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 a 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. Written by

Plot Synopsis:
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The film opens with the voice-over narrator (Janet McTeer) stating that you may have heard this story about 'Sleeping Beauty' before, but says you may remember it differently. As it begins, there were two rival kingdoms. The first was the human kingdom, ruled by a greedy and power-hungry king, while the second kingdom, the Moors, was peaceful and tranquil, home to a number of delicate and gentle creatures. Sitting in a tree is a young fairy girl - Maleficent (Isobelle Molloy). She is playing with dolls until she hears a noise. A branch on the tree has snapped, and she wraps her hands around it to magically fix it. She then spreads her large eagle-like wings and takes flight across the land, greeting all the other creatures she sees. She comes across the three pixies - Knotgrass (Imelda Staunton), Flittle (Lesley Manville), and Thistlewit (Juno Temple) - who tell Maleficent that the forest guards have caught a thief trying to steal a jewel. Maleficent flies to investigate.

The two large tree-like guards are holding back the thief as he hides. Maleficent tells him to come out, and is surprised to see it is a human boy, looking no different from her (you know, other than the wings and horns). His name is Stefan (Michael Higgins), and he is holding a jewel. Maleficent tells him to hand it back, and once he does, she tosses it into the river. She escorts him out of the Moors and learns that his parents are dead. He leaves, but returns to the Moors weeks later. From there, Maleficent and Stefan form a friendship, which later blossoms into a romance in their teenage years. On her 16th birthday, Stefan gives Maleficent "true love's kiss." However, this was not meant to last.

Many years later, an adult Maleficent (now played by Angelina Jolie) is a more powerful guardian of the Moors. From the distance, she spots King Henry (Kenneth Cranham) and his army charging toward the Moors. Maleficent leads her own army of the forest guardians against Henry's forces. She swoops down and takes down the soldiers. With a few flaps of her wings, she throws them off their feet. She even brings Henry down, but he pushes her away with his armor, as it is made of iron, and iron burns fairies. Henry's army retreats back to the kingdom. In his bed, Henry speaks to his men, including the adult Stefan (now played by Sharlto Copley), ordering them to kill Maleficent. The one who does so will be appointed as his successor to the throne.

Stefan goes back into the Moors at night to seek out Maleficent. She finds him, and they reconnect after spending so much time apart. He gives her a wine to drink, which is laced with a drug. When Maleficent is asleep, Stefan pulls out a knife to kill her, but he cannot bring himself to do it. Instead, he takes a chain and uses it to take off Maleficent's wings. He brings them back to Henry to prove that he slew Maleficent. When she awakens, she feels the pain on her back, and then wails when she realizes her wings were stolen. She later picks up a stick, which she transforms into her scepter, then walks furiously through the Moors until she sits near the ruins. At the same time, Stefan is crowned king and is married to Henry's daughter Leila (Hannah New). Maleficent screams and lets out a powerful blast of green light into the sky, which Stefan can see from his tower.

In the morning, Maleficent sees a man capture a raven with a net, hurting it mercilessly. She uses her magic to turn the raven into a man (Sam Riley). The first man runs away, thinking he just captured a demon. Maleficent comes before the man-raven, who is at first unhappy with having his form changed, until he realizes that Maleficent saved him. He introduces himself as Diaval and agrees to be Maleficent's wings (he will spy on Stefan for her). Maleficent, devastated by Stefan's betrayal to seize the throne, declares herself Queen of the Moors, forming a dark oppressive kingdom with Diaval as her one companion.

One day, the handmaidens in the kingdom chatter about the birth of a baby girl. Diaval overhears in his raven form and reports back to Maleficent to tell her that Stefan and Leila have welcomed a baby girl. They hold a christening for the little Princess Aurora. The whole kingdom turns out for the celebration, even the pixies. They come to bestow their gifts upon the baby. Knotgrass gives her the gift of beauty. Flittle grants her the gift of happiness. Before Thistlewit can grant Aurora her gift, a great wind blows through the hall. Everybody is stunned when Maleficent (now donning her trademark crown and black robes) comes strolling in, grinning sinisterly. She admits to being surprised at not receiving an invitation, though she claims not to be offended. She too brings a gift. She faces the whole kingdom and announces that while the princess will indeed grow in grace and beauty, she will be cursed. When the sun sets on her 16th birthday, she will prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and fall into an eternal sleep. However, Maleficent says the curse can be broken by true love's kiss, and no power on earth can undo this. She leaves and sets up a bunch of thorned trees surrounding the Moors to keep Stefan's men out.

King Stefan orders all his men to find every spinning wheel in the kingdom and have them taken apart and burned. He also orders the pixies to take Aurora away so they may hide her in a cottage in the woods. The pixies take human-like forms to blend in. Maleficent and Diaval still find them in the cottage, however. Maleficent creeps up by the window where the baby is and tries to frighten it, but the baby merely giggles. Maleficent dryly tells Aurora she hates her and calls her "Beastie".

