On International Women’s Day this year, Netflix graced our screens with a brand-new film ‘Damsel,’ featuring Millie Bobby Brown, ostensibly a film of feminist subversion and empowerment for young women. The movie follows the story of Princess Elodie, set in some suitably vague Ye Olde Kingdom, who is married off to a prince, before the revelation that the marriage is a sham, set up so Elodie can be part of a ritualistic sacrificial pact with a dragon that terrifies the kingdom.
This film did have an idea of a plot that intrigued me – in fact I love campy historical drama, bold female characters and fairy tales – so a combination of all of those things that should result in an interestingly subversive fantasy story seemed very exciting. And indeed, I do believe that there are elements of this film that are interesting. A woman toppling the rule of a cult-like kingdom that takes advantage of young women, if executed well, could have been an amazing feel-good feminist flick. However, the film does not pull off this premise. The script feels as robotic and generic as though it had been produced by AI, and the plot elements feel contrived and anticlimactic. Wounded by burns from a dragon? No problem, here are some magical slugs that heal you within seconds. Lost in the labyrinthine caves of the dragon? Here’s a map produced by former victims of the kingdom who also simultaneously appeared to die within minutes of being in the dragon’s proximity. Weapon-less and defenceless against said dragon? Good thing Elodie’s medieval dress comes with all the trappings needed to not only act as bandages but can seamlessly transform into glamourous battle gear with only a slight bit of ripping. Any sense of tension the plot accrues by after putting Elodie in a dangerous situations are immediately diffused, so that by the time she escapes from the cave, barely twenty minutes after being imprisoned, I could not feel less afraid by the threat of her sister facing a similar fate. As a result, the otherwise respected actors treat the script with a similar level of respect, as the viewer has watching,
Action aside, any emotional heft in the film is also lacking. A somewhat weak subplot of family tension is included, which feel similarly formulaic. There is a slight subversion in the fact that Elodie is actually sacrificed to the neighbouring kingdom by her father, not her seemingly cold stepmother, however, this plot remains highly typical in its treatment of Elodie’s father. After effectively killing his own daughter, redemption is swiftly offered as he goes into the cave to defend Elodie’s honour. He ultimately dies, with Elodie holding his hand, as though all is forgiven and forgotten. In fact, the inclusion of Elodie’s daddy issues is to the detriment to the thematic progression of the film. It results that the dragon (who apparently can speak perfect English) has entered into this pact with the kingdom after the former king killed her own children’s centuries before. The entire film hinges, therefore, on motherhood and the power of maternal love. Yet, instead of mirroring this theme in the film’s protagonist, a shoe-horned father-daughter dynamic muddies the film’s moral message. The dragon is both inexcusable for trying to kill Elodie yet is apparently forgiven because of the cruelty shown to her children by the humans, whilst Elodie’s father is forgivable despite agreeing to his daughter’s death. The films spend so little time with the dragon, or crafting Elodie’s own family life, past the basics, that the juxtaposition of paternal versus maternal love simply ends up as confusing.
I don’t want it to come across as just unduly hating on this film. Like I mentioned previously, the concept of the film is good, and the costuming and set design is stunning. The costumes, whilst slightly ridiculous in the idea that Elodie’s corset is both a weapon and a perfectly flattering garment, are stunning in their attention to detail. The uncanny robes and masks worn during Elodie’s ‘wedding’ add the perfect creepiness and depth to the world-building where the script is lacking. The dragon’s labyrinth is beautifully designed, so that I only wish we had got, as an audience to spend more time with it, allowing Elodie to explore with herself, than merely following the perfectly drawn map that is conveniently placed in the second tunnel she comes across. Finally, the special effectsused in the creation of the dragon were generally very good, as were Millie Bobby Brown’s reaction and engagement with it.
With such potential, it feels even more upsetting that the script couldn’t live up to the world they should have been able to create. The film had all the elements of what could have been an instant teen classic to follow in the footsteps of previously interesting and subversive fairytale films, such as ‘Stardust’ or the ‘Princess Bride’ but ultimately fails to exact on what they promised.
