The original Maleficent was a gamble for Disney back in 2014, being one of the first of what would become a seemingly endless stream of modern updates to animated classics. Based on the familiar tale of Sleeping Beauty, the film shook up the source’s story and characters to create an entirely new tale – one that became a template for several future Disney films in the following years. While the core plot itself was fairly standard, Maleficent found success with its darker tone, stunning visuals and a defining performance by Angelina Jolie as the titular sorceress. It’s been five years since the original, and we now find ourselves presented with its follow up fantasy sequel: Maleficent: Mistress of Evil. Aiming to build upon the foundations of its first chapter, the film certainly manages to go bigger and bolder the second time around. However, while it may be a longer and more brutal adventure than the original, the sequel suffers from a standard plot and pacing issues throughout – saved only by some amazing sights and the efforts of its three immensely talented leads.
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil picks up several years after the events of the first film, with a grown Aurora (Elle Fanning) ruling over the enchanted woods and its creatures as the Moors’ human queen. When she’s asked for her hand in marriage by the neighbouring kingdom’s Prince Philip (a recasted Harris Dickinson), she quickly accepts. This doesn’t sit too well with Aurora’s godmother Maleficent (Angelina Jolie), who despises and distrusts all humans following some rough dealings with them in the past. This hatred is only fuelled upon meeting Philip’s mother, Queen Ingrith (Michelle Pfeiffer), who seems intent on driving a wedge between Aurora and her adoptive mother. What follows these opening minutes is a lengthy adventure that never strays too far from this base concept. Where the film does attempt to move away from expectations or present something new, it often leads to drawn out and unnecessary world building – most of which amounts to very little in the grand scheme of things. It feels as if much of the story and plot devices were pulled together from a range of ideas and narratives, rather than developed as one cohesive tale that flows from beginning to end. The first film also covered almost all of the lore and events of the original Sleeping Beauty, and this has forced the sequel to get creative in places – albeit to mixed results.
Thankfully the original duo of Fanning and Jolie return to reprise their respective roles, and continue to do a fantastic job of carrying the audience through the adventure. Aurora becomes a fish-out-of-water for much of the film, struggling to balance the expectations of her new life, those she is charged with ruling over in her woodland home and the fury of her protective guardian. Fanning conveys these conflicts perfectly, bringing maturity and strength to her former role while also maintaining the charm of a young girl raised in an enchanted forest. Then comes Jolie, who once again appears to have been born to play the dark sorceress Maleficent. Stealing just about all of the film’s biggest scenes, her character commands every major conflict and challenge that the tale throws out. She’s the titular character for a reason, and her one of a kind performance is easily the film’s biggest redeeming feature.
Rising up to challenge Maleficent this time around is Michelle Pfeiffer’s Ingrith, queen of the kingdom bordering the Moors and Aurora’s soon to be mother-in-law. As expected, Pfeiffer brings an incredible amount of experience and pedigree to the powerful queen, creating a villain that does well to rival Jolie throughout the film. However Queen Ingrith is often a bit too heavy handed with the villainy, with some late attempts at explaining her behaviour doing little to justify how evil she eventually becomes. From the moment she steps on screen, she’s been written to be completely loathed by audiences at every turn. To be honest; Maleficent really didn’t need a second chapter, and creating one sees Pfeiffer’s character suffer from having to go from a complete unknown to a remorseless villain in a very short space of time.
Rounding out the cast is the Queen’s son Philip, who plays the typical Disney prince in search of his princess. Despite being re-casted following the first film, the switch to Harris Dickinson doesn’t hurt things too much and he does well to bring some life to his character’s limited scenes. Another returning character is Diaval (Sam Riley), who continues to act as Maleficent’s right hand and confidant. Riley’s screentime is as limited as it was in the first chapter, however he injects the film with a bit of charm and wit while also shedding light on Maleficent’s more guarded emotions. With so many characters already sharing the screen, it’s hard to imagine being able to expand the roster any further – however the film also manages to introduce two new faces in Conall (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Borra (Ed Skrein). For reasons I won’t spoil, the two share close ties to Maleficent herself and both attempt to make an ally of her for their own means. While the two actors do well in their respective roles, the characters themselves ultimately just exist to extend the plot further than it ever needed to be – again feeling like another product of a needless sequel. There’s also a significant amount of time given to developing these characters and their connection to Maleficent around the halfway point, which is at odds with an eventual conclusion that feels rushed and disjointed by comparison.
Yet while the extended runtime might not always be spot-on from a narrative perspective, it does give audiences more time to take in what is admittedly a beautiful looking film. The effects on display are some of the most vivid and realistic visuals seen in any recent fantasy epic, with lush green forests and grand castles completely capturing the Disney fairytale vibe. The woodland creatures are all intricately detailed and brought to life, and Jolie’s imposing black wings are so well done and perfectly woven into her movements, you’d swear she was born with them. These sights are in addition to the huge amount of costume and design work that has also gone into every piece of the film – many of which outdoing the already amazing work from the original. Maleficent’s horns and gowns are insanely well done, and are offset by Aurora’s floral numbers and Queen Ingrith’s outrageous pearl and jewel encrusted sets. While the excellent visual work doesn’t completely save the plot here, it certainly goes a long way in creating a sight worth seeing on the big screen.
All in all, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil is a fine attempt at a sequel that had no real reason to exist. Its three strong leads and beautiful world create a real spectacle alive with action and colour, however it’s unable to escape the basic plot and needlessly drawn out world building lying beneath it all. Fans of Jolie, Pfeiffer or Fanning and those who enjoyed the original will be the ones who stand to enjoy this the most, as the film doesn’t quite stand tall amongst some of the other strong stories that have been told in cinemas this year. Yet while it may not reach the starry heights that it was aiming for on its second outing, when Maleficent: Mistress of Evil does shine – it shines bright.
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil stars Angelina Jolie, Elle Fanning, Michelle Pfeiffer, Harris Dickinson, Sam Riley, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Ed Skrein – In cinemas now.