Over time, Maleficent and Diaval keep their watch over Aurora as she grows. Maleficent also enjoys messing around with the pixies as they try (or not) to take care of Aurora. While the baby cries at night, Diaval brings her a flower with water for her to drink, while the pixies just sleep. The child (later played by Vivienne Jolie-Pitt) chases after a butterfly and nearly wanders over a cliff, but Maleficent uses her magic to have some branches catch her.

Growing more paranoid, Stefan orders his men to storm the Moors and kill Maleficent. They launch fireballs at the thorned trees, but Maleficent only makes them grow taller. Angered at the failure of his men, Stefan demands to see the iron makers.

Years later, Aurora (now played by Elle Fanning) grows into a beautiful young lady, nearing her 16th birthday. She happens upon the Moors one evening, and Maleficent puts her to sleep, while Stefan's men continue their hunt for Maleficent. They think they see her when they see Aurora walking around, though they dismiss her as a peasant girl. Maleficent turns Diaval into a wolf, who scares the men away. They take Aurora deeper into the Moors. When she awakens, she is enchanted by all the beauty and the creatures she sees. She sees Maleficent and thinks she is her fairy godmother, having recognized her and Diaval since childhood. Diaval takes his human form and greets the princess. Maleficent puts her to sleep again and lets her sleep in her cottage. Realizing she cares for the girl, she tries to revoke the curse, but because she made it so that no power on earth can undo it, she fails. Diaval, knowing that Maleficent has changed her feelings towards Aurora, says that true love's kiss can still break the spell, but Maleficent says she cursed her that way because there is no such thing.

Stefan sits in his chamber staring at Maleficent's wings as they are trapped in a glass cabinet. One of his men comes to tell him that the queen is dying and may not make it through the night. Stefan only concerns himself with Maleficent's impending arrival.

Maleficent sits with Aurora in the morning, telling her that there is an evil in the world that she may not be able to protect her from. Still, the princess is happy where she is and plans to tell the pixies (whom she believes are her aunts) that she wishes to stay in the Moors. While practicing what she'll say in the woods, she comes across the handsome Prince Phillip (Brenton Thwaites). He sees her and is mesmerized by her beauty, but their interaction is brief. Aurora returns to the pixies, who are trying to make her a cake for her birthday. She announces that she wants to stay in the Moors, to their shock. Knotgrass lets it slip that Aurora's father is expecting to see her the day after her birthday, despite previously telling the girl that her parents died. They also let slip about Maleficent's part in the curse. Aurora returns to Maleficent and asks if this is true. She admits that she is the dreaded fairy that Aurora was once told about. Now frightened by her, Aurora flees and returns to the kingdom.

Aurora is taken to Stefan, as he is planning his strategy for fighting Maleficent. She greets her father with a hug, and although he is relieved to see her fine, he orders that she be locked in her room for protection.

On the day of Aurora's birthday, the princess grows restless and has a discomfort on her finger. She then hears a voice calling her name. She goes through the walls after it is opened by a handmaiden, and then finds herself in the dungeon where the destroyed spinning wheels are. Back in the Moors, Maleficent realizes what day it is and then finds Phillip as he rides through the woods. She puts him to sleep and turns Diaval into a horse so they and Phillip with his horse can ride to the kingdom as the sun begins to set. As they race to the castle, Aurora notices the cursed spinning wheel forming. She walks to it and pricks her finger on the spindle, drawing some blood. Her eyes shut and she collapses to the floor. Maleficent senses that she is too late.

The handmaiden finds Aurora and brings her to her room where she rests. Stefan is both angered and distressed over this, blaming the pixies for their failure to protect Aurora. He swats Flittle away and leaves. Meanwhile, Maleficent and Diaval sneak into the kingdom with the still unconscious Phillip to break the spell. They drop Phillip off outside Aurora's room, and the pixies hear his body hit the floor. He wakes up and is brought in after introducing himself as the prince. The pixies push him to Aurora's bedside so he can give her true love's kiss. Although he is attracted to Aurora, his kiss is not enough to wake her up. Maleficent and Diaval watch this sadly, and Phillip leaves. Maleficent enters Aurora's room and stands by her bed, apologizing to her for what she's done, and ensures that no harm will come to her as she sleeps. She kisses the girl's forehead and turns to leave, when Aurora's eyes open. "Fairy Godmother?" she says. "Beastie", Maleficent responds. Aurora decides that she still wants to stay in the Moors, and Maleficent begins to guide her out.

One of the guards goes to tell Stefan that Maleficent has been spotted. They all ambush her in the hall by dropping an iron net on her. The soldiers run and attack her, until she transforms Diaval into a large dragon. Diaval breathes fire at the guards while Maleficent tells Aurora to run. Diaval pulls the net off Maleficent, but the guards surround her with their shields. Stefan, entirely dressed in his armor, comes to face his former love for the last time.

Meanwhile, Aurora comes by the room with Maleficent's wings, which start to flap. She pushes the cabinet over and breaks it, setting them free. Before Stefan can strike a fatal blow to Maleficent, the wings reach her back and reattach themselves to her. She begins to fly away until Stefan throws a chain at her leg and holds on. She flies out the window, pulling Stefan with her. They fall onto a tower, and Maleficent throws Stefan against the wall, declaring "It's over." Not satisfied, Stefan jumps on Maleficent, throwing them both off the tower. She takes flight again, dropping Stefan in the process. He falls to his death, and Maleficent stands by his body one last time.

