London Film Festival 2025 – 100 Nights Of Hero ★★★

Released: January 2026

Director: Julia Jackman

Starring: Emma Corrin, Maika Monroe, Richard E. Grant, Nicholas Galitzine, Felicity Jones

The directorial follow-up to her debut feature Bonus Track (2023) which also screened at London Film Festival, Julia Jackman’s 100 Nights of Hero stars Emma Corrin (The Crown) and Maika Monroe (Longlegs), and is based on a graphic novel by Isabel Greenberg. Whilst Jackman delivered a sweet high school music movie in Bonus Track, 100 Nights of Hero is a much different beast. Set in a remote castle in a fantastical world, the delicate dynamic between a neglectful husband, his innocent bride Cherry and their devoted maid Hero is thrown into chaos when a charming house guest arrives. Boasting a hilarious script and mesmerising visuals, 100 Nights of Hero is an immersive, whimsical fairytale with great performances and beautiful production design. Though it loses steam as it progresses and the themes are explored on a surface level, it’s the type of film we don’t receive very often, and is worth a viewing for the aesthetic alone. 

From the get-go, 100 Nights of Hero thrusts audiences into a fantastical world. At the centre of this world, run by Birdman, is a castle under the three-mooned sky, in which our story is largely set. The location and world-building is stunning from start to finish, offering up bright colors, strange yet fascinatingly dressed characters and production design that makes our setting appear to be taken straight from a storybook (or a graphic novel, in this case). Full of wonder and whimsy,  flamboyant headdresses, princess-like gowns and a retro, period-inspired visual appeal, high fantasy worlds are becoming rare in cinema, so it’s incredible to experience a new one, and even more commendable given the budget. The color palette is inviting, the hair, make-up and costuming is inventive and it’s hard to know what to expect from each frame to the next. This fantasy world is unlike one we’ve ever seen before. 

Despite the immersive fantastical setting, the storyline has feminist and patriarchal messaging that viewers can take away and apply to the real world, which makes for a nice juxtaposition. Our characters live in a world that is ruled over by a man, with a focus on delivering male heirs, and speaks of women shunned by society due to being barren, or lesbians. It sounds heavy, but the script delivers this discourse in an utterly hilarious way, with laugh-out-loud humour filling the first two acts of the movie nicely. The plot also has a particular focus on storytelling, predominantly those of strong women, honing in on that fairytale feeling even further whilst supporting its feminist message. The script however never really gets into the nitty gritty of its themes, instead presenting them on quite a surface level. Whilst this may leave some viewers underwhelmed and lusting for a stronger, more thought-provoking message, others will be happy that the tone stays fairly light and matches the whimsy of the location and surrounding plot.  

A really strong cast is pulled together to make 100 Nights of Hero flourish, filled with young recognisable talent. Playing the titular maid Hero is Emma Corrin, who does well with their performance despite Hero not being as fleshed out as you’d hope. Corrin still manages to stand out with the storytelling aspect, saving Cherry from multiple awkward encounters with the guest who is trying to pursue her. Cherry is played by Maika Monroe, who does well with her stoic and sarcastic dialogue. It’s nothing unfamiliar to her and is certainly within Monroe’s ballpark, but she impresses regardless. Without entering spoiler territory, Cherry’s arc is one of the strongest in the film, slowly learning to go against what’s expected of her, and notice what’s been glaring at her in the face the entire time. Perhaps the most impressive performance is delivered by Nicholas Galitzine (Red, White & Royal Blue) as Manfred, a visiting guest attempting to seduce Cherry within the 100 nights outlined in the title. His comedic timing and delivery of lines is effortlessly funny and charming, and it’s easy to fall for his attempts, even if they are forced and on the nose. He’s a star. The remainder of the cast is built up of recognisable faces including icon Richard E. Grant (Saltburn) as Birdman, Varada Sethu (Doctor Who) as Esa, Felicity Jones (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) as our Narrator and even popstar Charli xcx as Rosa, a character in one of Hero’s stories. Whilst it’s fun to have a cast so stacked, the lack of screen-time for them is rather noticeable, which will leave some underwhelmed. Charli xcx certainly looks the part, but doesn’t get enough material to prove her acting chops just yet. 

The best asset of 100 Nights of Hero is easily the humour within the script, whether it be the guards lifting their masks to hilariously interject our main cast or the quippy one-liners from our narrator. However, the further the runtime progresses, the less prominent this humour is. The central storyline of Manfred attempting to pursue Cherry is really fun and a large source of the humour delivers, but as Hero continues to interject more and more with her story, we receive less of this. The story being told is certainly enjoyable allowing for those feminist messages to come through, but it does detract from Monroe, Galitzine and the plot that was set up for us. Furthermore, other elements of the plot wind up underbaked due to the snappy run-time and plentiful themes, especially whatever is looming between Hero and Cherry. There’s not a great deal of character progression between them as individuals or a pair, and by the time their bond is solidified, the movie draws to a close. All storylines at play are engaging, but feel large enough to warrant their own focus. There’s far too much at play. 

100 Nights of Hero is certainly a step-up for director Julia Jackman, who has proved her talent and range with only two feature films under her belt. The performances are great, the plot fascinating but the real star of the show here is the visuals. This fantastical, fairytale world holds most of the movie’s pull, and will continue to fascinate audiences even when the plot weakens. The script struggles to balance all its ideas and plot threads, providing a surface level albeit fun and digestible look at feminism and patriarchy.