The Woman King

• Directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood
• September 9, 2022 (TIFF) / September 16, 2022 (US)

An Agojie general trains the next generation of warriors to fight the enemies of the West African kingdom of Dahomey during the 1820s.

Before watching The Woman King, I had heard they took plenty of liberties with historical fact. No freaking duh! It’s a Hollywood film! They aren’t usually making documentaries there but rather pieces of entertainment. Sometimes with a message and sometimes with nothing that you get when looking at the surface.

What can I say about this movie? Well, it’s not a total disappointment but it’s not the rousing action-packed historical epic I had hoped for. It certainly has that potential but never quite gets there for me. It could also be a deep and meaty drama but for me also never quite gets there. That is not to call it terrible but rather weaker than it could be. You have a group of warriors as your central characters helmed by a strong general and you play it relatively safe? I see why it appeals to others, but it does not connect well with me.

Viola Davis is the strong yet emotionally damaged General Nanisca of the Agojie-a group of women warriors from the West African kingdom of Dahomey. Nanisca was raped years prior by General Oba Ade (Jimmy Odukoya) of the Oyo Empire which left her pregnant so she handed the child to her companion Amenza (Sheila Atim) to dispose of who in turn gave her child up to some passing missionaries. Years later a girl named Nawi (Thuso Mbedu) is given to the Agojie because she refused to marry men who would hit her. Turns out that she is Nanisca’s daughter.

They try to frame Nawi’s and Nanisca’s reunion as some type of meeting at the behest of the universe, but it feels more coincidental. After all it occurs in a small area where so much appears in walking distance of each other. That aside the dynamic between the two is good as Nanisca sees reflections of herself in the young Nawi.

You would think their story would provide the meat of the narrative but there is a large cast of characters and they all need something to do. These are not merely minor supporting characters but major players in the film. All these stories compete for time which means as much depth is not given if they just focused.

Nanisca must come to terms with the trauma of her past and bring justice to the man who raped her. Nawi has to grow into her own and learn to temper her hotheaded nature and focus things better. Which they both do. But King Ghezo (John Boyega) must free his kingdom from the thumb of the Oyo in some way. Malik (Jordan Bolger) must decide does he want to trade slaves or be a good person. Santo Ferreira (Hero Fiennes Tiffin) needs to get his ultimate comeuppance.

Boyega as Ghezo has a good chunk of screentime but it feels like his character has little impact on the story other than exposition and to drive home that the slave trade was going on. He was not necessary for Nawi to meet Malik or to motivate Nanisca to go after Ade. And as for the bit about the Oyo? He played little into that.

A lot of this film seems to be more focused on the young Nawi becoming a warrior than it is on Nanisca. Given all the praise for Viola Davis, I expected her to be the central character with anybody else being essentially a supporting character. Davis was certainly very good though.

The Woman King is a much shorter story padded out with a great deal of dialogue that really didn’t add too much of anything. They talked rather than shown. And the romance between Malik and Nawi ultimately amounted to not a whole heck of a lot. It just gave her a way to get out of captivity as well as an excuse to give a story about warriors a romantic angle than it was for her to grow. We do not need to show these people can love by giving them romances. Show they have heart by establishing strong group bonds.

The costuming is absolutely amazing. They do a good job of immersing you visually in this world. It definitely felt authentic. Then again in this day and age you can’t get by with a halfhearted effort in a major production.

Ultimately, it’s safe. Yes it’s a work of historical fiction and it is constrained by realities but it doesn’t feel as if it’s taking any chances. To me it’s like it was checking off a list. Some of the things such as the death of Izogie (Lashana Lynch) felt a bit telegraphed. I felt as if she was getting a tragic movie death before it even hit.

Having said all that I understand the appeal. The directing is good and the performers give it their all. It is well shot and aside from what looks like a night filter on the camera here or there it is beautiful. But for me it does not connect.

The Woman King isn’t bad, but it’s not great. You will not feel as if you wasted your time at the minimum. It does not appeal to me, but I can see why others might like it. I will give this an if you want.