A while later, Maleficent has found peace in her heart and undoes the dark magic in the Moors, restoring it to its former beauty. Aurora is crowned queen of both the human kingdom and the Moors, with Phillip coming to the Moors to join the other creatures in celebration. The narrator finishes the story by revealing that she is Aurora, as they once called her "Sleeping Beauty". She adds that in the end, it took one who was both a hero and a villain to make things right. And her name was Maleficent.

The film ends with Maleficent and Diaval flying high over the Moors and through the clouds.

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foxfall from New Zealand
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IGNORE THE TRAILER: GO SEE IT!

I saw this movie tonight with a friend and it was spectacular. Going in, I was excited as a life-long Disney fan but also expecting a somewhat cheesy good-vs-evil type of movie based on what I had seen in the trailer. I couldn't have been more wrong! Angelina Jolie delivers an amazing performance and makes a well-known, previously rather one- dimensional Disney villain relate-able and more sympathetic, while also managing to look like a convincing, gorgeous, magical creature.

The CGI is a tad heavy and a little freaky at times (such as the three coloured pixies/Aunts) but was used, in combination with some amazing sets, to create a fantastic world and creatures which were reminiscent of the beautiful and imaginative work in movies such as "Hellboy 2" and "Pan's Labyrinth". The effort by the art team here really helps to draw you into Maleficent's world at the beginning of the movie and makes you wish you were a kid growing up with this movie as fodder for your imagination.

Although Maleficent's character has been humanised in this re-telling, the story really emphasises that she isn't human at all, and explores the ins and outs of her life and how she relates to the humans she encounters.

The plot for this movie really fits into the current trend of exploring the anti-hero (Breaking Bad, Hannibal...) and shows that Disney is trying to break with its past depiction of characters being black and white, good or evil, etc.

I feel like I am gushing over this film, but as a Disney classic lover I have been truly impressed by what is sure to be a new favourite with kids and adults equally. I do expect some controversy over parts of the film but I won't discuss those here.

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amyluna from United States
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This film is a TRUE fairy tale. It's dark. It's raw. And it's written from the dark, raw experience of women.

Maleficent is about what happens when your Prince turns into a Frog. It's the personal, inner journey to recover from a physical trauma and emotional betrayal by those who are closest to us and who we trust the most. It's about how to survive that type of horrific evil without becoming evil yourself. It's message is that profound.

The critics complaining about this film want "fairy tales" to stay in the same "one-love-fits-all" mode where people are either good or evil and that all one needs is to find "romantic" love and marry a "good" Prince or Princess, and you will live "happily ever after," safe from any pain or sorrow. But real life is a lot messier than that.

It's actually evidence of how rare it is to see women's unfiltered subjective emotional landscape portrayed on film that it seems many of the critics cannot even wrap their brains around it!

No matter. This film is so sensually visually stunning and viscerally emotionally cathartic that sheer word of mouth enthusiasm is going to make this a blockbuster, no matter what the critics say.

And it's equally rare to see a protagonist whose inner landscape is more complex than simply extracting revenge, destroying their enemies and...roll credits. People are more complicated than THAT fairy tale we are sold in every other "action" and "adventure" film that only serves to reinforce the psychopathic values of revenge and bravado.

Sometimes a film is so ahead of its time that the critics are behind and so philosophically deep that it's message is incomprehensible to the more superficial among us. This is one such film.

Woolverton and Jolie have crafted a masterpiece.

Don't miss it.

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Pradeep Christopher from India
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Every true fan of the original Sleeping Beauty (1959) was skeptical about this and how much it had to deviate from the actual movie, and as more of the movie was revealed, it was only proving to be another female empowerment, victimized villain kind of a movie. But I'm glad I was wrong, for I'm sure only by watching the whole movie can we truly appreciate and understand the very convincing back story and development the character was subject to. Of course with very liberal changes to the original plot, the key elements that you'd look for are intact. Need I mention the perfect casting of Angelina Jolie, Maleficent truly comes to life in full form by Angelina's stunning skills and presence. A twist that's not cliché, sentiments that are deep, humor that's ever so natural and action that always keeps you at the edge of your seat! Maleficent in this movie is not exactly as we know of her from the few minutes we got to see her in the original movie, but let me tell you she's every bit deliciously evil. It was amusing to see Angelina play a role that requires a lot of nuances to pull of this character with a lot of depth as opposed to the one-dimensional character from the movie. Never letting off the grip, she carried the movie on her shoulders. Nothing to take away from the beauty of the rest of the movie which takes breath with excellent direction and visual effects that will truly transport you to another world, and the amazing work by all the 'supporting' actors. Yes, the other characters weren't as fleshed out as Maleficent, but I see that as good thing, given the title and theme. A spectacular balance. I'd also like to bring light on the enchanting score, thanks to James Newton Howard, this maestro is underrated.

A comprehensive movie, there's a little something for audiences of all ages, truly a masterpiece.

