Netflix’s new girl-power dark fantasy, “Damsel” sees Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, perhaps best known for directing the 2007 apocalyptic horror thriller “28 Weeks Later”, helming his first feature film since 2011’s “Intruders”. Working from a script by Dan Mazeau (“Fast X”), Fresnadillo has loads of fun both embracing and subverting the fantasy genre. The results are a little underwhelming but entertaining, in large part thanks to the energy and charisma of the film’s star, Millie Bobby Brown.

Brown plays a dutiful young woman named Elodie. She’s a member of a benevolent family who rules a people suffering from starvation in a harsh and barren land. One day Elodie’s father, Lord Bayford (Ray Winstone) and her stepmother, Lady Bayford (Angela Bassett) are surprised when an emissary from the extremely wealthy faraway kingdom of Aurea arrives with an offer they can’t refuse. The king and queen of Aurea want to arrange a marriage between Elodie and their son. If Lord Bayford agrees, it would mean an abundance of riches that could save his land.

Shocked at first yet willing to sacrifice for her people, Elodie agrees to marry the prince she’s never met. She, her parents, and her younger sister Floria (Brooke Carter) travel to Aurea with its rolling green hills, lush vineyards, immaculate gardens, and of course the lavish royal castle. Oh, there is that one towering jagged mountain looming ominously in the distance. Otherwise everything looks plucked right out of a storybook.

And that gets to one of the film’s biggest strengths – “Damsel” looks great. The effects team creates some stunning digital environments to go with the beautiful on-location shots in Portugal. And did I mention the dragon? Yep, there’s a marvelously rendered and quite terrifying fire-breathing dragon voiced by the brilliant and distinguishable Shohreh Aghdashloo. More on it in a bit.

Upon arriving at the castle Elodie and her family are greeted by Queen Isabelle (Robin Wright), the meager King Roderick (Milo Twomey) who basically stands in the background and says nothing (and I mean that literally. I’m not sure Twomey gets a single line of dialogue in the entire movie), and of course the quiet but charming Prince Henry (Nick Robinson). As the parents begin making wedding plans, Elodie and Henry start spending time together in hopes of getting to know each other before their big day.

But Mazeau’s story isn’t some ‘happily ever after’ fairy tale. Elodie’s dream wedding takes a dark turn after the just-married bride is cast into the depths of the aforementioned ominous mountain by her new “family” – a sacrifice to the ancient fire-breathing dragon living within. From there “Damsel” turns into a survival tale as the courageous and resourceful Elodie tries to escape from the treacherous belly of the mountain with it’s many dangers, chief among them one angry and embittered dragon.

As she usually does, Brown gives a fully committed performance which helps keep the film on course. She has to maneuver through a handful of cheesy moments, yet delivers a movie heroine who is easy to root for. Not only does Brown effortless fit in with the period fantasy setting, her fierce physicality meets the demand of her role. It also helps to be surrounded by names like Robin Wright, Ray Winstone, and Angela Bassett. While the writing doesn’t always help their characters, the performances are spot-on.

As you watch “Damsel” you’ll probably notice that it wears its girl-power motif on its sleeve. It’s admirable yet at times comes close to crossing the line into heavy-handedness. Certain choices are glaringly obvious and will probably earn the movie some scrutiny it didn’t need. But even with that and other shortcomings with the script, “Damsel” still makes for a mostly fun fantasy adventure. It proudly embraces several classic fantasy tropes yet the film has an edge. And it offers another highlight for Millie Bobby Brown, who at only 20-years-old continues to build a fascinating career. “Damsel” premieres Friday, March 8th on Netflix.

VERDICT – 3 STARS