Every action movie worth contemplating after you leave the theater asks the audience to think but not overthink, to appreciate the hero's righteousness without questioning the troublesome parts of the story that may get in the way of cheering them on. We're reminded that these are power fantasies, even the ones based on actual events – histories that are chosen by producers and studios for their potential as inspiring spectacles.
Even taking all of this into account, "The Woman King" was never destined for an easy welcome free of controversy. Though director Gina Prince-Bythewood ("The Old Guard") drew inspiration from "Gladiator" and "Braveheart" (influences that play to incredible effect in the movie's massive, fast-paced battle sequences), it's an epic set in a period and place about which most Americans know little – a 19th-century West African kingdom of the Dahomey.