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StrongRex from United States
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I was genuinely excited to hear that Disney was going to make a film about Maleficent, my favorite Disney villain of all time. I was interested in knowing the 'why' behind her actions in Sleeping Beauty, since we never really got to see that. I will say that the cinematography is amazing. I will also say that while Angelina Jolie was not my first choice, she had the look, her costume was spot-on, and there are moments where you can see where she is at least trying to play this role correctly (and really, who could replace Eleanor Audley?). But one thing I've noticed over the past 10-15 years is that animation and design seem to be their main focus, rather than story or character development. In the movie, Maleficent's back story was incredibly rushed. So much for going into depth on why Maleficent is the way she is.

This movie does not explain why Maleficent is the way she is. Disney is showing us a completely different character while giving her the same name as Disney's most iconic villain. Now they're trying to say that Maleficent is a misunderstood character who becomes evil. But that never happens. She becomes angry and bitter, but not evil. Maleficent in this movie is not even a misunderstood, sympathetic character. She is a total victim who never becomes evil at all.

Oh, she does do one evil thing; she does still curse King Stefan's baby out of revenge. And she has second thoughts about it two seconds afterward. See? Not evil at all. And while I'm at it, I should mention my distaste for the way she cursed Aurora: Disney completely lowered the stakes by having Maleficent utter the words "sleep-like death" and be the one to offer the cure of True Love's kiss. No! It's MERRYWEATHER that counters the DEATH curse in order to save Aurora's life! Oh, Maleficent may say later that she doesn't believe True Love exists, but that's a matter of opinion isn't it? Again, LOWERS THE STAKES.

And what was Linda Woolverton thinking when she took King Stefan and the three fairies completely out of character and gives them a complete 180 in order to make Maleficent look good? If you're going to show us the point of view of a famous villain, it's okay to give them layers and gray areas in order to make them more interesting and multi- dimensional, even to show they weren't always evil. But NOT to say they were never evil at all; that just completely defeats the point of the character! Same with the good guys; they may have their own flaws, show that they have their own prejudices, or that everything they did wasn't perfect. But NOT to say "the good guys were really EVIL OR STUPID!"

The fairies, Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather (I refuse to call them by their new names) are NOTHING like they were in Sleeping Beauty, and this is a big deal. In Sleeping Beauty, say what you will about their flaws but their ultimate motivation was keeping Aurora SAFE. At least they tried, even if they failed! Maleficent (2014) portrays them as nothing more than stupid buffoons who only care about saving their own skins. Aurora was just a means to an end for them; they have no relationship with her like they do in the original. The movie also took away their own personalities, so they are no different from each other. I can't even keep track of which fairy has which name! Watching them on screen with everything they say or do was as cringe worthy as I expected it to be.

King Stefan has to be one of worst written villains I have seen in a while. He has no real motivation for what he does; we see him as having nothing in the beginning, and then the movie glosses over his relationship with Maleficent in order to "get to the good part" where he steals her wings in order to be king. After that, he wages war on Maleficent for cursing his daughter, and yet he only looks at Aurora as afterthought property. Why is he even after Maleficent then? What else has she done to him other than cursing his daughter?

Elle Fanning as Aurora was very impressive. I do think she gave the character more of a personality that was lacking in the original, and she stole the film in every scene she was in. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to save the movie, nor were Maleficent's interactions with Diaval, as enjoyable as they were.

And of course, Maleficent does not turn into a dragon in this movie. I have to ask; why, Disney? You knew how loved of a villain Maleficent is, and her being a dragon is one of the many reasons why. Also, we live in an age where technology and special effects are abundant; you didn't use the opportunity to see how your most iconic villain looks as a dragon when done with live-action CGI? Why would you waste a perfectly good opportunity like that? Besides the fact that Maleficent is not evil in this film, she also is very wimpy and pathetic. She can't do ANYTHING. When we see her fight an army at the beginning, all she does is fly around and slap a few soldiers with her wings. The tree monsters did most of her fighting for her. In Sleeping Beauty, she could transport herself to another place in a matter of seconds, she could shoot lightning from her staff, and she could transform into another form other than her own. She didn't do any of that in this movie.

Just like with Alice in Wonderland, Disney wasted a perfectly good opportunity to effectively adapt their animated work to the live-action screen. Maleficent may not be the absolute worst movie I've seen, but it's definitely in my bottom list now.

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Arjun Subbiah from USA
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With the release of movie adaptations of classics like Snow White and Jack and the beanstalk, both of which I was highly entertained and thought it was simply amazing this movie was a sad let down.

Pros: Visually stunning. Angelina Jolie's performance was spot on with the most evil of classical villains we always knew.

Cons: The most beautiful princess Aurora looks like the girl next door. Why does Hollywood try to do that is beyond me. Mary Jane Watson (Spidermans love interest) is supposed to be a beautiful actress and a model. But again the movie portrays a girl next door look in ultimate Spiderman. Elle Fannig's acting was not strong and in the end not memorable in the least. It felt like she was there for the sake of being there.

