Shadows on the Wall | The King's Daughter

The King’s Daughter

dir Sean McNamara
scr Barry Berman, James Schamus
prd James Pang Hong, Paul Currie, Wei Han, Sean McNamara, David Brookwell
with Pierce Brosnan, Kaya Scodelario, Benjamin Walker, William Hurt, Bingbing Fan, Pablo Schreiber, Ben Lloyd-Hughes, Rachel Griffiths, Crystal Clarke, Paul Ireland, Terry Norris, Jessica Clarke
narr Julie Andrews
release US 21.Jan.22
22/Australia 1h34

Is it streaming?

Produced to a high standard and narrated in Julie Andrews' dulcet tones, this historical fairy tale fantasy is livened up by its sparky cast. It's a corny mishmash of genre elements, but the plot's soapy gyrations are enjoyably written and played, generating some proper nastiness even if it's clear that it's heading for a happy ever after. Never mind the actual real-life figures, this is rather good fun.

Facing his mortality, Louis XIV (Brosnan) learns from his doctor (Schreiber) about eternal life-giving properties of mermaids. So he sends swarthy Captain Yves (Walker) on an expedition. He catches a mermaid (Fan) and brings her back to Versailles, where she's locked in a fountain. Meanwhile, the defiant Marie-Josephe (Scodelario) arrives, raised in a convent and unaware she's the king's illegitimate daughter. As gossip ripples through the court, Marie-Josephe realises that she can communicate with the mermaid and sets out to free her. But she also falls for Yves rather than the intended Jean-Michel (Lloyd-Hughes).

All of this is thoroughly ridiculous, but the stylish filmmaking and gleefully overstuffed premise hold the attention, even if there's never the slightest hint of suspense. Ace performers pop up in scene-stealing roles, including Hurt as the palace's top priest and Griffiths in a cameo as the abbess who raised Marie-Josephe. Oddly, while Fan's mermaid has her own feisty personality, she's digitised into a swirly special effect, which badly weakens the character's emotion-tugging back story.

The solid cast brings surprising nuance to these characters, even as the film falls deeper into the cliches of its various genres. Scodelario gives Marie-Josephe a fiery soul, reacting with passion and ingenuity as she faces the truth about who she is. Her interaction with the people around her has proper weight to it, giving the movie some dramatic edge. Walker is hunky and almost interesting as the underdeveloped Yves, while Brosnan chomps merrily on the scenery, skilfully remaining engaging even when he's being monstrous.

Characters bristle with 21st century attitudes and are styled more for Instagram than than the 17th century French court. The scandalous romance and insidious plan carefully lay the groundwork for a climactic action sequence that has just enough swash and buckle to it. It's always fun to see pompous figures get their comeuppance, even if we have to endure some cheesy storytelling to get there. And the message is refreshingly simple: just do what you already know is the right thing to do.

themes, violence 17.Jan.22

R E A D E R R E V I E W S

Still waiting for your comments ... don't be shy.