Review of Maleficent (2014) by Jose Gabriel S — 03 Jun 2015

The 2014 Maleficent film tries to portray the well-known fairy tale villain into a sympathetic character whoâ(TM)s pushed to her limitâ(TM)s and succumbs to her evil side. While this trope and character archetype is not necessarily bad (if anything itâ(TM)s one of my favorites) itâ(TM)s really an unnecessary shift. You canâ(TM)t watch this film without comparing it to the original âSleeping Beautyâ? Disney film. In fact the more you try to think itâ(TM)s an alternate reality the more ridiculous it is as a standalone film. This film goes against almost everything from the original fairytale and what little new plot points they introduce makes absolutely no sense. For starters why try to make Maleficent good? The screenwriter and surprisingly Disney donâ(TM)t fully understand what made the character of Maleficent so great. The reason why she is such a memorable villain from the original fairy tale was because she was pure evil. Her wickedness and enjoyment of inflicting pain to others added to intimidating factors she had as a character and the great impact she left on many. Itâ(TM)s the same reason we admire character like Hannibal Lecter or the joker. They donâ(TM)t have a tragic backstory with sympathetic qualities to them. In fact thereâ(TM)s zero chance of either of them to ever redeem themselves for what they have done. These are villains we admire for what they are. We donâ(TM)t root for them to win but we enjoy the challenge and journey they give us as a viewer. Who could forget the countless amount of times were the joker got really close to killing batman. Or his iconic laugh, or Hannibalâ(TM)s suave attitude? Itâ(TM)s the fact that they try to change Maleficent to a completely different character archetype is why this movie fails. Had this been a completely different story from the get go I wouldnâ(TM)t mind at all.

While I do admit that a good villain needs to be complex with conflicting goals and emotions, the original Maleficent is proof that itâ(TM)s not in fact the only way to do it. Itâ(TM)s just one of the many tropes an antagonist has to offer. Now the films itself is very inconsistent with what it tries to do. Maleficent meets a boy named Stephan, they grow up together and eventually fall in love. Stephan for some random reason leaves for a couple of years and turns evil as he fulfills a promise to the dying king of the land to kill maleficent so they can take over her kingdom. Her puts her to sleep with some sort of poison and cuts off her wings as fake proof of her death. And well you get the drill, she becomes evil over the years resentful of the king puts a curse on her child etc. Then the movie starts having the characters doing things that makes no sense. Maleficent finds the child and surprisingly befriends her over the years forming a bond. Isnâ(TM)t that a little counterproductive, considering sheâ(TM)s the child of her sworn enemy and ex-lover? Thereâ(TM)s scenes were as a kid she even protects her and saves her from falling off a cliff nearly dying. Why? This movie tries way too hard to prove that sheâ(TM)s sympathetic. So much to a point that it affects the overall tone of the film. There are scenes with uplifting humor but they clash with the more dark and dramatic scenes that could have been more suitable for a different movie. Youâ(TM)re not exactly sure what to feel in this movie. My guess that itâ(TM)s evidential scarring of previous rewrites of the script. Which would explain the clunky nature of these scenes. I mean the dialogue at times can be the most basic or silliest thing Iâ(TM)ve ever heard. Not the worst or terrible type but itâ(TM)s really close. Thereâ(TM)s also some subplot of the king becoming insane and obsessed with maleficent. Really he was just a big dick.

The 3 fairies from the original are awfully portrayed in this film. Theyâ(TM)re dumb, plain and simple. Itâ(TM)s really just demeaning what they did with these characters. Even though I really didnâ(TM)t care much or remembered the originals I still found this insulting to a set of decent characters. They couldnâ(TM)t take care of the baby properly for 16 years (in fact if not for maleficent she would have died in multiple occasions) and most of their interactions come from slapstick taken directly from the three stooges. Executed poorly might I add. Many critics have noted that the only thing that truly saves this film is Angelina Jolieâ(TM)s performance. But Iâ(TM)m not sure that I would go as far as claiming that. She proves to be a great actress in the role by getting the personality of the character and her impressive emotional beats. Especially in the scene where she finds out that Stephan has had a child, she responds with a solemn âOhâ? showing some slight disdain and tears from her eyes. But then thereâ(TM)s a couple of scenes that took me out of it a bit when she had to scream to guards or recite a spell. I guess she doesn't have the right voice for that, a different approach would have been better.

Maleficent was truly a disappointing film. It tries to retell and twist a fairy tale that originally didnâ(TM)t make much sense to begin with. And instead it turns it into something that makes even less sense that before. Itâ(TM)s filled to the brim with weak side characters who are either fully underdeveloped or not very interesting. Apart from maleficent, her crow companion and the pretty visuals thereâ(TM)s much there left to entertain. Keep yourself away from this one if youâ(TM)re looking for a fully developed storyline or any sort of logic.