The Marsh King's Daughter

I was quite lucky I didn't read the IMDb synopsis for 'The Marsh King's Daughter' before seeing it, because it would've completely ruined the film's opening - and the opening is the strongest thing this film has going for it.

From there the film falls into "perfectly fine" land. Everything is passable and it's a mildly entertaining way to pass 110 minutes. But there's nothing daring or original or memorable here sadly.

The film also relies heavily on characters making nonsensical decisions that only make sense as a method to drive the plot forward. You either get used to that in this film or you're unlikely to have a good time.

As I mentioned, if you go in with a positive attitude and you're not looking for perfection you might just have a reasonably good time with this film. Even if you do however, I doubt you'll think about it again a week after seeing it. 6/10.

The characters in this film extremely well portrayed by Mendelsohn and Daisy Ridley. Helena (played by Daisy) young girl brought up in the marshes and taught to survive in nature. I loved this a real bond between father and daughter in the wilderness later in the film you can see how torn Helena is between the modern world and the natural world, not quite knowing where she fits, the film lays out the extreme Bond and love between a mother and a daughter and the idolisation of a father. This one is definitely worth a watch story runs at a good pace it delivered well. Most mothers would die for their children you will have to watch the film to see if this is necessary.

The movie will be well enjoyed by those who have not read the book by the same name as the story and characters remainn a mystery for them and thus one can keep up with the pace no matter how slow or fast the story goes. The people who have read the book on the other hand may find it off or slow to the pace they remember reading it.

With regards to the story and acting, the actors have well adapted to the script and do justice to the script that has been given to them.

The script itself has been well adapted to the current time and is adapted to suite the timeline. The only issue one faces is that the story itself needs adapting to suite to movie watcher's taste and while it does justice to the book and it's story, it doesn't add anything new of its own which might have become it's X factor. Thus, overall, it's a watchable movie, but not something you will remember for long or will go back to watch again.

I was really looking forward to this, purely based off on vibes. I didn't have any prior knowledge about it. The lighting's off; it looked like there was a filter on the entire time. Personally, I would have preferred it to have a more natural look because the filter didn't really enhance anything. I just started watching 'Siren' and Gil Birmingham plays a cop there too, which was a very similar role, identical really.

The story here is pretty intriguing, though it has no mystery element making it feel predictable. From the title alone, I thought it'd be similar to 'Where the Crawdads Sing,' but the similarity only lies in the setting. It reminds me somewhat of 'Stockholm, Pennsylvania' (2015) with Saoirse Ronan, although I find the story better here, but not the movie itself. It begins similarly, with a girl who was kidnapped, but her father never hurt or abused her, so she's distraught when he's portrayed as a monster. Difference is here we time jump decades later, Her past still affects her as she now has her own family and life and stuff.

The movie, in my opinion, is average; nothing exceptional, making it quite forgettable. I wasn't too invested in the characters. It's a slow-paced psychological thriller, not too emotionally intense, and the high points didn't quite hit their mark. The third act was probably always going to be challenging to execute. I couldn't think of a more natural ending for the story so it didn't bother me too much. I think it was intentionally kept simple and straightforward, because it had the potential to be much darker and more intricate.

3 out of 5 stars.

The Marsh Kings Daughter is a fair psychological thriller film that has a good story. The script and direction is dull with a plain direction and flat characters.

The acting was okay with its cast ensemble. Daisy Ridley did her best with what was given. The characters were thinly written. It does have some thrills with Daisy trying to protect her family. And searching for her father which leads to a thrilling climax in the forest. The film lacks itself from being memorable or any different. It could have been better with a stronger script and sharp direction. Overall it was an okay film.