Sharlto Copley acting left a lot to be desired. Was he supposed to portray a loving farther and husband driven mad or a power hungry king driven insane by his overwhelming need to destroy the one creature that he could not bring himself to kill when he had the chance? If he was supposed to potray caring scenes it never really showed. ______________ ______________

The King is portrayed as an evil man who begged for his daughters life and could have easily returned maleficent's wings but instead chose not to for reasons which are beyond anyones understanding. This is the start of where the movie just becomes a drag.

Maleficent curses the child to die in the original storyline and this is the most important part in the story because of which the 3rd fairy who did not bestow a gift alters the curse by making them sleep instead of death. This part is totally lost in the movie.

Watching a bunch of incompetent fairies nearly almost kill a child before the curse can take effect is as much a mystery as why maleficent would watch over the child and save it. Why the king would entrust his child to faeries whom he dislikes is also as much a mystery as why he would not send a nurse maid to care for his only child.

The worst part of the movie is being subjected to watch the Princess grow to 16 years old and marvel at the beautiful fairies (it feels like pointless fillers). Also when the princess realizes whats going on one day before her birthday, the 3 incompetent fairies again forget to mention about what happened to Maleficents wings. The good fairies were not incompetent, just funny in the original story and smart enough to hide away the princess for 16 years. Why they made them look so incompetent and negligent is beyond me.

Once you get over the visuals you will realize its nothing more than a chick flick geared at young children (visuals) and adults who are romantically inclined.

The most evil Disney villain for over 50 years reduced to nothing more than a scorned women out to seek revenge for the betrayal. A loving father reduced to nothing more than a mad evil greed driven man who plunges himself into insanity with a overwhelming urge to kill maleficent despite his daughter being returned safe and well.

Many times during the movie I found myself thinking about what work I have the next day or what needs to be done. This is something I have never experienced when sitting and watching a movie on big screen completely immersed in the plot.

This is a far cry from Snow White and the Huntsman which was really good barring Kristen Stewart's emo acting (emotionless) drawn from twilight.

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phd_travel from United States
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Maleficent is magnificent. The story is sophisticated enough to delight adult audiences with a brilliant take on the beloved tale with a delightful twist including the meaning of true love. The characters are sympathetic and there is enough excitement.

The art direction and cinematography are beautiful. The fairy land scenes resemble a pre Raphaelite painting. The castle was a bit generic CGI. The right blend of human faces with CGI so it didn't look too animated. The director Stromberg who did Oz the Great and Powerful did an even better job here.

Angelina Jolie's expressive face is the perfect showcase for the character - it is the role of her lifetime. Like the way they did her cheekbones to make it like the Disney cartoon. Sam Riley as her sidekick morphs into many fairy tale creatures crow, dragon horse. The creatures are well done not awkward in movement and not overwhelming. Elle Fanning is sweet and picture perfect for the role of Aurora and Brenton Thwaites plays her prince. The fairies including Juno Temple and Imelda Staunton are cute too.

Liked this more than the Snow White movies 'Mirror Mirror' and 'Snow White and the Hunstman'. The first was fun but a bit silly and the second was too grim. Maleficent is the perfect blend of excitement and fairy tale. Most enjoyable film of the year.

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meiju-myllari from Finland
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Maleficent is the very first movie, in my long list of movies that I have seen, that I wanted to walk out of.

Lets start with the positives. Angelina Jolie was incredible. She was beautiful, she was strong, and she executed Maleficent beautifully. Her relationship with Aurora was refreshing and.... Nice. The magical world was something that has been seen on movies like bridge to terabithia, but it was still beautiful and engaging.

But all of this does not save the movie. I expected to walk in and see a movie similar to wicked, where we get a better understanding of the bad guy. Yes, us understanding the bad guy does not excuse what they have done, but we can see where they come from. In the musical Wicked (and even in the movie great and powerful Oz) we have sympathy for the character we previously viewed as the bad guy. We could see where she was coming from. In those adaptations nobody truly ended up becoming "the bad guy". Most were victims of circumstances. In Maleficent? It was ferngully/Avatar all over again. Magical people, good! Man, BAAAAAAD! Instead of giving depth to all the characters that previously were left rather flat and on the background on the original sleeping beauty, suddenly the king has been reduced to this one dimensional villain that created the evil Maleficent and later on becomes obsessed with killing her! He was given NO aspects that would make us have even the tiniest bit of sympathy, not the smallest bit of understanding. He was just a vile man that broke Maleficents heart, mutilated her, and cared only for power. Even when he tried to protect his daughter, it was made appear more like he was protecting his property rather than a person he loved. Yes, he graveled for her for a bit, begging Maleficent not to curse her, but that was it. The movie left all traces of the good of the humanity from it. OK, it had some of the good of humanity, but the only human that was portrayed as good was Aurora.

The movie tried to portray the three fairies as the comic relief, but ended up just portraying them as idiots, incompetent selfish creatures. The fairies in the original Disney movie were clumsy and unused to taking care of a child, but they were like that because for the first time in their lives they could not rely on their magic to achieve things in life. If were as modern people were thrown in to the middle of the woods and had to do everything by hand, then yes, we would be as lost as they were. But they were given 16 years to evolve, to learn and to grow. But no. The fairies were not given even the smallest of story arc in this movie. They were creatures that switched sides when ever it benefited the movie.

