Movie Review: 'The King's Daughter' is a Charming Romantic Adventure

The King’s Daughter thrives on being the kind of movie Hollywood doesn’t seem to make anymore. It’s a family friendly, mid-budget, romantic adventure that earnestly evokes similar fare from the 80s and 90s. Blockbuster culture and the Marvel Movie Revolution had seemingly killed movies like The King’s Daughter but here we are. And, even more surprisingly, time has been kind to this genre. The King’s Daughter feels like a breath of fresh air at a time when the smog of blockbuster culture has held a chokehold on the big screen.

The King’s Daughter stars the delightful Kaya Scoledario in the title role of The King’s Daughter, aka Mary Josephe, say it with a French accent so it doesn’t seem plain. Mary is a spirited child who believes she was an orphan because she grew up in a convent. Mary is unaware that when she was born her mother traveled to the convent to give birth in secret and unfortunately died in childbirth. Why did she decide to deliver in secret? Because the father was King Louis the 14th (Pierce Brosnan) and mom didn’t want him to know about the child if it wasn’t a male heir to the throne.

All grown up, Mary Josephe lives for swimming and driving the rest of the nuns crazy with her defiance of tradition. Thus when Pere Le Chais (Wiliam Hurt), the King’s personal Priest and confessor, comes to whisk Mary away to Versailles to join the Royal court, they are happy to see her go. Mary still won’t be told immediately that the King is her father. Instead, Mary believes that she has been recruited because of the beautiful music she has composed. The King also wants to get to know Mary before he reveals her heritage.

Riding aside this plot is the even more fantastical plot about the King sending his best sailors to search for Atlantis and return with a mermaid. The King’s doctor, Dr Labarthe (Pablo Schreiber), has convinced King Louis that if they sacrifice a mermaid during an upcoming eclipse it may grant the King everlasting life, something he finds appealing, especially after narrowly surviving a bloody war and an assassination attempt at the start of our story.

Leading the search for the mermaid is the noble seafarer Yves De La Croix (Benjamin Walker). Much to his surprise, Yves actually finds a real mermaid and is able to capture her. The mermaid is played by the ethereal and otherworldly beauty Fan Bingbing. The mermaid is brought back to Versailles where it will be kept in captivity under a royal fountain until the eclipse. Plans begin to change however when the Mermaid’s song calls out to Mary and the two develop a fast friendship.

If it all sounds a little corny, that’s because it is corny. But that’s not a bad thing. This kind of dedication to old school adventure and romance risks being cornball on the way to being something more and The King’s Daughter, for my money, is something more. Kaya Scoledario begins a romance in the film with Benjamin Walker's Sailor and their chemistry is terrific. The two compliment each other wonderfully in spirit, adventure and romance. Walker is especially fun in the kind of role Errol Flynn might have played in a Saturday afternoon serial in the 1930s.

The whole cast of The King’s Daughter is top notch with both Pierce Brosnan and John Hurt delivering terrific performances. Both Brosnan and Hurt bring gravitas and old school actorly charm to their performances. The theme of religion being greater than science is a bit much, science is repeatedly denigrated and made the villain in the movie while God is righteous and always right. That’s a bit much, but I didn’t mind, Pablo Schreiber’s villainous doctor is just over the top enough to render the point rather silly. And let’s not forget, this is a kids movie about a mermaid, reading into it too much is not really necessary.

I call The King’s Daughter a kids movie but it has a few scenes and lines of dialogue that push it closer to PG-13. A few of the King’s ‘confessions’ will leave kids with questions mom and dad might not be entirely comfortable with, but for the most part, The King’s Daughter is a harmless charmer filled with romance, adventure and a spectacular mermaid who steals the show, especially in the final moments. I adore Fan Bingbing and I am in the process of chartering a fan club.

The King’s Daughter is a lot of fun and I recommend it. The film will be in wide theatrical release on January 21st, 2022.