Synopsis: Cursed is a re-imagination of the Arthurian legend, told through the eyes of Nimue, a young woman with a mysterious gift who is destined to become the powerful (and tragic) Lady of the Lake. After her mother's death, she finds an unexpected partner in Arthur, a humble mercenary, in a quest to find Merlin and deliver an ancient sword. Over the course of her journey, Nimue will become a symbol of courage and rebellion against the terrifying Red Paladins, and their complicit King Uther. Cursed is a coming-of-age story whose themes are familiar to our own time: the obliteration of the natural world, religious terror, senseless war, and finding the courage to lead in the face of the impossible.
Review: This has been a summer lacking in big-screen entertainment. With everyone stuck at home watching old shows and hoping for an eventual return to the cineplex for an epic adventure, small screen streaming services have been doing everything they can to capture new audiences. While new services like HBO Max and Peacock have been courting multiple demographics, Netflix is pursuing two very valuable groups with their new series Cursed. Based on the young adult novel by Tom Wheeler and Frank Miller, Cursed is a retelling of the legend of King Arthur but from a very different perspective. On the heels of Netflix's success with The Witcher, Cursed retreads some of the same styles and tones of that series with a heavy dose of Game of Thrones and just a little 13 Reasons Why.
While the main players from Arthurian legend appear in this story in major roles, the central focus shifts from Arthur himself to Nimue, later known as the Lady of the Lake. Over the course of the 10 episode first season, we learn a lot about this Medieval version of England which is far more diverse than many adaptations of the British legends. Here, Arthur is played by Devon Terrell, best known for playing Barack Obama in the film BARRY. We also get a younger and more robust take on Merlin played by yet another Skarsgard brother, this time Gustaf. Skarsgard starred in the acclaimed film KON-TIKI and has appeared on Westworld as well as Vikings, but this is his most significant English language role. Many of the future Knights of the Roundtable appear ranging from Gawain and Lancelot to Guinevere and Percival.
But the central figure here is Katherine Langford's Nimue. Langford has risen to prominence with roles in Rian Johnson's KNIVES OUT and a significant deleted scene from AVENGERS: ENDGAME. Based on the trailers, I expected her role to be prominent, but Langford's subtle and mournful take on Nimue allows her to fall into the main part of the story albeit one that is balanced in the ensemble cast. Like Game of Thrones, there are a lot of factions to keep track of ranging from the villainous Weeping Monk to The Leper King and The Ice King as well as King Uther Pendragon himself. But, the bad guys we see from the outset are the Red Paladins, warrior monks who hunt down the magical Fey, of which Nimue is one. Led by the great Peter Mullan, the Red Paladins are a frightening foe but just one of many castes and tribes you need to learn about to follow this story.
While Frank Miller is best known for his hard-boiled comic books like Sin City and The Dark Knight Returns, Cursed does not feel all that far from his sensibilities. This is a brutal and dark series that does not fit the young adultthe novel was marketed with. There is sex and there is violence here that may not be quite as graphic as an HBO series but it isn't far off. There is still a focus on good-looking young people who fall in love, forming love triangles aplenty which will give the younger viewers something to enjoy. The fact that the main character is a young woman is clearly meant to cater to a wider audience than may typically tune in for swords and sorcery. This is still an Arthurian story and anyone familiar with the books Mort D'Arthur or the excellent The Once and Future King will recognize a lot of the story elements here even if some major twists change things you may be expecting.
Tom Wheeler, who co-wrote the novel with Frank Miller, has primary writing duties on this series while the directing falls to television veteran Zetna Fuentes. Filmed on location in England, Cursed looks as good as The Witcher and earns every dollar spent on production values. But, the shortcomings here are mainly due to Langford. As much as I liked her in KNIVES OUT, this series needed a much stronger lead character to balance against Arthur and his knights. To change such a familiar tale and focus on a character not very fleshed out in the source material required an actress with a lot more presence. Langford is a good actress but she doesn't rise up to equal her cast-mates. This is a series full of strong actors and actresses and unfortunately, they all outshine Langford.
My biggest qualm is that at times this series does at times feel like a teen-centric series trapped in a mature package, which sometimes makes it feel like it doesn't quite work for the right audience, but there is still enough here to keep audiences watching. Cursed is a nice addition to Netflix's library of original series and offers a companion to The Witcher. I could absolutely see this series continuing for seasons to come as the story of Nimue could easily develop into the ongoing tale of Arthur and Camelot. Tom Wheeler and Frank Miller have created a nice variation on a classic story even if it could use some tightening up in certain areas. This is an Arthurian tale that can many viewers will be able to relate to and one with enough action to satiate your summer entertainment needs.
Cursed premieres July 17th on Netflix.