I mentioned before that I liked the relationship that Maleficent and Aurora had in the movie, but even that was shattered later on in the movie. The solution to the problem was not a surprise at all. It was taken straight out of Frozen. It was refreshing and incredible when Frozen did it, because it was the first time Disney did not use the age old solution of a man being the one delivering the kiss of "true love", but when the same solution, the same realization is done in a movie that came out within year of each other? It is boring and in no way exiting, it is in no way entertaining. We have learned NOTHING new. Is this Disney's new approach in relationship? Love between man and a woman is obsolete, but the love between girl (family kind of love, not lesbian, kids apparently can't handle that, and also, family excludes male family members at this moment as well, only women can feel true love!)is the strongest of all the loves in this world.

In the end, the movie basically told the audience "yeah, the movie/story that has been told for decades is actually a propaganda, and I should know, because I am Queen Aurora, and I was there all along!" The original Sleeping Beauty was rather black and white, good VS.. Evil. When I walked in to the theatre I expected the lines to be blurred, to be thought "all stories have two sides, not all of our actions are blatantly good OR evil" but instead the writers and directors and what nots decided to make the line between good and evil even more visible. The good creatures are good no matter what they do, and the bad humans are bad and rotten all the way.

In conclusion: The movie might have given some depth to a villain that previously had been left as a rather one dimensional character, but in exchange they created a new one dimensional villain, just switching the genders around. The worlds was beautiful and the lead actress was amazing, but even she could not save this rehash of a movie in the end.

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alwynhuk from United Kingdom
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I have waited a long time for this film and it did not disappoint!

The film is very entertaining with stunning visuals and impressive action scenes. This is definitely Angelina's film and she is incredible as Maleficent.

Supporting cast are also impressive and Elle was perfect casting for Aurora. The 3d was also good and really did enhance many scenes. The score by James Newton Howard really blew me away and adds magic to the film.

My screening was all made up of adults which surprised me. The trailers for the film really give the film a dark tone, however the actual film has many light Disney moments.

I highly recommend this film and the 3d is worth paying a bit extra!

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jacieh from United States
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If you like fairy tales and believe in love then you'll hate this film. It's beautifully filmed and well acted by Angelina Jolie, but the story is so over the top with the male hatred it becomes ludicrous.

By the end of the film I just started laughing at how insane it was. Made me think the writer just had to be a woman and she must have suffered the worst break up in history, or else she just really hated men.

I was looking forward to seeing this film ever since it was teased in theaters. Now I wish I had my money back.

Some may say this film is like Frozen. That's only if we discovered Christoff was actually in league with the evil Prince and Olaf was their spy.

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Ethan Sivek (archangelvojnik) from Florida, USA
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Let me start by saying that Maleficent has been a personal favorite of mine when it comes to Disney villains. Throughout her many interpretations, she has simply been Evil (yes, with a capital E). So forgive me if this review is a bit of a rant.

In this adaptation, she is reinterpreted as a good fairy (because she's apparently not a human sorceress anymore?) that simply has a hissyfit. She is certainly not evil - just angry for a little while. She even ends up becoming a Godmother??

Even King Stephen's character is butchered. Why does he go insane over her? If he were really the bad guy, why wouldn't he have killed Maleficent when he had the chance? What possible reason does he have for being indifferent about the welfare of his daughter?

Speaking of Aurora, it's worth mentioning that she is relatively alright, but still not too close to her original character. A petty aesthetic thing about her is that her hair and eyebrows are not the same color, which is really distracting.

Additionally, they rehash the concept from Frozen, which is that 'True Love' doesn't have to be from some man. If this trend continues from Disney, all we'll see is sisterly/Godmotherly/family love movies where Romance is thrown out the window because it apparently doesn't end with a "happily ever after" anymore.

Overall, this film was simply horrible if you respected Maleficent as a villain. If you did like Maleficent as she was, I don't recommend seeing this movie. Even if you like the idea of there being no such thing as Evil, I urge you not to see this movie. Don't support the people who made it.

