Amie Simon of Three Imaginary Girls and I Love Splatter journeys back to the Magical Kingdom for villain prequel Maleficent and finds a strong emotional center amid all the CG Disney goo.
My mom took me to the movies to see every classic Disney re-release when I was a tiny tot, and Sleeping Beauty has always been the one I have loved the most. Sure, Princess Aurora is fine—she’s pretty with long blonde hair, and the girl can definitely sing—but Maleficent! She’s something else. A truly wicked adversary with a killer fashion sense, a devoted pet raven, hundreds of loyal minions, and the ability to turn into a FRIGGIN’ DRAGON. I was fascinated by her immediately and consider her to be the best Disney villain of all time. Yes, all time. Name another villain who curses an entire kingdom to sleep, then kidnaps the hero with plans to keep him imprisoned for 100 years—only to let him out then, as an old man, to go “save” his princess. That is one badass revengenda.
What I’m saying is that the 2014 live action Maleficent, directed by Robert Stromberg, really had a lot to live up to in my mind. And initially, it did not. No shade to Jolie, who is quite good at emulating the animated version with evil laughter, haughty line delivery, and an arched eyebrow. But on my first theatrical viewing, I was not impressed by this film’s rewriting of the three charming, animated fairy godmothers, its overload of CGI, and battle scenes that moved so quickly I couldn’t really parse what was happening.
There was a lot I could not forgive that first watch, like changing Flora, Fauna, and Merriweather (reborn here as Flittle, Knotgrass, and Thistlwhit) from bumbling, good-natured, but caring mommas to completely incompetent caretakers. Outside of admiring that they snagged a powerhouse trio to play them—Lesley Manville, Imelda Staunton, and Juno Temple—I HATED THEM SO MUCH. I also remember being annoyed that both the King before him, and Stephan, are caricatures of power-hungry toxic masculinity. But the real injustice was taking away Maleficent’s powerful transformation into a dragon and giving that ability to her raven, Diaval, instead. He who started out as a man and can now shapeshift into different creatures, aided by a flick of her staff.
Nor did I need a backstory as to why Maleficent became evil. I know this is a hallmark of Disney nowadays; see also Cruella, and every single villain in the Once Upon a Time Universe, but honestl, can’t some villains just be BAD because they’re just…bad? So I was absolutely not feeling her once being an innocent young fairy who gets her wings torn off by the man she’s in love with when I first saw it. Curiously, even though it’s saccharine as hell, I did like the developing relationship between her and Aurora. Women supporting women! It was sweet, especially given that no one else in the film seems to actually care about the princess. I also really loved the way the curse is broken, and still do.
To my surprise, this second watch made me reevaluate the revenge backstory and appreciate it a lot more with my 10-years-later, much more confident, wiser—some might say “more jaded” mind. Is it brilliant or incredibly stupid that the writers of this PG-13 film have Stephan slip Maleficent a roofie and then CHOP OFF her wings in a violent date-rape violation? I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to truly tell, but this time, that scene hit me like a ton of bricks and made me think of my own past experiences. It was rough, and upsetting, and just felt so real (HOW DARE YOU, Sharlto Copley!). Of course Stephan does it for power and fame. OF COURSE he does. Chop off those wings, forget you ever “loved” her, and get ready to be King! You earned this! And don’t forget to keep those wings as some sort of creepy, terrifying trophy in your throne room. Cool, cool, cool.
Anyway, now I think that the scene makes total sense! This betrayal is the reason why she covers herself in all black, even her horns, and leans on her magical staff to get around after suffering such a grievous injury. And how do you wound the person who took your life—and your power—away from you? Who abused your trust to do something so horrible? Who prevented you from flying ever again? Do you kill him? No, that would be too easy. You take away the only thing he loves (well, as much as Stephan can love, I guess): his daughter.
And of course things are gonna get complicated when that daughter shows you the first affection you’ve experienced in years, and your blackened heart starts to beat again thanks to the simple, pure love of a child. To watch this woman’s hatred melt with each passing year as Aurora grows closer to her is (still) something so truly wonderful and heartwarming. Get it, Mother Maleficent! You deserve it.
As for the other things that bugged me the first time: Yes, it’s still annoying that Diaval unleashes the scales and the fire breathing instead of Maleficent, but we do get to watch her positively kick ASS instead after Aurora breaks the glass keeping her wings trapped and fly over and RE-ATTACH themselves to her! The battle scenes weren’t as blurry as I remember (maybe that was due to the giant IMAX screen?) And CGI is gonna CGI—to be expected when you’re dealing with a forest full of magical creatures, I guess. (Although Ridley Scott’s Legend is full of amazing creatures and it’s alllll practical, baby.) Props to them for not making the tree guardians too “cute” so they could be fearsome and formidable.
Now let’s talk about my favorite part of this film, both now, and then: the breaking of the curse with a very different kind of “true love’s kiss.” Both watches, when it came time for Prince Phillip to kiss Aurora and it didn’t work…only for us all to find out that Maleficent held the magic within her to break it because of her “true love” for the girl, I got GOT. All the feelings! Tears, streaming down the side of my face from utter, absolute joy.
Friends, I think my entire life may have been altered if instead of believing a handsome prince could be my only option for true love, I would have realized that a deep and unbreakable kind of love can be platonic! A mentor, a caretaker, a mother, a bestie, whoever your chosen family is. Just someone, anyone, whom you make a real and true connection with—romantic or not. It fills me with happiness to know that girls will watch this movie and be able to see something other than the “damsel in distress” b.s. we all get sold since birth.
What other lessons can we learn from Maleficent? That ultimately, the best revenge is being able to heal from trauma, and learning to find true happiness once again. Of course, shoving the man who assaulted you off a high castle tower and watching his brains splatter all over the tile below, then crowning his daughter as the dual Queen of the human and fairy worlds to create peace under a matriarchal society is pretty great, too.
And that’s Maleficent! I really did like it much better than I did TEN YEARS AGO, and while I don’t think it’s the best film ever, there are some surprisingly great things about it.
— Amie Simon
10 Years Ago: Films in Retrospective 