Bright is Netflix’s new film, starring Will Smith as Daryl Ward, a human cop, and Joel Edgerton as Nick Jakoby, his orc partner. The film is set in a world that’s pretty much the same as our own, with the addition of magic and magical creatures. There are nine races in total, but the elves are on top, ruling the world. Orcs are on the bottom and humans seem to be somewhere in the middle. Part of the reason the elves rule is because most brights, or people with the ability to use a magical wand, are elves. Magical wands are rare, so things get pretty messy for Ward and Jakoby when they come across one while on duty.
Critics have been harsh on the film, but I personally enjoyed it. The movie is fun and has a lot of action, as well as social commentary on racism and classism. I’m also a fan of all the world building involved. I’m impressed with the art department with all their graffiti and signs with Elvish and Orkish in the background. Though, if you’re looking for something to watch for family movie night, this probably isn’t it considering Bright has violence, some nudity, and plenty of cursing.
Bright has a lot of world building established in the movie, such as the story of the Dark Lord being defeated by Jirak and his army of the nine races 2000 years ago. The film also contains two constructed languages, or conlangs, that were made specifically for the film. The conlangs are only referred to in the films as Elvish and Orkish, but their names are Övüsi and Bodzvokhan respectively. Both conlangs were created by David J. Peterson, the same man that created Dothraki and High Valyrian for Game of Thrones. Peterson goes in depth about his creation of Övüsi and Bodzvokhan on his blog.
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With all the world building behind this movie, I’d love for Netflix to make a series set in this world. There are nine races, but the movie only had humans, orcs, elves, and centaurs onscreen. Dwarfs weren’t seen, but they were mentioned. I’d love to see the four unaccounted for races and explore the world some more. I’d like to see a series exploring other cities in this world with a more family friendly tone.
Netflix has already ordered a sequel, before the movie was even released on December 22. Will Smith and Joel Edgerton will be reprising their roles as Ward and Jakoby. No further information is released, but I can’t wait for it to come out.
