Maleficent A Hero V
Maleficent a Hero, Villain, or Both
Brittany Kaelin
ENG/220
January 17, 2015
Sherri Craig
Maleficent a Hero, Villain, or Both
Over the years, Disney has portrayed many villains in their movies. Many of these villains are portrayed as evil, wicked, rotten, and just plain scary. However, they never explain what made these villains the evil, malicious person they have come to be viewed as. Is it possible that they are just misunderstood? Sleeping Beauty’s Maleficent may be one of the wickedest and scariest villains in all of Disney’s movies, but recently Disney brought out a movie showing everyone more into her character and the story behind the villain. (Monk, 2014) “A revisionist fairy tale with a wonderfully sharp feminist edge, Maleficent features Angelina Jolie, pictured, in the title role of the famed villainess who tortured poor Aurora in Sleeping Beauty, the 1959 animated Disney classic. Everyone knows how that story ends. But viewers don't really know where it all began, and why Maleficent was so angry in the first place. We simply take wicked women as a fact of fairy tale life.” While there were similarities between this villain’s original 1959 portrayal of Maleficent and the more recent 2014 movie portrayal there was also many differences.
In both the 1959 and 2014 portrayal of Maleficent, the audience is shown a very wicked and in some opinions beautiful being with magical powers. The image that is painted in the viewer’s minds by both movies is that Maleficent is sinister and out for revenge on King Stefan whom she has a hatred for. Both movies show an elegantly dressed and devious villain who curses the first born daughter of the king and queen to prick her finger on a spindle after she is not invited to the royal christening. Maleficent does this in order to punish the king. Another similarity viewers see of Maleficent between both movies is the raven that Maleficent keeps as a sidekick. Maleficent appears to be stoic and does not show
Brittany Kaelin
ENG/220
January 17, 2015
Sherri Craig
Maleficent a Hero, Villain, or Both
Over the years, Disney has portrayed many villains in their movies. Many of these villains are portrayed as evil, wicked, rotten, and just plain scary. However, they never explain what made these villains the evil, malicious person they have come to be viewed as. Is it possible that they are just misunderstood? Sleeping Beauty’s Maleficent may be one of the wickedest and scariest villains in all of Disney’s movies, but recently Disney brought out a movie showing everyone more into her character and the story behind the villain. (Monk, 2014) “A revisionist fairy tale with a wonderfully sharp feminist edge, Maleficent features Angelina Jolie, pictured, in the title role of the famed villainess who tortured poor Aurora in Sleeping Beauty, the 1959 animated Disney classic. Everyone knows how that story ends. But viewers don't really know where it all began, and why Maleficent was so angry in the first place. We simply take wicked women as a fact of fairy tale life.” While there were similarities between this villain’s original 1959 portrayal of Maleficent and the more recent 2014 movie portrayal there was also many differences.
In both the 1959 and 2014 portrayal of Maleficent, the audience is shown a very wicked and in some opinions beautiful being with magical powers. The image that is painted in the viewer’s minds by both movies is that Maleficent is sinister and out for revenge on King Stefan whom she has a hatred for. Both movies show an elegantly dressed and devious villain who curses the first born daughter of the king and queen to prick her finger on a spindle after she is not invited to the royal christening. Maleficent does this in order to punish the king. Another similarity viewers see of Maleficent between both movies is the raven that Maleficent keeps as a sidekick. Maleficent appears to be stoic and does not show