Invoking fear and empathy

While Disney has been whipping the dead horse of regurgitated stories more or less since its genesis, “Maleficent” marks an interesting departure from the usual with a tale worth retelling.

This is Robert Stromberg’s first directing credit. And, yes, it shows. In terms of filmmaking, two of the highlights of this film are the aesthetics and Angelina Jolie’s performance as Maleficent. The latter does not need
a good director in order to be incredible.

Now, we can tip our devil-horned hats to Stromberg for making “Maleficent” a visually
captivating and magical cinematic experience worthy of the Disney franchise. The art direction and special effects are downright exceptional when it comes to drawing the
viewer into a world where nature and its vibrant magics are central.

This is the same professional who contributed to “Pan’s Labyrinth,” “Catching Fire” and
“Life of Pi” and won Oscars for art direction in Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland” and James Cameron’s “Avatar.” You read that correctly. He’s one of the reasons why
“Avatar” is the sci-fi , fantasy world pornography that it is.

So where making “Maleficent” a mystical wonderland is concerned, Stromberg is the right guy for the job. Otherwise, another director would’ve been the better choice,
especially considering the film fell a bit short of the typical Disney panache that one experiences when watching “Frozen” or “The Lion King.”

However, instead of catchy song numbers, “Maleficent” was able to hold its own with Jolie’s bewitching presence and the thought-provoking writing. I’m going to play a
challenging game in which I try to think of people who would’ve been better cast than Jolie to play Maleficent. Time’s up! Look at that— I lost.

The Maleficent of the 1959 “Sleeping Beauty” is a personal favorite Disney villain.
It should be understood that only a very specific, contemporary performer can do
the job right. This role demands an actress who is powerful and passionate. It requires one who knows how to restrain herself to keep her intentions obscured. And, yes,
she must be gloriously fierce.

The christening celebration scene from “Sleeping Beauty” is featured in “Maleficent.”
Many of the lines from the animated version of this scene were transplanted into Jolie’s live-action performance. This was an excellent way for the Academy Award-winning actress to prove she is the witch for the job. She redelivers, “Oh, dear, what
an awkward situation.” It is a chill-worthy line in which Jolie clearly revels.

Of course, Jolie’s talents are also shown spectacularly when her re-imagined character demands tenderness as well as malice. I don’t want to ruin the various ways that “Maleficent” departs from its source material. However, head writer Linda Woolverton has cast a feminist revision that demonstrates why fairy tales can be relevant regardless of the age of the tale or viewer.

Jolie’s performance, Stromberg’s creativity and Woolverton’s metaphor-rich experiment produces a notable concoction. They’ve drafted a celebration of the propensities of good and evil within a single body as well as the feminine mystique in underexplored
territory.