The highly anticipated feminist “fairytale” thriller Damsel, starring the Stranger Things’ fame Millie Bobby Brown, went horribly wrong in so many places, we had to stop counting. Despite soaring at the number one spot on Netflix’s Global Top 10 chart ever since its release on March 8, 2024, Damsel left many fans confused, underwhelmed, and chuckling in exasperation because there were so many plot holes. It was such a chaotic mess of plot holes and missed opportunities, that even Brown’s solid performance couldn’t save this ship from sinking. The movie was a slipshod attempt at the modern villain trope, which basically states that the villains aren’t evil; they just need a hug. While expectations were high with this one, Damsel left viewers with more questions as the storyline progressed—and not in a good way.
Damsel is a perfect example of sheer high-budget escapism lacking depth and intent. It takes us through the story of Elodie (Millie Bobby Brown), a young woman who reluctantly agrees to marry a prince (Nick Robinson) from the wealthy kingdom of Aurea in hopes of saving her people—only to be thrust into a hellish trap. She is thrown into a cave with a fire-breathing dragon, solely relying on her wits and will to survive. While ‘Girlboss in a fantasy setting’ is a plot that has immense potential, Damsel falls short because of its shoddy writing, rendering the premise of the movie almost comical and with no depth. Here’s everything that went wrong with the Netflix Fantasy Adventure Damsel.
The Plot of Damsel Is Almost Too Convenient
Questionable wigs and creepy cults aside, the plot of Damsel seems to have completely abandoned logic. Straight off the bat, when Elodie survives the steep fall with bare minimum injuries and no signs of broken bones viewers are left raising an eyebrow in disbelief. One of the most problematic plot points in Damsel is that Elodie is kept alive far too long. The dragon not extinguishing her within a matter of seconds on multiple occasions comes off as unrealistically convenient to take the plot forward.
The instances of Elodie’s father, Lord Bayford (Ray Winstone), inexplicably coming back to save her from the cave, along with the kingdom’s apparent indifference towards the prince’s frequent marriages make the story lose credibility. Additionally, the protagonist’s sudden burst of energy that lets her climb up a wall and run from one end of the cave to the other, despite having no food and water, makes the whole concept hard to buy. A particularly absurd scene shows Elodie’s stepmother (Angela Bassett) riding a horse just a couple of moments after being stabbed brutally, without so much as a grimace.
There’s also a lot of talk about the smell of the royal blood fooling the dragon, but given that all it took for the brides to pass off as Aurean royalty was to cut their palms and merge blood, surely that should’ve been up for debate when Elodie was left bleeding in other parts of her body that were not masked by the royal blood. There were some missed opportunities, such as attaching more value to the healing slugs and utilizing Elodie’s knowledge of mazes as a means to escape, which could’ve been used to further strengthen the movie’s plot.
The Supporting Cast Could’ve Been Granted More Screen Time
Damsel boasted a star-studded cast backed with raving credentials, such as the Princess Bride’s Robin Wright playing the Queen and Emmy Award winner Shohreh Aghdashloo voicing the sadistic dragon. However, considering how the supporting characters weren’t given nearly enough opportunity to shine, the screenplay fell flat. Exploring Prince Henry’s story, emotions, and stance on the sacrificial practices could’ve added depth to his character, making his attempts at redemption towards the end of the movie more plausible. The dragon’s history and legacy were also almost non-existent, with crumbs being thrown at viewers in the oddest moments.
The Queen and her eerie cult had so much potential to make Damsel send chills down our spine, but the abrupt progression of the storyline didn’t leave even a crevice for such an occasion. Instead, all the other characters in Damsel just appeared to be mere accessories who were present to make Elodie glimmer and beam.
The Climax of Damsel Leaves Viewers Fuming
While viewers waited with bated breath to witness thrilling fights and edge-of-the-seat encounters between Elodie and the Dragon, they were subjected to comical exchanges and not much else. In a scene where Elodie jumps back into the cave to save her sister, the movie transcends into looking like a children’s video game. Furthermore, the part where we discover the motive behind the dragon’s rage and thirst for revenge is wildly anticlimactic and is simply portrayed as an epiphany for Elodie when she sees the skeletal remnants of the dragon’s daughters. There is no mention as to why the first king set out to venture into the cave or why the baby dragons were even killed in the first place.
It was also convoluted for the heroine to pardon the beast that brutally murdered her father, almost killed her sister, and harmed countless innocent girls without batting an eyelid. It is almost hard to believe that a tete-a-tete was all it took to end years of vile sacrilege and wrath. Moreover, in her pursuit of revenge against those who wronged her, Elodie and her freshly reacquainted dragon killed a bunch of people who were completely unrelated to the whole ordeal.
Redeeming Instances that Save Damsel from Being a Complete Waste of Time
While much light has been shed on how Damsel was disappointing to many, all hope is not lost. Some instances make this film worth your while. For example, the decision to give Elodie maximum screen time turned out to be a blessing in disguise given how Millie Bobby Brown gave a solid performance—almost as a way to make up for the movie’s other problems. She had an unwavering screen presence and played out certain scenes in the most splendid manner that left viewers wincing. Elodie’s quick wit and use of everything in and around as a means to survive was encouraging to watch. The most notable highlight of Damsel was the transformation — or rather, the ripping — of the dress from a stuffy wedding gown to a battle armor, something that could be considered symbolic and metaphorical for feminine prowess.
The sets and costumes (save for the wigs) hit the nail on the head and were undoubtedly breathtaking. Additionally, the scene where the birds that were being drawn to Elodie were burnt alive was a stroke of genius, as it was an inversion of fairytale tropes, where they are often seen singing and chirping around the princess. Seeing the stepmother written from an empathetic perspective rather than a quintessentially evil one was also very refreshing.
In a nutshell, Damsel is one of those movies that has a solid concept but is poorly executed, making it a hollow mess. The movie would’ve done better as a series, given the star cast, spellbinding graphics, and eerie atmosphere. If this particular movie didn’t do it for you, you might want to check out other iconic Millie Bobby Brown roles.
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