PLOT:
When Queen Aurora becomes engaged to Prince Phillip, her Godmother, Maleficent must deal with Phillip’s mother, Queen Ingrith who’s bent on destroying all faeries…especially Maleficent herself.
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Okay so I am pretty new to the new Maleficent series. I just recently watched the first film so I wouldn’t go into its follow up completely confused. Now, Sleeping Beauty was a favorite of mine when I was a kid so I’m not completely unfamiliar with the story. But honestly even if you have never seen the 1959 Disney animated film, it’s live action counterpart does a great job at filling you in. Just make sure you start with the first entry.
The one thing I’m surprised with is how much action was put into this film. The climactic final battle is epic and the effects are vivid and wonderful. For a PG rated film, I was surprised at the amount of scenes that kids may find a bit intense. This has definitely been, for lack of a better phrase, “guy’ed up.” Although the original had its battles, when most think of the Sleeping Beauty story they think of Princess Aurora. Relax guys, there’s plenty of “Lord of the Rings” style battles and action to keep you entertained. One scene showing weapons and ammunition being made looks modeled after Saruman walking through his armory as the orcs build weapons. And even all of that aside I very much enjoyed even the quieter parts.
I loved the casting choices, even if some seemed to not have much to do in their roles. Angelina Jolie owns the role and I can’t think of anyone better suited for it. Michelle Pfeiffer gives a wonderfully evil performance as the queen bent on destroying all of the faeries and other creatures. Her expressions throughout the film as others around her suffer are enough to give you chills. Aurora and Prince Phillip look spot on. Although, being Maleficent’s movie, they seem to not have all that much to do.
Another small complaint I have is the film’s score. It’s rarely done anymore that films get this whole theme that when you hear it you can’t help but think of that movie (i.e. Back to the Future, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Superman…to name a few), and this film is no exception. The music is fine enough but there was never any real memorable theme. And truthfully some of the music seemed a little out of place and unneeded at some points.
Overall, I enjoyed this movie. I may not have loved it, but I liked it very much. It is a great reimagining of a classic and regardless of any small misgivings, I have no doubt that this will be another Disney movie added to our collection once it comes out to own.
8/10
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