Maleficent - Review

In this revision of the classic tale where a young princess falls into an eternal sleep, a fairy named Maleficent explores the valley of revenge and evil after her wings are cut off.


Spoilers below, so beware if you even care. 



All I really have to say is this was a terrible movie. They ruined Disney's best villain and stomped on the remains. It was like they brainstormed ideas of how to destroy Maleficent and then took a giant CGI shit on it.
I'm not trashing Angelina Jolie's portrayal of the icon because she wasn't that bad. She looked the part and played it fairly well. However, I can't say the same for everything else. Elle Fanning was the biggest casting goof of the whole movie, making the king crazy was dumb, and making the fairies ridiculously stupid was even worse.

To spoil everything here, making Maleficent a hero was the dumbest fucking thing I have ever seen. She is the only Disney villain who was truly, deeply evil. In this one she was a good fairy who went bad because she got her heart broken. It's so lame I could spit.
Not to mention her changing her pet crow into whatever she wanted. As a result, SHE NEVER TURNED INTO A DRAGON. That is like, the most famous thing Maleficent is recognized for. Plus, Maleficent's kiss awakening Aurora instead of Philip's? Fuck that.

I just can't. If you are a fan of Maleficent at all or of the Sleeping Beauty tale, do not go see Maleficent. You will be just as mad as I am right now.

New poster for Maleficent

Hopefully the movie is good enough to justify the pretty great posters so far.

New trailer for Maleficent

So... I'm a little confused. Is this a new story to tell how Maleficent started semi-good and then went bad or what? I had hopes for this because Maleficent is easily my favorite Disney villain and I think Angelina Jolie was perfect casting, but this just doesn't look that good. Elle Fanning as Princess Aurora is almost funny. It also seems they are trying to do another Snow White and the Huntsman treatment and make the princess more of a brave, warrior type instead of a classic damsel in distress.

Ugh. Either way we will find out soon. Maleficent is set for theaters on May 30, 2014. It stars Angelina Jolie, Elle Fanning, Sam Riley, Sharlto Copley, and Imelda Staunton.

First trailer for Maleficent

I think they could have brought up the bar in terms of how menacing she is, but this is just a teaser. Take it for what it is. I also don't quite understand Elle Fanning as Aurora. Not a great fit, imo.

Maleficent opens on May 30, 2014.

First poster for Maleficent

Maleficent is the newest Disney live-action adaptation from Sleeping Beauty. It stars Angelina Jolie in the title role and will tell the classic tale through the eyes of the villain. Maleficent will be followed by other live-action adaptations for Cinderella and Cruella de Vil. Robert Stromberg is making his directorial debut.

In addition to this poster, which looks pretty darn good, we will be getting the first trailer tomorrow. Also starring alongside Jolie are Sharlto Copley, Elle Fanning, Sam Riley, and Juno Temple.

Here is the synopsis:

"A beautiful, pure-hearted young woman, Maleficent has an idyllic life growing up in a peaceable forest kingdom, until one day when an invading army threatens the harmony of the land. Maleficent rises to be the land’s fiercest protector, but she ultimately suffers a ruthless betrayal—an act that begins to turn her pure heart to stone. Bent on revenge, Maleficent faces an epic battle with the invading king’s successor and, as a result, places a curse upon his newborn infant Aurora. As the child grows, Maleficent realizes that Aurora holds the key to peace in the kingdom—and perhaps to Maleficent’s true happiness as well."

First image of Maleficent

We have the first image of Angelina Jolie as Maleficent in the upcoming film set to be released in 2014. I don't see why they are teasing this already seeing that we still have almost 2 years until the release, but whatever. I think she looks pretty badass.