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.

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.

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.

…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.

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.

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.