Sharanya Kumar
Millie Bobby Brown's Elodie is the princess of a land stricken by poverty and starvation. She agrees to marry a handsome prince (a lacklustre Nick Robinson), whose wealth would be enough to ensure permanent prosperity for her people.
Elodie being thrown into a chasm on her wedding day, facing off against a dragon and eventually escaping to exact vengeance, it is difficult to buy into the uneasy sense of hope Elodie feels about her impending marriage.
For all its predictability couched in lush cinematography, Damsel does have some intriguing elements. Less predictable than the treatment that the princess gets in Damsel is the film’s subversion of another favourite fairy tale trope: The Wicked Stepmother.
Reader, be prepared to hike your screen brightness all the way to the top — much of the film is spent in darkness, both the literal and metaphorical kind. It is difficult to follow Elodie’s adventures in the caves due to this creative choice.
Fortunately for Damsel, Millie Bobby Brown is eminently watchable, making Elodie a heroine for whom you want to root. She embodies Elodie’s rage and despair enough that you are willing to look past certain details
As Elodie and her family sail into the sunset with her new friend dragon flying by her side. As far as fantasy films go, Damsel is breaking no new ground, but it’s entertaining enough in parts — more so if you haven’t already watched the trailer.