In Ronja the Robber’s Daughter a young girl grows up in the towers of a remote fortress, with only her father’s band of hard-bitten thieves for playmates. Ronja is a storm-child, born during a thunderstorm while the mysterious raven people known as the wile-wings circle the castle. The CGI on the talking people-sized ravens is surprisingly good, helped by the fact that they come with the darkness. I’m new to Ronja’s world but I’m enjoying getting to know it.
The story is the creation of Astrid Lindgren, the beloved Swedish author of Pippi Longstocking. Her children’s book Ronja the Robber’s Daughter has been adapted a handful of times, including in Japanese anime. Now Netflix has got hold of it and turned it into a two-season epic with Hans Rosenfeldt, best known for The Bridge, as the writer. The shots of a fantasy medieval Sweden are stunning. Ronja’s father’s castle is set deep in the heart of an enchanted wood where beautiful wildlife roams during the day and strange, malevolent creatures stalk at night. As Ronja grows up she is desperate to leave the castle walls and explore the forest. When she does finally go, her parents proudly see her off, her mother calm and confident, and her father a nervous wreck.
Watching this series I felt this is what childhood should be—exploring the beauty and danger of the physical world, with a mother who packs your lunch and a father who will come into the dark forest at night to rescue you. Both of these things, Ronja has. On her first night in the forest, she wakes from a cat nap to see dozens of eyes glinting at her in the dark, and coming closer. Soon she is surrounded by hideous crawling creatures, badger-sized but with disturbingly human faces—grey dwarves. Then a torch glimmers in the dark forest; her father arrives to save her. He takes her back home and tucks her into bed while her mother sings a lullaby.
The beauty and simplicity of a quiet childhood, but with the rumblings of dark events underneath—these elements reminded me of Pan’s Labyrinth, possibly one of the best fairy tale films about childhood ever made. In both, the heart of the story centres on family conflict, and for Ronja, the growing understanding that the world does not see her father how she sees him. By the end of the first episode, a thought has dawned on Ronja—her father and his men return home each day laden with jewels, silks, meat and fine drink, but where do they get it all? The clue is in her name—the Robber’s Daughter—but like every child, Ronja had never imagined that her father could be seen as bad. There is a growing sense of anger and restlessness not only in Ronja, but also in the surrounding villages, where people have been plagued by the robbers for years, and finally resolve to finish them.
Another historical romp came out this month on Disney Plus, Renegade Nell starring Orla from Derry Girls. Orla (ie Louisa Harland) plays a sharp-shooting highway lass with supernatural powers that emerge only when she’s in mortal danger.
A tiny amber glow appears, then shoots down her throat to inhabit her, giving her superhuman strength and skill in combat. She throws highway robbers around like dolls, dodging their bullets in slow motion like she’s in a Regency Matrix. It’s fun, though a bit silly, and lacks the tonal clarity of Ronja. One minute, Nell is chatting to a tiny man fairy, and the next she’s avenging her father’s murder at the hands of a sadistic local aristocrat. The story is held together by the charisma of the heroine, Nell.
I knew Louisa Harland at drama school, and it is eerie and fun to watch someone I knew as a student starring in a blockbuster Disney production. She certainly is fun to watch. Her features are wonderfully changeable—as Nell, she plays an androgynous highwayman who can just as convincingly wear a bustle and corset. Writer and director Sally Wainwright has made a career out of writing unusual and interesting heroines with regional accents—she also did Happy Valley and Gentleman Jack. Nell’s supporting cast is interesting too—Adrian Lester plays a Beelzebub-like figure who holds dark powers which he can bestow upon those willing to come to the dark side.
The local baddie Thomas Jackson has no trouble making the jump. He would sell his soul to secure his inheritance. Jackson is played by Jake Dunn, who I’ve never seen before. He is fantastic. Like a surly young Captain Hook fresh out of Eton, he seems born to brood in a periwig and white face powder.
Other characters jar, however. The tiny ball of light which gives Nell her superpowers turns out to be a tiny male fairy with an annoying voice. He will only help her out if she’s fighting in self-defence, he tells her. He shows up twice in the first episode but his purpose and motivation are still unclear. There’s also a dashing young ostler at the estate ( bound to be a romantic interest), who has the habit of talking to his horse and mimicking back the horse’s response —something Disney recycled from their Frozen characters Christoph and Sven. It was annoying in animation and it’s even more annoying in live action. I suppose it’s meant to be quirky and adorable, but it isn’t.
Unlike Ronja the Robber’s Daughter, I’m not tempted to carry on watching Renegade Nell. Perhaps I’ll give it another episode, but if it doesn’t captivate within the first two episodes, it’s not doing its job.
Ronja the Robber’s Daughter:
Renegade Nell:
