Maleficent is a fantasy film distributed by Walt Disney Studios featuring the antagonist of the same name in the classic Sleeping Beauty story. It chronicles the life of Maleficent from childhood up to the events in that story and opens up with Maleficent as a child in the Moors, a magical forest protected from the influence of humans. Even as a child Maleficent was different from other fairies as she was not only the largest and most powerful but viewed as a de facto protector of the Moors since she also knew everyone. And she’s full of life since her wings can carry her anywhere she wants to go including high above the clouds putting her in a class of her own. One day she meets a young boy who stole from the forest and she has to be the one to convince him to give it back, and the two orphans forge a bond that lasts many years despite his strong desire to one day become king as a way of being accepted. But he eventually stops coming and her increase in power over the years is noted by the current king who decides to launch an attack against the Moors but is beaten back by Maleficent and her forces while suffering a severe injury. So he makes a vow that whichever man is able to kill Maleficent he will marry to his daughter and become the next king. Now Maleficent’s old friend, Stefan, has a legitimate opportunity to become the king but this betrayal will prove more costly than he could ever imagine.

At this point Maleficent was a relatively well-developed character but the same couldn’t be said about any other characters nor was the kingdom coveted by Stefan appealing. So when Stefan would approach Maleficent about the king’s plan to have her killed it would be understandable that Maleficent would trust him and that he ultimately couldn’t kill her but it wasn’t clear what he hoped to gain in comparison to what he would’ve had with Maleficent in the Moors. Other than just the general understanding of the title there wasn’t anything shown that would make that position remain the most important thing to him at her expense. However it was designed to move the story forward because the taking of her wings begins the familiar story with Stefan becoming king and when other interesting characters would be introduced. And the twist put on the familiar story was rather impressive as Maleficent wasn’t one who was just “evil” but one who was betrayed and had her wings taken from her, and to get back at Stefan used her considerable powers to take it out on Aurora as a baby in a moment of calculated anger. Events unfold after this in an entertaining way as Maleficent and Diaval, a raven she transforms to anything she wants, keep watch of Aurora for their reasons while Stefan has other fairies watch over her while working on a plan against Maleficent. There are plenty of humorous moments with Maleficent and Diaval but it’s hit and miss with the other fairies at times, and the other characters become just distant memories when not shown on screen because there’s no substance to them or their motivations.

SUMMARY

Maleficent is an enjoyable fantasy film that adds enough interesting twists to a classic story and results in one of the more fascinating characters in fantasy due to the stellar performance of Angelina Jolie. The overall story is enjoyable and the visual effects are relatively impressive even during some intense action sequences but unfortunately the effects couldn’t create other developed characters since at times it felt they’re just there to fill in for some of the inevitable moments. However they’re given life when on the screen with Maleficent and that’s more than enough for me to recommend this if you enjoy fantasy films or have an inclination towards the Sleepy Beauty story.