Movie Review: Maleficent

Since the first time I heard about the project of the movie Maleficent, I had been looking forward to watching it. Sleeping Beauty has been my favorite Disney movie since I was a child; and Maleficent one of my all time favorite villains, right up there with Darth Vader. I had also believed that Angelina Jolie would be a wonderful actress to portray Maleficent. I was proven right.

I had huge expectations for this movie, so I knew I had the risk to be sorely disappointed. Yet, I was blown away. It went beyond everything I had hoped for. I loved this. It was amazing in every way. Even Elle Fanning who plays Aurora, was great, despite my worries. Neither her nor the actress portraying Aurora in Once Upon A Time are like I picture Aurora in my head, but both of them did a good job.

Source: Disney Wiki.

Starting the narrative when Maleficent was a young girl was a brilliant idea and brought a lot to the story and her personal development. Her friendship with future King Stefan and then his betrayal was horrible and explained a lot of how she got lost in anger and sadness. Seeing her reconsider her choices and want something better not just for her, but for people around her, including Diaval and Aurora, was very powerful.

I loved seeing the relationship between Maleficent and Aurora since she was a baby was one of the best parts of the movie. It was quite a feminist movie and it was positively refreshing. I was particularly sensitive to how Maleficent doesn’t like children and has to get used to Aurora and ends liking her. And the twist of the “true love kiss” was amazing and so powerful. I also had no idea about Maleficent becoming her complete self again at the end of the movie.

There were so many little things, some emotional, some funny, that brought added greatness to the story and the dynamics between the characters. The visuals, costumes and soundtrack were beautifully done. it is a movie that I will rewatch quite many times in the years to come and it wouldn’t surprise me if I end writing papers related to this.