Is It just me or are those horns very phallic? Let’s just say that Disney’s wicked fairy, whether in cartoon or live-action form, has always been wonderfully weird.
As in the 2014 original, the tone of the sequel is revisionist. It’s been five years since our haughty, naughty heroine (Angelina Jolie; fabulous) redefined “a true love’s kiss”, waking surrogate daughter Aurora (Elle Fanning) with the force of her love. But now Aurora wants to marry Prince Philip (Harris Dickinson).
Even worse, Aurora seems embarrassed by Maleficent’s non-binary body. Philip’s parents, Ingrith and John (Michelle Pfieffer and Robert Lindsay), hold an engagement dinner at their castle. Before they go, Aurora asks Maleficent to hide her horns.
The meet-and-greet that follows is insanely funcomfortable. Maleficent stares at the roasted fowl on her plate before turning to her familiar — raven/man Diaval (Sam Riley) — and pithily notes, “A bird!”
After that dinner party, it’s true, the pace slackens somewhat. On the plus side, shots of Maleficent underwater are dreamily gorgeous, while Ingrith’s right-hand woman (Jenn Murray) orchestrates a church-set massacre of fairies which will make fragile kids scream the house down. That’s a good thing. As in Bambi, the slaughtering of innocent creatures by humans registers as a real nightmare. Last but not least, there’s something revolutionary about a ceremony right at the end.
The bottom line is that Maleficent 2 takes a brilliant character and doesn’t completely bugger things up. Which is good news for Jolie. Now 44, she’s too old, as far as Hollywood is concerned, to get the lead in a typical superhero movie. We’re seeing evil-ution in action. Roll on Maleficent 3.
