Movie Review: The Woman King

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B+

An excellent historical action film. 

This movie provides one with plenty of everything they would want from it. The action scenes are fantastic. They have a truly epic and large feel that truly comes to life on a large screen (if you want to see this movie, don't wait until it comes out on streaming, this is much better in a cinema). The action moves at a fast paced but never feels rushed. Despite the large scale of these fight scenes, none of them stretch the realm of believability beyond what we are willing to accept in a film based on a true story. Yet this movie is not just pure action. It also has a real heart to it. The film is about a group of female warriors in Africa (a real group who existed from the 17th to the 19th century) fighting to protect their people. yet the main focus of this film is the leader of these women (Viola Davis) and her relationship with a younger new member (Thuso Mbedu). This is very well handled and there is great chemistry between the two whenever they share the screen. The relationship between the two is also not simple and the movie is never afraid to explore the complexities of this relationship. Yet even the scenes that are just about one of these characters and not the other are just as engaging. These are not just cookie-cutter action movie characters, and they feel very real to us over the course of the film. Their own personal arcs are also very emotionally engaging and powerful. This film also has wonderful messages that may be familiar but are still powerful. These messages are presented in the best way possible. The film never stops to preach to us, and the characters never simply state the lessons in the heavy-handed manner that so many movies with messages do. The messages just come naturally out of the story and no explanation is needed for the audience. This movie also has a great sense of humor and though it is not exactly a laugh fest, the jokes that are there are excellent. 

This movie can feel quite familar though and it is often really easy to guess what is going to happen next. There are also more subplots than nessary and some of them can feel quite rushed. Still none of this can take away from how great everything else is. 

This is an excellent movie and one that needs to be seen on the biggest screen possible.