Let's examine one of the latest Netflix originals: let's talk about Damsel, the new film with Millie Bobby Brown, in this review
ORIGINAL TITLE: Damsel. TYPE: Fantasy, thriller, adventure, action, horror. NATION: United States of America. REGIA: Juan Carlos Fresnadillo. CAST: Millie Bobby Brown, Ray Winstone, Angela Bassett, Brooke Carter, Nick Robinson, Robin Wright, Milo Twomey, Nicole Joseph, Patrice Naiambana, Matt Slack, Shohreh Aghdashloo. DURATION: 108 minutes. DISTRIBUTOR: Netflix.
If we were to look at the career of Millie Bobby Brown, a very promising young woman in the world of entertainment, we should certainly start from the premise that breaking through with a series like Stranger Things inevitably puts you on a level of demands that is far too high. Once you play a character as iconic as Eleven, shaking off that identity to grow and become “big” is really difficult. Macaulay Culkin, the eternal Kevin McCallister, for example, knows something about this. We approached Damsel with a certain curiosity, especially for a setting that the writer often particularly appreciates, but we would never have expected a dish so aesthetically beautiful, but dull in flavour: we'll tell you about it in this dedicated review.
Elodie, but she's not the singer | Damsel review
Elodie is a young princess of the kingdom of Inophe, a small territory in eternal economic difficulty due to the great cold that grips it. Seeking a profitable deal that can do good for her people, Elodie's father marries her to young Henry, from the neighboring kingdomand the young woman, after meeting him and falling in love with him, despite being reluctant at first, is convinced that she is truly realizing her dream of love.
However, the marriage turns out to be a trap orchestrated by Queen Isabelle, Henry's mother, and the young Elodie finds herself, immediately after the wedding, to be thrown into a cave and confronted by a dragon, who wants everything except for her to experience a beautiful love story. Elodie must therefore manage, with her strength alone, to make her way into the dragon's cave to seek a way to salvation and thus reveal the deception hidden behind pomp and riches.
And what's wrong with that? | Damsel review
And so far, you might say, what's wrong with that? In reality, in principle, absolutely nothing: Damsel would like to be a fantasy film aimed at… who? The paths taken by the screenplay written by Dan Mazeau are actually too dichotomous to really work and find a specific target. There are scenes that are too violent to indicate it to a very young audience, but at the same time the passages and the narrative evolution are too childish to be suitable for pure fantasy enthusiasts.
Yet, in reality, the ideas were basically there and they were also interesting. Damsel tries to address the theme of revenge in a visceral and almost painful way, in some respects, and the dragon is its main emblem. Just as the distinction between absolute good and individual good is also brought into play: what should a sovereign do, think exclusively of his own people, compromising the health of his own children? Or face the strong evidence that, before being a king, he is a father? All very interesting concepts that Damsel tries to mention, only to then fall into oblivion.
Lack | Damsel review
This sense of incompleteness and “lack” is exasperated by the fact that the supporting actors are simple masks, put there to make a grimace every now and then, and to prepare the scene for the protagonist, who will have to carry on her shoulders the weight of saving practically everyone in that film, including the film. Millie Bobby Brown was a wonderfully believable Eleven, so much so that breaking away from the role of the superhero that she can and must win against everyone. Even when she is alone, she is unarmed, naked, against a hundred-year-old dragon that breathes fire and has a grudge against mankind.
Millie Bobby Brown in Damsel is Eleven again, another declination of the character that made her so immortal and so it is locking it up behind an eternal prison of copies. She can't detach herself from it, but it's not her fault: as long as the roles she plays are these, we will hardly be able to see her shine in other spotlights. And it's a real shame, because beyond everything, in our opinion, there is unexpressed potential that, perhaps, she is wasting. These are the best years to grow on an artistic level, after all.
Technical aspects | Damsel review
Returning to Damsel, forgive us the digression on Millie Bobby Brown, let's quickly move on to the technical side, which is also quite contrasting. From an aesthetic point of view, we must admit that some views and as many settings, at least from the point of view of photography, are well done. The alternation of fairy-tale atmospheres and darker ones are well suited to what should have been the topos of the film. The costumes and the historical retelling are also well done, but on the other hand the special effects, especially those relating to the dragon, seemed unconvincing and perhaps a little too dated. Finally, the soundtrack is nothing exceptional and rather forgettable. The Italian dubbing is good.
Conclusion
We have therefore reached the final stages of this review of Damsel. The problem with the Netflix film is that it wants to do everything, too much, and nothing really comes together at the end. Its only strength is being able to show off, on the cover, the face of Millie Bobby Brown, who however, even on this occasion, is unable to detach herself from the eternal role she played in Stranger Things and is once again a heroine with superpowers and practically infallible from every point of view. We really hope for her growth. This time too, however: failed.
Damsel is currently available in the Netflix film catalog. Let us know what you think below in the comments and stay tuned with us at TechGameWorld.com for all the news on the world of cinema and TV series!
Unfortunately, this time too, rejected
Points in favor
- Well done settings and photography
- Lots of good narrative pretexts…
Points against
- … perhaps too many, but above all poorly made
- Millie Bobby Brown plays Eleven again from Stranger Things
- Not engaging, not interesting at all
- Topics addressed superficially
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