On the second day of the Disney D23 Expo at the Anaheim Convention Center, Saturday, 10 August 2013, Angelina Jolie admitted that she scared little kids while in costume on the set of Maleficent, with one kid actually saying, "Mommy, please get the mean witch to stop talking to me." She adds that her daughter, Vivienne Jolie-Pitt, played young Aurora, and was the only kid who wasn't scared of her.
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Angelina Jolie worked very closely with the costume and make-up designers to develop Maleficent's menacing look. Disney executives objected, hoping to take advantage of Jolie's beauty in marketing the film, but the actress insisted that the character maintain the scarier look of the animated incarnation from Sleeping Beauty (1959).
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Angelina Jolie herself picked Lana Del Rey to sing Sleeping Beauty (1959)'s "Once Upon a Dream" for the end credits.
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Angelina Jolie did the stunts herself using harnesses for her flight and battle scenes.
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The board game played by the three fairies is an actual game called nine-men's morris, which dates from ancient times and was very popular in medieval England.
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Vivienne Jolie-Pitt, who portrays Princess Aurora as a young girl, is the daughter of Angelina Jolie (who plays Maleficent in the movie) and Brad Pitt.
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Angelina Jolie based her character's speech and accent in homage of the original Sleeping Beauty (1959)'s Maleficent voice actor Eleanor Audley. Her laughter in the film was also based on the best variation she tried in front of her children and chosen by them.
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Angelina Jolie was definitely interested to be in the movie to begin with. She repeatedly stated it was because 1.) she grew up on Disney movies as a child, especially Sleeping Beauty (1959); she was quite fond of the character Maleficent: "Since I was a little girl, Maleficent was always my favorite," Jolie said. "I was terrified of her, but I was also drawn to her. I wanted to know more about her. She had this elegance and grace, yet she was wonderfully, deliciously cruel," 2.) she wanted to do a movie in which her children can go see her in, as well as the fact that her children really also wanted her to be in the movie, 3.) the beauty, warmth, complexity, and strong intelligence of the script, and 4.) she was very impressed with Maleficent's characterization for this film. In fact, Jolie also served as an executive producer on the film.
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All the actors and actresses in Maleficent were partly chosen to be in the movie based on their uncanny resemblances and/or likeness to their respective character counterparts in Disney's Sleeping Beauty (1959).
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Angelina Jolie admitted that she still has a pair of horns at home.
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The film was released on May 30, 2014, the day of the 55th anniversary of Walt Disney's classic Sleeping Beauty (1959).
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In order to give the the fairies a proper feeling of featherweight and agility, the three actresses who performs the fairies, Lesley Manville, Imelda Staunton and Juno Temple, spent three weeks filming motion capture, while being guided by artists of Cirque du Soleil. Lesley Manville called this experience "just fantastic".
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Angelina Jolie first live action film role since The Tourist (2010), four years earlier.
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Maleficent's crow companion is named Diaval (pronounced similarly to 'devil') and in the Disney cartoon version of Sleeping Beauty (1959), Maleficent's crow companion is named Diablo which means the same. In Irish lore crows are associated with the winged battle goddesses the Morrigan (they sound similar, as well, to Maleficent). In most all other lore crows are associated with death, the dead, and trickery. Thus, they can be "devilish" birds.
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For Maleficent's horns, Angelina Jolie wore several headpieces with different weights. One headpiece was so heavy that Angelina would have neck pains right after and therefore was not appropriate for some of her scenes such as her flight scene, battle scene, and horse-riding scene.
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This film had the largest budget ever for a first-time director, Robert Stromberg, surpassing another Disney film, TRON: Legacy (2010).
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Diaval's make-up (in human form) consisted of "crow's feet" on his face and body; to reflect his true, avian nature.
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Maleficent's magic changes colour. When she is good, her magic is gold and when she is evil, her magic is green.
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Peter Capaldi was cast as Maleficent's uncle but his role was cut from the final version.
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Angelina Jolie also said that "having a director (Robert Stromberg) coming from the world of production design really helped pull me into the fairy tale world. The film is beautiful but also has a sexy, dark edge because the story is coming from the point of view of a villain."
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In June 2015 it was announced there will be a sequel to this film
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Emma Thompson and Judi Dench were considered for the roles of the fairies.
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Maleficent's prosthetics and make-up were inspired by singer Lady Gaga, particularly on her "Born This Way" album cover.
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Jude Law was considered to play King Stefan before Sharlto Copley was cast.
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Maleficent is a fairy but notably resembles more of a harpy, the hybrid, winged creature from the Greek and Roman mythologies with the parts of a woman and a bird.
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Directorial debut of Robert Stromberg after serving as a visual effects supervisor on numerous films, including Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003), and more significantly, as a production designer of Avatar (2009), Alice in Wonderland (2010), and Oz the Great and Powerful (2013); the first two films earned him consecutive Academy Awards for Best Production Design.
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Filmmaker Paul Dini was called in to re-draft the script alongside Linda Woolverton. He is one of the most influential and greatest figures of animation in the art form's history, due to his highly acclaimed work on Batman: The Animated Series (1992), Superman (1996), Animaniacs (1993), Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993), Tiny Toon Adventures (1990), Batman Beyond (1999), and Justice League (2001), which attracted the attention of the filmmakers. Dini, however, won't be credited for his contributions.
