WARNING! May contain spoilers for certain people. Enter at your own risk...
Two kingdoms. Fairies. Humans. They very much hate each other, because of a certain fairy. A very powerful fairy, named Maleficent. Though she is a child, she is still the most powerful fairy in the kingdom. One day, Maleficent encounters a young human boy, who somehow found his way into the fairy kingdom and has stolen a...rock. After retrieving the rock, Maleficent and the boy, named Stefan, become friends. Stefan comes to the fairy kingdom, to visit, very often and they fall in love. Maleficent is now a woman, and the horrid king of the human kingdom, strikes an attack on the fairy kingdom, in fear of Maleficent's growing power. Maleficent hurts the king and he soon dies, leaving the kingdom with...Stefan, of all people. But! Before the king's death, he demands Maleficent be killed and Stefan is the one to do it. He, because he is so close to Maleficent, cannot kill her. So, he just cuts off her wings (in which she is very fond of). This enrages her! Causing her to curse the princess (his daughter) with a sleep like death on her 16th birthday. Does this movie shed a light on the character of Maleficent? Or does it shame her?
I'd say, the latter. I...I hate this movie.
I saw the trailer of the this movie relatively early. My first thoughts? Why? After watching the trailers, I didn't really see why this needed to be made. This is something I think most Disney fans were thinking when the trailers and posters started coming out.
Cons: First, I want to make something clear. Maleficent is my favorite Disney villain of all time and is definitely one of my favorite villains of anything! That being said, you would think I would be excited for a movie about one of my favorite villains of all time. But that's the thing. She's not a villain in this movie, she's the hero.
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| What now? |
But is this the only reason I didn't like the movie? Oh no! There's much more! Everything about this movie was just...wrong. It was as if they were completely ignoring the source material (the original short story, and the cartoon adaption made in 1959 by Disney). If there was small detail that Disney used back in Sleeping Beauty, they did the opposite.
They had this:
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| My favorite characters of Sleeping Beauty |
And made this:
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| Was anyone as freaked out as I was that the main pixie was played by Dolores Umbridge?!? |
It was offensive really, that the company that made the first and most beloved version of Sleeping Beauty, would almost completely say that it was invalid and that they had made the correct story. There are a few nitpicks I could go on about, like the three pixies that give the gifts have totally different personalities and names (which only proves my theory) but I won't because I would end up spoiling it for anyone that hasn't seen it. One thing I will say is this: If you are a Disney fanatic like me, you will end up being very annoyed by this movie.
Pros: Remember when I said I hated this movie. Key word: I.
Most people aren't as crazily obsessed with Disney as I am, and really don't know all the ends and outs of the story of Sleeping Beauty. And therefore, I am forced to say...This wasn't a bad movie. I would have most likely really liked it, if it was of different characters, of different names, and so on. The effects were fantastic and the score was, in fact, epic.
And then there's Angelina Jolie (Maleficent). She did amazingly! I mean, just look at this!
I could not imagine anyone else playing this part. Of course I love the performance of Eleanor Audley, but Angelina is a close second. Most of the other actors did good (except Stefan, who made me want to put my ears off). Another actor that shined was Elle Fanning as Aurora. I can't say she is as good an actor as her older sister Dakota Fanning, but she is definitely getting there. The story line is, for the most part, good, but has a bit of a plot hole problem that you'll be wondering about later on.
But, as I said, it wasn't just horrible. It's hard to say that because it was horrible, to me. I guess what I'm getting at is I have to look at this movie through two different prospective. One of a Disney fanatic and one of a normal, everyday person. That being said, this movie deserves to have two scores. One for me and one for everyone else.
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Disney Fanatic Score-
Story- 3/10
The story is completely and utterly different from the one we know and love.
Main Characters- 6/10
I liked Maleficent when she was bad but not at all when she was "good"
I did like Aurora and I think she played the part of a very naive teen very well
Side Characters-3/10
The pixies, Prince Phillip, Stephen, they were all very uninteresting and boring.
Villain- Already Done
Effects and Animation- 8/10
Though most of it was CGI, it was awesome.
Entertainment Factor- 5/10
I enjoyed some of it, but again, most of it I found myself quite annoyed
Total Score- 50%
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Normal, Everyday Person Score-
Story- 6/10
It was good, but still had some plot holes
Main Characters- 8/10
Two more points for the times Maleficent is the good guy
Side Characters- 4/10
One more point because most people will like the fairies. But the rest are still boring and uninteresting
Villain- Already Done
Effects and Animation- 8/10
It was good all around
Entertainment Factor- 8/10
Most of it will be very enjoyable to the normal, everyday person
Total Score- 68%
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Thank you all for reading. Hope you enjoyed. Please share your feeling on the film in the comments below. Also, tell me what you think about the new scoring technique.
-The Filosopher
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