I went and saw this at a Wednesday afternoon matinee with my 89 y/o dad. He knew absolutely nothing about it going in. And he enjoyed it (I did, too, btw), commenting on the walk back to the car after the screening that it was “an adult fairy tale.”
That pretty much sums up the film.
If you go in expecting some Mad Max mayhem, given George Miller's best known cinematic pedigree, well you’re gonna be disappointed; it has more in common with The Princess Bride than Fury Road.
As for me, I dug it. The narrative structure is really cool, the acting from Swinton and Elba is solid, the pacing is even, and the direction is artfully restrained.
While arguments could be made that it succumbs to the “magical negro” trope, one could just as easily say it embraces the “white savior” trope, too. If such is the case, those two tropes pretty much cancel each other out. Personally, I didn’t feel that the film’s story succumbed to either.
Honestly, the film is more of a veiled “chick flick” bathed in neo macho accoutrements.
So, if you enjoy rich romantic fantasies with a dark and mysterious edge, then this will be right up your alley.
P.S.
I have not read the source material, so no clue as to how faithful it is…
RIYL: The Princess Bride; The Fall; 300; The Brothers Grimm
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