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Netflix’s Cursed delivers enchantment and magic misfires in equal measure
Legends are meant to be left to interpretation, used for lessons and applications to real-life situations. “What if” is a common question that arises when exploring these legends, and that’s what Frank Miller and Tom Wheeler sought to analyze and bring to life with their Cursed novel. Re-imagining Arthurian legend to center on the female characters that had long been used as side characters and devices to further the plot is a heavy task for a book, but even more so for a TV adaptation. A novel does not have the constraints of time and length that a streaming series does to capture the viewer. This is where Cursed season one may have cast a spell with minimal effect: It’s occasionally enchanting, if often confused about what plot it’s following at any given time.
Cursed takes the legend of Arthur and flips the widely known stories to center Nimue (13 Reasons Why’s Katherine Langford), or as she’s more commonly known, the Lady Of The Lake. Nimue’s story is as tragic as it is magical: Within Arthurian legend, Nimue is the lover of Merlin, adoptive mother of Lancelot, and bequeather of Excalibur to Arthur. In Wheeler and Miller’s version, Nimue is still destined to be the Lady Of The Lake; however, before reaching that fate, she teams up with mercenary Arthur, portrayed by Devon Terrell (Barry), and Sister Igraine/Morgana, beautifully interpreted by Shalom Brune-Franklin (Bad Mothers), to save the Fey folk that had cast her out. Langford, fresh off Knives Out, tackles the role of Nimue with quiet tenacity, approaching the pacing of the script head-on, making up on occasion for the stalls in scenes where pauses are prevalent. Nimue’s desire to not succumb to the dark magic she has been marked with from childhood distinguishes her from other portrayals of the character, particularly the iteration in Once Upon A Time, which embraced her dark side. This retelling makes it clear Nimue wants to do right by her people and escape her fate.
