New Maleficent Spot is Deliciously Evil

Disney released a new Maleficent spot, to tease us all until the movie’s upcoming premiere on the 30th of May, and it looks beautiful. The part of me that fangirls over anything fantasy and Disney-related is having a field trip. The more rational part of me, who deals with plots and motives, is not yet convinced…

I have to say I was a bit unsure of their decision to turn Maleficent into a poor misunderstood forest maiden. Why can’t there be evil for evil’s sake? We haven’t had a deliciously hateable villain since quite some time. The film decides to explore the birth of the feud between King Stefan (Sharlto Copley) and Maleficent.

Many fans of the original animated film thought that King Stefan gained Maleficent’s eternal hatred because he insulted her by not inviting her to the wedding. Familiar scenario, right? However, the movie goes beyond that and tries to weave a complicated story of why they hate each other. Wasn’t being left out of a christening to which the whole kingdom was invited worse enough? It seems not, because Disney is trying to retell the story in a much more complicated way. I’m curious to see how it will turn out and if the psychological motive of the birth of evil will be sufficient to satisfy viewers. However, the trailers look awesome, so we’ll see if this movie will be saved by the plot and characterization, or doomed by it and tolerated because of the awesome CGI. One thing is for sure: the movie is going to be a feast for the eyes no matter what direction the script takes us, and that warrants (for me, at least) spending money at the theater to see all those glittering fairy wings and sparkles in full HD.

“The [film’s] exercise wasn’t ‘how can we have fun with a villain?’,” said Jolie to Entertainment Weekly. “It was ‘what turns people evil and vile and aggressive and cruel? What could have possibly happened to her that would get her to that moment in the christening?’

The spot beings with Angelina Jolie’s voice, and I have officially decided this woman should narrate all of my future novels. The opening scene is Maleficent landing on some rock, her wings folding as she hits the ground. I  think dragon wings would’ve been better, to give a nod to the old Disney movie scene in which she decides to turn into the wife of Smaug and kill the prince (possibly eat him, too). Jolie looks like she could cut diamonds with her cheekbones, due to the make-up job.

We see a few beautifully shot frames: what looks like the King walking through fire, which oddly reminded me of the Sauron scene in The Hobbit, and Maleficent cursing the baby with her green magic smoke of doom. Following that we see the land: beautiful, flowery. I can smell the innocence and fresh cut grass, but we all know that when a trailer shows something like that, it’s only to be destroyed. Elle Fanning appears in this spot as well, running through a field and in the moment of pricking her finger, with dramatic lightning change from dark to light, which is a cinematic way of telling us that the status quo of good is going to get overthrown in the favour of the sinister.

Some shots of Jolie and her knife-like cheekbones appear, and she looks powerful and evil, and then vulnerable and hurt. Nice contrast of feelings, might be a clue that shows how Maleficent is dual in nature, a tough shell of bad witch surrounding a creamy core of hurt, much like an evil praline (bite it and it turns into a dragon). The forest then comes alive in what seems to be an Ent army packed of evil and natural fighting gear. Perhaps Maleficent and the forest are somewhat connected? Do they do her bidding, or is it a magical alliance against a common enemy? We’ll have to see in the movie.

The following shots are reused from the other trailers and spots: the famous scene of prickly overgrowth that Maleficent causes with her magic. Nothing new that we haven’t seen before in the other promotional materials. However, the most interesting shot is the one we’ve been waiting for: Maleficent as a dragon. Her scaly highness makes an appearance, spitting fire and causing mayhem, but only for a few seconds. The CGI on the dragon looks a bit plastic, but maybe it’s just me.

In the end, I guess we will have to wait and see if this modern take on the children’s story will capture the hearts of adults with its story, or just their eyes with its CGI and Jolie’s performance.

I, for one, am excited, because no matter what the movie will at least look beautiful, and Angelia Jolie as Maleficent is pure perfection.

What do you think? Is Maleficent going to do Sleeping Beauty justice, or is it going to put as all to sleep, much like its namesake?