The Woman King

The dialogue is generic -- the formal kind constructed to suit all periods -- but the actors give it all the authenticity it needs, clearly delighted by the ebullience of their characters.

It is a film designed to inspire audiences and elicit cheers and, by and large, it succeeds.

Thankfully, all flimsiness in the screenplay is overcome by the director, Gina Prince-Bythewood, and her committed cast, who transform a familiar dramatic milieu (Mulan meets Gladiator meets Wonder Woman) into thrilling, amphetamine-rush cinema.

Yes, the Woman King could be filed under wish-fulfilment, but that’s true of so many action classics.

A great time at the movies. A rare cinematic event.

The end result is a novel, representation-stretching enterprise that, paradoxically, plays like the “sort of film they don’t make any more”.

The Woman King achieves cinematic royalty with its extremely skillful, well-crafted, and purposeful picture that tells a narrative of empowerment and humanity. It’s well-crafted from start to finish, with Davis shining in the starring role.

writer Dana Stevens, story contributor Maria Bello – more known for her acting (“A History of Violence”) – and Prince-Bythewood continue an emerging cinematic trend of alternate, redemptive histories that bend toward utopianism

Davis elevates this standard story with the emotion and dire she brings to her performance.

For viewers who choose to focus on the adrenaline rush of the feminist warriors ready to challenge the patriarchy, The Woman King proudly wears its crown.