Review of Maleficent (2014) by Reenchipless — 27 Nov 2015

Everyone has had a favorite Disney fairytale movie growing up. Imagine that movie played by real characters, with the similar movie plot but with a surprisingly different happily ever after ending. The movie Maleficent (main character played by Angelina Jolie) is similar to the movie we all have watched Sleeping Beauty. Most fairy tales start of as the main character going through some unfortunate events and wish to be happy one again. In the movie Maleficent the plot is different the main character is happy and full of love, but one heartbreaking event takes a toll and turns the mood of the movie to dark and evil.

The movie Maleficent can attract both young children and adults. Growing up, you see these fairytales in animation with nice colors and the bubbly personalities of characters. That's what attracts the young children as we grow up we seem to be into movies that are played by real live characters. What better movie than a fairytale that is played by live characters with a plot twist. Not only will young adults and children are attracted to the movie for those reasons but also because the ending is not much like the others. Yes, it's a happy ending but not just any. The ending leaves us with a moral " true love" isn't about being sexual or does it have to be romantic , it can also be emotional ,maternal , or a simple bond of a friendship . Another specific type of audience this movie attracts is young girls. This movie shows, and empowers girls as well. In the movie Maleficent is left hurt and destroyed by her first love. She casts a spell on her first loves first born child (a girl). She then regrets what she has done and regardless of the hurt and anger she has inside she doesn't let her pride get the best of her. She saves the young girl and proves that true love does exist and it doesn't always have to come from a prince charming.

Robert Stromberg is the director of Maleficent. He got into directing the movie because he was a huge fan of Disney movies. Growing up, his dad would take him to see re-releases of Disney movies such as snow white, Pinocchio, and Sleeping Beauty. He was trilled he would get the chance to re make a classic fairytale into a somewhat reality with a good plot twist. The movie is much like the classic Sleeping Beauty; the villain in the movie cast a spell on a young girl who fell in a deep sleep and can only be awaken by her true loves kiss .Stromberg wanted his fans to recognize the elements in the new spin Maleficent were similar to the ones in sleeping beauty. He wanted his fans to connect to the recent movie as much as they did to the old one. Stromberg also did some research to bring Maleficent to life. He looked into old paintings which gave him ideas of realism, which captures a classy look yet it has that touch of fantasy. Robert Stemberg did a good job as a director to infuse some elements of the old movie to the new one. Being a Disney fan helped him a lot because he can relate to the old movie he grew up watching and turning it to a new more realistic movie with a slightly different plot. The plot of both movies is similar yet very different they both have different lessons to learn from.

In the movie maleficent, it starts of as any fairytale would. A young girl is living happy and full of joy. The young girl who is maleficent is an orphan not quite like other girls. She lives in the forest with all these other creatures and has enormous strong wings which are her prize possession. She is the only human like person in the forest and has never felt the touch or love of another person. She sees the world as a harmful place but that soon will change. Along comes a boy who is also an orphan and they immediately connect , time passes and on her 16th birthday the boy gives her a kiss , the kiss is very meaningful to her ; she thinks of it as her true loves kiss . Then something horrible happens, the boy who she thought was her friend, her true love betrayed her for an ambition he had. The boy poisons maleficent cut of her wings and turned them in to the king to become a hero and possibly the next ruler. Maleficent is not only physically hurt by what he has done but also she is emotionally hurt, broken and feels betrayed. Her whole world turns evil, and dark. She desires vengeance and her heart turns cold. The boy that betrayed her became the next ruler / king and gets married. He is living haply while maleficent is still hurt by what had happen. When the kings daughter is born maleficent casts a spell on her, much like what had happen in sleeping beauty. The daughter will fall in a deep sleep once she turns 16 and can only be awaken by true loves kiss. It is ironic that she cast a spell that way; maleficent wanted to make the king feel the same way she did when he kissed her only to betray her. Maleficent believes there is no true love and therefore the king's daughter will never wake up from the deep sleep. So far the plot is similar to Sleeping Beauty but here is where the plot twist begins. Maleficent watches the king's daughter (aurora) from afar as she grows up. She creates a mother daughter like bond with aurora and her heart becomes warm and once again filled with live. Maleficent try's to take back the spell but can't because It is so powerful. Once aurora turns 16 she falls in a deep sleep and maleficent is devastated. The only hope she had to be happy and not feel vengeful is now gone because of the hate she had words the king. The ending is way different than the classic one. Aurora's father dies which may seem like an unhappy ending but I actually am not. Maleficent crying besides aurora kisses her cheek and asks for forgiveness. This is the plot twist; aurora is taken up by a true loves kiss. The ending is powerful and it can teach many people a lesson. True love doesn't have to be intimate or romantic it can just be a bond between someone you truly appreciate.

The plot twist of the movie is what made the movie great. If you enjoyed watching sleeping Beauty as a child you will most likely enjoy maleficent. It connects to you as a young adult because it is played by real live characters and because you may recognize some of the scenes in the new movie that have been in the classic movie.