By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)
Netflix’s Cursed is a curious beast. It’s a retelling of a retelling (based on the novel of the same name by Tom Wheeler and Frank Miller) of the Arthurian legend from the point of view of Nimue (Katherine Langford). In most versions of the legend, she’s an enchantress–the Lady of the Lake–who gives King Arthur the mighty sword, Excalibur. She also wooed Merlin, stole his power and entombed him.
The wizard we see here is nothing like the one portrayed in literature. Vikings‘ Gustaf Skarsgård gives this interpretation a I’m without a purpose act. He’s not wise beyond his years and is more of an empty shell when we first meet him. His tale picks up closer to the end, which includes the eventual encounter with this teenage princess, but any idea of a romance is never alluded to.
Much of the tale takes place with Uther Pendragaon (Sebastian Armesto) at the throne. The young Arthur (Devon Terrell) we meet in this version has some African blood in him!
Continue reading “Nimue is Beguiling but Netflix’s Cursed May be Just That”
