Maleficent

In this darkly dazzling riff on Sleeping Beauty, the flawed heroine is the enchantress. Years earlier, as a carefree young fairy, Maleficent was frolicking happily—teasing toad-goblins and twiggy tree-guardians—when she fell in love with a young human named Stefan, who was greedy and ambitious. When both are full-grown, however, Stefan (Sharlto Copley) betrays Maleficent (Angelina Jolie)—violating her physically and emotionally—cutting off her wings and marrying the King's daughter. So at the christening of baby Aurora, spurned Maleficent arrives, uninvited, to deliver the curse that can only be broken by true love's kiss. But here the fable takes an abrupt turn: Maleficent watches Aurora as she grows up, the child routinely outwitting her three bickering nursemaids (Imelda Staunton, Lesley Manville, Juno Temple). Instead of being afraid, young Aurora believes that shadowy Maleficent is her fairy godmother, and eventually the latter develops a distinct fondness for the youngster whom she always refers to as “a beastie.” But, as her 16th birthday approaches, Aurora (Elle Fanning) learns the truth—and it is too late for Maleficent to recant the curse. A humorlessly helmed and oddly paced film by first-time feature film director Robert Stromberg (the Oscar-winning art director of Avatar and Alice in Wonderland), Maleficent boasts a magnificent visual beauty that ultimately makes it worth the watch. Recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include an “Aurora: Becoming a Beauty” featurette with costar Elle Fanning (5 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is a “From Fairy Tail to Feature Film” featurette (8 min.), deleted scenes (7 min.), a “Building an Epic Battle” behind-the-scenes segment (6 min.), the production featurettes “Maleficent Revealed” (5 min.) and “Classic Couture” (2 min.), and bonus DVD and digital copies of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a strange and strikingly-lensed alternate take on a classic fairy tale.] (S. Granger)