has a bad feeling, the wedding continues. Brown’s character, Elodie, marries the prince and almost immediately learns that she must pay tribute to her new husband’s ancestors. In an ancient and odd ceremony where she is told a story about a vengeful dragon who once killed their entire village and demanded that they sacrifice daughters of the royal blood every generation. Elodie assumes that their tribute will be a simple gold coin that is tossed in the chasm. However, her new husband scoops her up and tosses her over the side. She is to be the sacrifice. Those are the “other” conditions that her father was told about once he arrived. Facing a new and terrifying situation where Elodie must fight to stay alive inside a series of caves with an angry dragon the story continues.
Most of the movie is her fight to survive and her transition from princess to warrior. There are a few twists and turns, such as her father feeling guilty and trying to come back to save her (only to be killed himself), and Elodie realizing that both she and the dragon have been lied too. The people of the city had murdered the dragon’s babies centuries ago and that is why she is so angry.
The movie is eventually resolved by Elodie standing up to the dragon, beating her and then healing the dragon and telling her the truth. She marches back to the Prominent Nation battered and bruised but victorious and saves another young girl from the same fate. Then she gives the people one chance to flee before the dragon comes to seek vengeance on them all. Elodie sails off with her step-mother and her younger sister to finally head home and take care of her people, this time with her dragon by her side. It’s both sweet and a little trite. Although it is meant to be a woman empowerment movie, the storyline seems a little forced, and not very memorable. The women give good performances but it just misses out on really feeling like true fantasy. Still love Millie Bobbie Brown, but looking forward to her in Stranger Things and maybe another Enola Holmes instead.
