Disney has a long and storied history of creating some of the scariest villains ever to invade a small child’s nightmares. The evil fairy Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty is arguably the finest of these villains, marrying basic cackling malevolence to the ability to transform into a dragon, lay curses upon unsuspecting children, and threaten entire kingdoms. So, it’s no wonder that Maleficent has become the latest subject for revamping, getting her own film and her own celebrity impersonator in the form of Angelina Jolie.
With the release date for Maleficent only a few months away, Disney is ramping up the marketing campaign centered around its magnificent and malevolent leading lady. To this end, they have released two more posters featuring Angelina Jolie gazing into your soul. The first U.S. poster is fairly standard, with our devilish diva front and center and nothing else to distract the eye from her pretty terrifying countenance. The second, for the international market, reminds us that there is a plot to the film, with a bit more color and the image of Elle Fanning as Aurora subsumed within Maleficent’s figure. Both are pretty effective, and serve to remind us (if we didn’t know already) who’s the star of the show.
Maleficent features Jolie as the titular villain who maybe was not always such a villain. While it follows the basic structure we know from Sleeping Beauty – Maleficent places a curse on the King’s daughter Aurora – it also looks to explain the bad girl’s origins, her betrayal at the hands of the king, and her fierce desire to protect her homeland. Although I’m always a little suspicious when a film tries to create sympathy for great villains, Jolie’s presence in Maleficent has me more than a little intrigued. Hopefully director Robert Stromberg can pull off the revamping of the character without making the whole too pat and predictable.
Maleficent arrives in cinemas May 30. You can check out the two latest posters below.
