After fighting against creatures from a parallel dimension in the United States of the 1980s, then against criminals in Victorian London, here Millie Bobby Brown faces a dragon. Building on the combined successes of the series Stranger Thingswhich revealed her in the emblematic role of Eleven, and films Elona Holmeson the investigations of the younger sister of Sherlock Holmes, the young star continues thus, with Damsel (The Lady and the Dragon), its fruitful association with the giant Netflix.
Endowed with real talent, Brown has once again chosen her project well. This one, like the previous ones, is aimed primarily at an audience of adolescents and young adults (and anyone who still has a heart of those ages). If Damsel proves to be quite conclusive in the entertainment department, the film also serves an interesting message through its explicit relaxation of the cliché of the “damsel in distress”.
Explicit, because in the opening narration, Princess Elodie warns us: “The stories of princesses in danger waiting for the arrival of a valiant knight to save them are too numerous to count. This story is not one of them. »
And in fact, the sequel sees Elodie extricate herself from a thousand perils and dangers after being thrown into the lair of said flame-breathing monster. It all has to do with a pact once made between a king and a dragon: the sacrifice of a princess for the prosperity of the kingdom.
Obviously, Elodie ignores this when, coming from her northern country, she agrees to marry a rich and handsome prince in order to ensure the survival of her starving subjects.
The main antagonist, besides the dragon, or rather the dragoness, is the deceitful Queen Isabelle, played with obvious delight by Robin Wright. This is a fun counter-use to the role of ingénue that made her known in the cult film The Princess Bride (Once upon a time… Princess Buttercup).
Physical and psychological
Directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, best known for the horror 28 Weeks Later (28 weeks later), this large production is visually impressive. The budget, estimated between 60 and 70 million US dollars, is visible on the screen, notably through excellent special effects: the dragon strap and the havoc it causes, these flocks of birds ignited by jets of fire which change into flows of lava on contact with the stone, are very convincing.
Speaking of stone, almost two-thirds of the film takes place in the dark belly of the mountain where the beast hides. Throughout the part where Elodie tries to escape this terrible mistress of the house, the film resembles a breathtaking survival drama.
This portion is also the most interesting. In that the gradual physical transformation of the heroine skilfully echoes her psychological evolution – psychological evolution accelerated by the tribulations and other betrayals which have just fallen upon her.
For example, in her escape through a narrow tunnel, Elodie tears off the frame which inflates her dress. The cumbersome royal accoutrements soon follow, in an “escalation of stripping”, until Elodie is no longer hampered by anything, again, both physically and psychologically.
Apart from an ingenious revelation, the plot remains overall predictable, but effective. The rhythm never fails. And then, it should be insisted, Millie Bobby Brown makes an irresistibly determined heroine.