Man I love every time an action movie comes out that reminds us the genre can have depth and themes and true character work. That there can be style and practical effects and grounded action. In the wave of the MCU this is such a breath of fresh air. The action is slick but the drama and characterization work in tandem with it to create something truly special. It's a film that is inspirational not in spite of the history but because it acknowledges the history and transforms it and finds a way to make it resonate today. It shows the strength of these women and the culture while not shying away from its flaws. These black women are put up on a pedestal and asked- if not demanded- to stop feeling, that it is weak, a dereliction of duty, and the film gradually repudiates that while never denying their strength or more importantly their humanity.

And the cast gamely rises up to what they're given. Davis obviously shines as the centerpiece, putting decades of experience into a performance that is stoic, aching, charismatic, and raw in equal measures. Some of her delivery and expressions, from a wry smirk to a fond and exasperated roll of the eyes, are so good at grounding Nanisca and making her really feel like a person, just one from a different time. And while I had mixed feelings about Underground Railroad, Mbedu was never one of them, and she shines here as well. The things she can do with her eyes alone are captivating. And Boyega is charming while being hard and pragmatic enough to still keep you guessing where he'll fall. But in a cast of greats, Lasana Lynch still stands out. The charisma she has on display here makes me baffled she hasn't led a franchise yet, put her in everything.

This film is a celebration of black women while never dehumanizing them. It lets us be strong and vulnerable, stalwart and hurting, devoted and loving, in equal measure. And it's a tight, fun time to boot.

Oh come on with the good reviews, even if she wasn't an evil slave trader, the film comes across as a melodramatic propaganda piece from start to finish...

... but then again, it was a melodramatic propaganda piece from start to finish...

... but that's not why it's one of the movies with a huge disparancy between critic and user reviews on the more reputable sights. It was intentionally polarizing. Rational people are ripping into it because they turned a power hungry monster responsible for the slave trade and a fair amount of ethnic cleansing into an anti-slavery hero. It was a monumental rewrite of history from start to finish, one so extreme you can't even give it the excuse of artistic license.

And it was intentional, there were a lot of other people that you could make a heroic movie about that fit the mold they were looking for to push meh message. But they chose this one because the point wasn't to praise the historical figure, the point was to praise the total rewrite of history.

And make no mistake, that is the reason for the positive reviews. They don't care that it's a cheap poorly written over-acted political propaganda flick, they are praising the fact that they blatantly and knowingly rewrote history, and then turned around and said "we don't care, it's rewritten now, we have changed reality and, guess what, all of our goose stepping followers don't care either."

Better than I expected, but not as good as I hoped.

I don't care about the historical inaccuracies. There's no historical epic in existence that hasn't taken some liberties with the details, many far moreso than this.

What surprised me is that, despite Nanisca being top-billed, being the face on the poster, and even being the titular "Woman King", she wasn't the main character of the film. She was a supporting role to the real protagonist: Nawi.

I wish Viola Davis had been given the opportunity to do what she does best: Intense, emotional scenes that don't let the viewers off the hook. But in this piece there simply wasn't a scene long enough for her to sink her teeth into. The few emotionally-charged scenes were shuddering with jump-cuts and dialogue that just pull you right out of the emotion... It was disengaging.

It was great to see Davis in a more physical role for a change though. I was on set for some of the action scenes, and her physicality and professionalism were captivating in person, even if the choppy editing didn't quite tdo them justice on screen.

While Mbedu and Bolger did a fine job protraying it, with excellent on-screen chemistry, I felt that the romance story was just a distraction that could have been dispensed with. That might have bought us a few more minutes of Davis screen time!

The Woman King is a touching film that balances the dramatic tone with high octane action delivering a compelling experience. With a powerhouse cast, there is plenty of fantastic performances throughout the entire film. Lashana Lynch was brilliant in this film, she presents herself with a hard exterior but is able to touch into her more emotional and caring self her relationship with Thuso Mbedu's character. Their chemistry was great and one of my favorite parts about the film.

The action in this film was really well done. The choreography was great, and the scope was vast. I loved how multiple shot led into each other. Although, part of me wish this had been rated R so that the fight scenes could have the blood and gore that this movie was wanting to deliver so desperately. I really feel like they had to cut even greater combat moves due to keeping the PG-13 rating. But even with that limited scope, that action delivers.

There are some pacing issues, with the middle section of the movie dragging on a little too much for my tastes. The ending ramps everything back up again and delivers a great resolution that concludes the film wonderfully.

**Score:** _74%_ |
**Verdict:** _Good_

I liked The Woman King okay: the scenery and acting were fine and the music glorious, but why did I sometimes feel I was watching a different “King” movie by Disney? They danced as well as they fought; though to be fair, is it much different than the complex marches used by more modern armies? There was a bit too much violence for my taste, but perhaps it is needed for the target audience.

The story was stereotypical in places, though for this progressive white guy, it was refreshing not to see white faces shoehorned into the story to placate the (only) White Lives Matter crowd, who were out in force with negative reviews. Here is a tip: if a four-star review points out positives but throws in complaints about historical accuracy and not enough Caucasians for the movies’ setting— okay, maybe. But if a one-star review screams about the issue, welcome to the Keep Movies White World. Are they just as offended by the thousands of movies that ignored or appropriated stories and roles of people of color in all white movies though the decades? I think not.

So while this movie won’t make any of my lists of favorites, I am glad it was made available to women and girls and other less-thin skinned caucasians like me to enjoy.