Another Princess Movie…But Make it Bloody!

Image Source: hotstar.com

The new Hulu movie, The Princess, is a twist on the classic princess-locked-in-a-tower-marries-the-handsome-prince story. The princess, in this case, is a very skilled warrior who not only refuses to marry the prince (because he’s evil) but now has to fight her way out of the tower to save her family that said evil prince has taken hostage in an attempt to steal the throne. The movie functions somewhat like a bottle episode of a TV show. There’s not much world-building since it’s irrelevant to the story; it’s just a generic royal kingdom meant to show the inherent sexism of forced and arranged marriage. The plot is very quick-paced, and it all takes place in the castle of the royal family, starting at the very top of the tower and going down level by level until the princess finally gets to the ground. Watching the movie, you’d think the kingdom is the size of a single courtyard, but the choice to keep it all contained helped emphasize how trapped the princess is right up until the very end. 

Joey King has to fake a British accent for the role, but she does a good job overall. Despite the overt focus on violence and fight scenes throughout the entire movie, it still managed to have a lot of heart, with a nice lesson about autonomy and sisterhood at the center of it. King also does a great job at the fight scenes, and it’s fun to watch her take on these giant men and slash them up by herself. The villains are also very hateable, so it’s satisfying when things don’t go their way. 

The movie keeps you very invested in how the heroes are going to get out of this mess since the villain is so ruthless and hellbent on having what he wants. The constant fighting could get a bit stale and repetitive if it’s not something you enjoy watching, especially given how bloody it gets, but after the many fight scenes in the beginning of the movie, it does slow down to allow for some more plot twists and actual character moments. So, if you’re looking for a trashy, fun, violent, anti-damsel-in-distress-movie where Joey King murders the hell out of a very, very long list of dudes and still has a nice story and some homoerotic subtext littered throughout, this is the movie for you.