Maleficent

Movie Title--  Maleficent

Release Year--  2014

Running Time--  1 Hour and 37 Minutes

Director--  Robert Stromberg

Cast--  Anfelina Jolie, Elle Fanning, Sharlto Copley, Lesley Manville, Imelda Staunton, Juno Temple, Sam Riley, Brenton Thwaites, Kenneth Cranham, Isobelle Molloy, Michael Higgins, Ella Purnell, Jackson Bews, Vivienne Jolie-Pitt

A fairy, turned evil by betrayal, curses an infant princess only to find that the child may be the key to restoring peace to the land.

In a magical realm known as the Moors, a young faerie named Maleficent (Isobelle Molloy) learns that someone is trying to invade their realm from the neighboring human kingdom and goes to confront him.  She finds that the invader is just a boy named Stefan (Michael Higgins) and after taking back what he has stolen, she escorts him back to the border between the realms.  He touches her and the iron of his ring burns her skin.  When she tells him this, he throws his ring away.  This act touches Maleficent, that a boy of such little means would give up one of his possessions for her and she invites him to come back to visit.

As the years pass, Maleficent (Ella Purnell) falls in love with Stefan (Jackson Bews) and on her 16th birthday, they share what she thinks is true love's kiss although the feelings are not the same for young Stefan.  He is too focused on his ambition to become king to pay any heed to his affection for her.  They older they grow, the less and less Stefan (Sharlto Copley) comes to visit Maleficent (Angelina Jolie) until he stops coming altogether.  

Maleficent is made the protector of the Moors and when King Henry (Kenneth Cranham) comes to invade the Moors, she defeats him and sends his army running.  As the king lies dying, he promises that whoever kills the faerie will become his successor.  Overhearing this, Stefan sets out to visit Maleficent.  He fills her head with promises, then drugs her and when she is incapacitated, he attempts to kill her.  When he realizes that he can not bring himself to kill her, he cuts off her wings with iron, then presents them to the king, telling him that he has slain Maleficent.

Betrayed, Maleficent begins to wander and when she sees a raven captured, she saves him, making him shape shift into a man and after learning his name is Diaval (Sam Riley), she makes him serve as her informant.  She sends Diaval to the palace and he comes back, telling her that Stefan has been crowned the king.  With the realization that he betrayed her to become king, the devastated Maleficent proclaims herself the queen of the Moors and turns the once beautiful realm into a dark kingdom and chooses to have Diaval as her only companion. 

Diaval comes upon the information that Stefan has had a daughter and is having a christening for the newborn princess Aurora then informs Maleficent of the plans.  Determined to get her revenge on Stefan, she arrives uninvited to give the princess her own gift; a curse stating that before the sun sets on her 16th birthday she will prick her finger on the needle of a spinning wheel, putting her into a death like sleep.  Stefan begs her not to do it and after forcing him to bow to her, she adds the stipulation that she can only be woken by true love's kiss.  

Believing that the princess is in danger, he sends her to live in a cottage in the forest with three pixies; Knotgrass (Imelda Staunton)the pink pixie, Flittle (Lesley Manville)the blue pixie and Thistlewit (Juno Temple) the green pixie.  Stefan then sends his army to destroy Maleficent but she surrounds the Moors with an impenetrable wall of thick, heavy thorns.

Diaval learns where the faeries are keeping Aurora and tells Maleficent, who then keeps a constant watch on the house.  Realizing that the pixies are not capable of caring for the baby and fearing that the child will not make it to 16 for the curse to work, she begins to secretly care for the child.  When Maleficent comes in contact with the very young Aurora (Vivienne Jolie-Pitt) she begins to keep watch over her from afar.  

Aurora (Elle Fanning) meets Maleficent again when she is 15, and stuns Maleficent by referring to her as her "faerie godmother".  When Maleficent questions Aurora, she responds by telling her that she has known Maleficent has been there her whole life because she always saw Maleficent's shadow.  After spending time with Aurora, Maleficent realizes that she is quite fond of the princess and tries to revoke the curse but she fails.  Maleficent's next attempt to keep Aurora safe comes when Aurora mentions that she wants to live on the Moor's and Maleficent tells her that she can come to live there as soon as she wants.  

Aurora plans to tell the pixies, whom she refers to as aunts, the next day about her leaving to go to the Moors.  While she is practicing what she is going to say, a young man comes out of the clearing and introduces himself as Phillip (Brenton Thwaites) and asks if she knows the way to the castle.  Once he is on his way, Aurora goes to tell the pixies about leaving but when she does, Knotgrass angry that she is about to waste all of their time and work for nothing, reveals that she is the princess.  Aurora then goes to Maleficent and once she realizes that Maleficent is the one that has cursed her, she flees to the castle and back to her father.

Maleficent, aware that it is getting very near to the time the curse is to  take effect by, races with a knocked out Phillip, to the castle to try to save the girl from the curse.

For me, the jury is still out on this film.  There were parts that I really liked but there were others that I absolutely hated.  To me, it seemed like they were making something completely different out of the already well known fairy tale.  

I loved Jolie as Maleficent; her high cheek bones and white skin, accented with the black of her horns and head wrap, as well as her bright red lipstick, made it hard to look away from her.  She is beautiful and captivating and that is helped along by the specialty contacts that help keep focus on her eyes as well as the red lips (again!) and her snow white teeth that open to reveal a menacing yet soulful and sorrowful voice.  Jolie, is not one of my favorite actresses but in this film she is excellent and she really helps to make this character her best.  The younger actors in this film Elle Fanning and Brenton Thwaites do an excellent job as well, although Thwaites doesn't get too much screen time.  

I absolutely hated the pixies.  They were nothing like the fairies from the Disney animated film.  It is a wonder how these three kept themselves alive, much less Aurora until she turned 16.  To me they seemed dumb and scatterbrained, not to mention there was something about their semi computer enhanced features that freaked me out a little bit.  It just seemed slightly uncomfortable when they were on the screen.

I also had a problem with the story.  Maleficent is known as an iconicly heartless and cruel villain but this film softens her up completely.  Although it is refreshing to see a different take, it is disappointing that they have taken the original characters and softened them up to reflect societies updated view on women; Maleficent going from the villain to merely a misunderstood woman that tries to redeem herself and Aurora from a naive girl, isolated from society in the forest to a young woman that is independent and knows what she wants, although she has never truly lived enough to know exactly what she wants.

I say that if you are a fan of the Disney animated film "Sleeping Beauty", you will probably not like this film very much.  If you decide to go into this film with an open mind and give it a try, it wasn't really wasn't that bad, just like Maleficent herself, this film tends to be a little misunderstood.  This film is very family friendly although I wouldn't recommend small children watching it, there are a few parts that may scare them.  Don't Forget the Popcorn!