Review of Maleficent (2014) by Genghis_Sean — 07 Jun 2014

I was thoroughly shocked at the excellence of this film, having been dragged to it by my 8 year old daughter. It was visually stunning, and the faerie creatures were convincing and creative, but that's far down on my list of what makes a movie great in this day of increasingly impressive CGI.

What I want is story, character development, acting, and good writing, and Maleficent delivers in a big way. Jolie was simply amazing in claiming this role. I hear they had to cast her daughter to fill the toddler scene because the other kids were too scared of her to perform.

That's easy to believe. Maleficent simply radiates fear, power, and her need for vengeance as she seeks to revenge herself on her tormentor's child. She appears heartless, referring to the Aurora as a beastie, and seemingly roots for her death, at least when others are obviously watching.

She is utterly 'maleficent,' or so she wants everyone to think. This movie exposes how poorly written Disney tales have always been and unlike the original sleeping beauty, feels like an actual enchantment and is presented as pure poetry.

As a 43-year-old man, I didn't expect it to work on me, but like Maleficent herself, I found myself relent the deeper into the film I got. Simply a stupendous film.