A fairy-tale setup makes for an interesting premise.. sadly, it feels as dense as a page.

The over abundance of groaning and walking, and not much else for a large portion of the script.. plus a noticeable lack of engrossing dialogue, interactions and wit, make for quite a dull film. It is as predictable as it is slow to get going, but I at least enjoyed the production and visuals throughout! The cast is okay, and nothing else. This would make for an excellent short, where many elements are trimmed (the "Augur of Ebrietas" slugs).. as most characters are as simplistic and shallow as shown immediately after their quick introductions, so the rest of the story would remain intact.

Personally, I don't appreciate movies that have little to nothing to say.

Damsel really isn't as subversive as it thinks it is and takes way too long to get going, wasting the first 30 minutes on a twist so obvious the trailer didn't even bother to hide it. Once it actually gets to the central idea of cat and mouse between a Princess and a Dragon it's a lot stronger, powering through on the momentum of the endless chase.

Despite a few big names in the supporting cast, Millie Bobby Brown really carries this. There's some really clunky lines of dialogue here and she delivers them with enough conviction to make them work. Shohreh Aghdashloo voicing the Dragon is inspired casting that really helps it get going after the weak opening.

Juan Carlos Fresnadillo's direction does a lot to help this Netflix original come closer to looking like a real movie compared to a lot of what's come before. It essentially spends the entire run time alternating between some solid sets, locations and distractingly low quality CG with some good individual set pieces and ideas which remind you this is the director of 28 Weeks Later.

Just from the trailer you could tell there's nothing innovative some would say they called the ending of the show and I'd have to agree. It's a female lead with castles, pretty dresses, and a dragon. A badass princess is always appealing. Plot is thin and simple. It's like riding a rollercoaster you rode before, you already know the bumps and twists but it still gets your heart racing.

I like Millie's acting here. She carries the scene even alone. Though I do lament that there's not enough scenes with the side characters to establish more from them. I did tear up in one scene but perhaps that's me being easily pulled by emotional goodbyes.

The highlight to me, aside for Millie, was the dragon. The Dragon was perfection. The visuals were great I didn't have any trouble seeing anything even during dark moment. The ending was both satisfying yet lacking...like I wanted more? There's some wonky moments but yeah overall it's actually a fun watch. It's no masterpiece, doubt it'll win any awards but it's a damn good show to relax to if you want something kickass.

Warning: There's fair amounts of gruesome wounds.