Cinema Report #21 - Maleficent
What a great film! The numerous fantastical creatures seemed not like computer-generated beings at all and although the story was kind of predictable, it still surprised me with its twists and turns and the characters that carried it.
First of all, there was the fairy Maleficent. She definitely isn't the bad guy in this version of Sleeping Beauty. The girl who plays her young form is great and Angelina Jolie continues that pretty well in the adult form. Not to mention how great her kingdom looks, with all those gnomes and what-evers that seem to have jumped right out of a Froud-artbook to become reality.
She gets betrayed and hurt very badly, and considering that I would have turned a bit sour, too. Even when she appears to be cruel, she really isn't. And, of course, this whole story is about how she finds her way back into the light - although she never strayed far from that in my opinion. That actually makes the end a bit cheesy, but that's allowed in that kind of story.
The only weak point in this film might be the evil guy. Stefan is poor, but has a good heart and thus manages to befriend the young Maleficent. I get that he wants to improve his station, but his ruthlessness about it seems out of proportion and out of character. Sure, he doesn't kill Maleficent as was requested / expected by the old king, but in a way what he does is far more cruel. It only sort of works if you believe that this deed and his bad conscience about it destroy his sanity bit by bit afterwards.
I liked the innocence of Aurora and how easily she fit into the fairy kingdom and felt at home there. At first glance, this might seem cheesy and the character rather flat, but if you consider the wishes of the good fairies, and the fact that she doesn't grow up with her crazy father, it makes sense. Besides, I liked it when she developed her own head and was determined to stay in the fairy country, since nobody ever told her that.
When she finally gets hit by the curse, it's more like an afterthought. I almost had forgotten that this film was about Sleeping Beauty, too. But the inevitability of the curse got very well realized.
My favourite, however, was Diaval the raven. At first, I thought this was an odd idea, yet soon it made a lot of sense and he became one of the most interesting characters of the whole story. I wished we could've seen (or would see) more of him. The actor (Sam Riley) was quite perfect for that role, too, since he has an odd look about him and portrayed that creature wonderfully. For a side-kick he even did quite a bit of character-development, especially in the little screen-time he was given.
I'm definitely looking forward to watch this one again a few times!
First of all, there was the fairy Maleficent. She definitely isn't the bad guy in this version of Sleeping Beauty. The girl who plays her young form is great and Angelina Jolie continues that pretty well in the adult form. Not to mention how great her kingdom looks, with all those gnomes and what-evers that seem to have jumped right out of a Froud-artbook to become reality.
She gets betrayed and hurt very badly, and considering that I would have turned a bit sour, too. Even when she appears to be cruel, she really isn't. And, of course, this whole story is about how she finds her way back into the light - although she never strayed far from that in my opinion. That actually makes the end a bit cheesy, but that's allowed in that kind of story.
The only weak point in this film might be the evil guy. Stefan is poor, but has a good heart and thus manages to befriend the young Maleficent. I get that he wants to improve his station, but his ruthlessness about it seems out of proportion and out of character. Sure, he doesn't kill Maleficent as was requested / expected by the old king, but in a way what he does is far more cruel. It only sort of works if you believe that this deed and his bad conscience about it destroy his sanity bit by bit afterwards.
I liked the innocence of Aurora and how easily she fit into the fairy kingdom and felt at home there. At first glance, this might seem cheesy and the character rather flat, but if you consider the wishes of the good fairies, and the fact that she doesn't grow up with her crazy father, it makes sense. Besides, I liked it when she developed her own head and was determined to stay in the fairy country, since nobody ever told her that.
When she finally gets hit by the curse, it's more like an afterthought. I almost had forgotten that this film was about Sleeping Beauty, too. But the inevitability of the curse got very well realized.
My favourite, however, was Diaval the raven. At first, I thought this was an odd idea, yet soon it made a lot of sense and he became one of the most interesting characters of the whole story. I wished we could've seen (or would see) more of him. The actor (Sam Riley) was quite perfect for that role, too, since he has an odd look about him and portrayed that creature wonderfully. For a side-kick he even did quite a bit of character-development, especially in the little screen-time he was given.
I'm definitely looking forward to watch this one again a few times!