Jolie dazzles, but the script can't keep pace with the spectacle.
Verdict tier Mixed, lukewarm or divided, on a scale of Unfavorable, Mixed, Recommended, Exceptional.
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Critic consensus
Critical reception for Maleficent is mixed, leaning slightly negative to middling, with most reviewers awarding scores around 50 out of 100. The overwhelming majority of critics single out Angelina Jolie's commanding screen presence and the film's rich visual design as its chief strengths. The most consistent complaint is that the screenplay fails to match the ambition of its visuals, with several critics noting pacing problems, a predictable plot, and a sense that the film does not fully realize its potential. A dissenting voice found even Jolie's performance lacking, though this was an outlier among the reviewed critics.
4 not-rated reviews aren't plotted
Positive = 6.5/10 and up · negative = below 5/10
AI-generated summary of 14 critic reviews · may contain errors
Report inaccuracyFrom the papers
Top critics first, then by score · not-rated last · updated
Top critic
Film review ·
Stromberg, an Oscar-winning production designer, gives us a lot to look at – luminous pixies, magical moors, a crow that takes on many avatars and lots of intriguing creatures, big and small. Even Maleficent's incredible wings have personality. I wish some of that had rubbed off on the writing.
Top critic
Film review ·
When the lights come back on in the end, it's unlikely that much will stay with you, apart from Jolie's scorching presence. She deserved better, and so did we.
Top critic
Film review ·
The film is definitely better than the misbegotten Snow White and the Huntsman and the other recent fairytales trying to have an adult spin, but it surely isn't a classic. It's a missed opportunity.
Film review ·
The film is Angelina Jolie all the way, from the story to her acting to her menacing ways, the actress gives her audience more than one reason to a make a beeline to the theatres. One can't help but notice how beautiful Elle Fanning has grown up to be. As Princess Aurora, she does justice to the role. Plus, to add the cherry on the top, is the visually-pleasing cinematography and of course, the magic that lies beneath.
Film review ·
Go and watch the magnificent Maleficent on the big screen! It will transport you to another world and trust me you wouldn't want to come back.
Film review ·
Maleficent is pretty much Angelina Jolie's vehicle all the way, because looking at how she fits this role down to the letter, it's hard to imagine anyone else inhabiting the character of a good person-turned-evil as well as she does in this film. Fanning imbues her character with a freshness that balances off nicely against Maleficient's demeanour. All in all, an imaginative take on the old classic.
Film review ·
Maleficent will please Jolie fans, so watch it if you like dark fantasies about mystical creatures.
Film review ·
Packed with lovely visuals and a predictable plot, this film is a one-woman show that could have been a little less brooding. It could have been brilliant but it chose to stick to its seat with its safety belt tightly binding it down. Its sad when a film fails to realise its own potential. Maleficent is almost magnificent.
Film review ·
Maleficent is fun for its appealing visuals — especially in the forest — and for watching Jolie. But that's not enough to make the whole film interesting. As the minutes tick by, you might even start feeling a bit like Sleeping Beauty herself comes to feel: Drowsy.
Film review ·
...there are long stretches where little or nothing happens and you desperately want the director to get on with it. As mentioned, the stress is on the visuals even though the 3D doesn't contribute anything positive to experience. Angelina Jolie breathes some life into the film with her performance other wise this Sleeping Beauty doesn't have a great deal to keep you awake.
Film review ·
Here was a chance to really add some life, some humanity to an iconic character, and Jolie squanders it with an expressionless and dispassionate performance. Perhaps she did this film just to cash in on Disney's rejuvenated box-office clout. Viewers, however, should prove her wrong by simply re-watching Frozen.
Film review ·
The reboot's real interest is in conjuring up a tender relationship between a fairy, a princess and a crow, with enough twists to save a well-worn fairy tale from the curse of overuse.
Film review ·
Inspired by Charles Perrault's harrowing story "La Belle au bois dormant" and the sanitized fairytale written by the Brothers Grimm, Maleficent is a feel good retelling of Disney's 1959 classic film Sleeping Beauty about the wicked witch who places a curse on a hapless infant.
Film review ·
A visual treat while not being particularly subversive
Credits
Angelina JolieMaleficent
Elle FanningPrincess Aurora
Imelda StauntonKnotgrass
Sharlto CopleyKing Stefan
Lesley ManvilleFlittle
Juno TempleThistlewit
Miranda RichardsonQueen Ulla
Sam RileyDiaval
Brenton ThwaitesPrince Phillip
Kenneth CranhamKing Henry
Toby RegboYoung Stefan
Angus WrightKing Henry's Aide
Peter CapaldiKing Kinloch
Eleanor Worthington CoxYoung Princess Aurora
Ella PurnellYoung MaleficentEnglish films like Maleficent
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