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On May 12, 2009, it was revealed that Brad Bird was developing a live-action motion picture based on Walt Disney's Sleeping Beauty (1959), retold from the point of view of Maleficent with Angelina Jolie starring as Maleficent. In January 2010, it was rumored that Tim Burton was to direct the film. Reports surfaced online in May 2011 stating that Burton had left the project to focus on his other upcoming projects; Disney began to look for a replacement director, with David Yates being cited as a potential candidate due to his experience with the fantasy genre, having directed the final four Harry Potter films. On January 6, 2012, Disney announced that Robert Stromberg would direct the film.
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Richard D. Zanuck was offered to produce the film prior to his sudden death in 2012.
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Miranda Richardson was cast as Queen Ulla, but her role ended up being cut.
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Two of the respective actresses playing Young Maleficent and Young Princess Aurora, Isobelle Molloy and Eleanor Worthington-Cox, both played the title role in the London production of "Matilda: the Musical".
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Two-time Academy Award-nominated and two-time Golden Globe-winning producer Don Hahn was chosen to work on this film due to his work on Beauty and the Beast (1991), The Lion King (1994), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001), The Little Matchgirl (2006), and Waking Sleeping Beauty (2009), as well as being a tremendous admirer and enthusiast of the Disney legacy himself. He was also one of the most influential and important people to work at Walt Disney Animation Studios and to come from the Disney Renaissance. His passion and love for Disney earned him the position to executive produce Maleficent, a tribute to Sleeping Beauty (1959). This is also the first time that he worked on a mainstream live action feature film since the poorly received The Haunted Mansion (2003).
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Elle Fanning previously appeared opposite Angelina Jolie's husband Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008).
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The first collaboration film project with Don Hahn and Linda Woolverton since The Lion King (1994). In fact, Woolverton was chosen to co-write the script not just because of her work on Alice in Wonderland (2010), but also for her work on Disney animated classics Beauty and the Beast (1991) and The Lion King, where Hahn and Woolverton got along very well on both of the productions.
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Patrick Stewart was considered for a role.
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Although meant to be slightly older, Brenton Thwaites is actually 9 years older than his co-star Elle Fanning.
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India Eisley was originally cast as the 'young Maleficent' but had to drop out and was replaced by Isobelle Molloy.
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Logan Marshall-Green, George Blagden, Gael García Bernal, and Jim Sturgess were considered for the role that eventually went to Sam Riley.
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Kristen Stewart was considered for the role of Aurora.
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Elle Fanning first appears at the exact midpoint of the film's 88 minute runtime (excluding the credits).
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According to The Los Angeles Times, Guillermo del Toro was said that he was considered to direct.
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Pax Jolie-Pitt, Zahara Jolie-Pitt: Angelina Jolie's children appear briefly, cowering in fear of Maleficent during the christening scene.
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As a co-producer, Angelina Jolie insisted that the dialogue in Aurora's christening sequence has to be written word-by-word and based exactly from the original animated film Sleeping Beauty (1959) because she feels that it was the main core and setup of the entire film. But the new story does differ from the original scene because Maleficent originally cursed Aurora with death after pricking her finger. Then, the final fairy uses her gift to change the spell from death to slumber. There's also a blink-and-miss cameo (one second shot) of Jolie's two children, Pax Jolie-Pitt and Zahara Jolie-Pitt in that sequence as well.
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In this movie the roles of two of the good fairies are switched Thistlewit (Juno Temple) wears green like Fauna but is really the Merryweather equivalent and she is the one who gets interrupted by Maleficent. Flittle (Lesley Manville) wears blue like Merryweather but is really the Fauna equivalent and she blesses Aurora with the gift of eternal happiness. Knotgrass (Imelda Staunton) wears red and is the Flora equivalent and she blesses Aurora with the gift of eternal beauty.
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dark fantasy|king|kingdom|curse|fairy|spindle|true love|kiss|sleeping beauty|betrayal|needle|castle|scenic beauty|first kiss|first love|evil spell|fairy creature|fairy wings|female protagonist|villainess|fire breathing dragon|fairy godmother|mad king|literary adaptation|fairy tale|based on fairy tale|retelling|army|gift|wings|magical power|electric shock|shield|chain net|tear on cheek|birthday cake|face slap|fawn|playing in autumn leaves|rolling down a hill|falling off a cliff|back hand slap|cottage|monarch butterfly|caught in a net|coronation|wolf|crow|mutilation|assassin|knight on horseback|kinight in armor|fish breaching|necklace|finger ring|tree growing on a cliff|female lead|3 dimensional|magical creature|magic|metamorphosis|villain turns good|prince charming|kiss reveals absence of love|clumsiness|16 year old|casting spell|fairy tale land|revenge motive|one word title|witchcraft|14th century|tree creature|walking tree|shape shifter|border crossing|uninvited guest|christening|flying|horns|mud fight|battlefield|loss of wings|dragon|raven|father daughter relationship|fall to death|fall from height|child in peril|little girl|teenage girl|teenage love|adaptation|character name in title|title spoken by character|dagger|scarecrow|evil witch|witch|

AKAs Titles:


Certifications:
Argentina:13 / Australia:M / Australia:PG (appeal) (2015) / Brazil:10 / Canada:PG / Canada:G (Quebec) / Chile:TE / France:U / Germany:12 / Germany:6 (cut) / Hong Kong:IIA / Hungary:12 / Iceland:10 / Iceland:12 (DVD rating) / India:U / Ireland:PG / Italy:T / Japan:G / Mexico:A / Netherlands:12 / New Zealand:M / Philippines:G / Portugal:M/12 / Singapore:PG / South Korea:12 / Spain:7 / Sweden:11 / Switzerland:10 / Thailand:G / UK:PG / USA:PG (certificate #48881)