I had the pleasure of attending a talk about the dark origins of some of our favorite Disnified fairy tales. The speaker, Linda Lee, indicated the end of Sleeping Beauty, where the prince kisses an unconscious princess, can be interpreted as rape. She referenced Maleficent in the talk; when I hear references to books and movies in talks, I’m inclined to read and watch them. My #1 Gallup Strength is that of Learner. So, naturally, I had to watch Maleficent. I’d heard the name, and upon reading the description, I saw that it told the Sleeping Beauty tale from the villain’s point of view, a la Wicked and Grendel, and that it starred Angelina Jolie.
And while the princess and the prince do couple at the end, that love takes second place to the maternal love Maleficent develops for Prince Aurora. At the beginning, we see the titular character as a woman about the Moors, her forest, flying throughout and on great terms with all the mystics, fairies, and other creatures of her kingdom. Unfortunately, they don’t get along with the humans next door.
At the beginning of the film, King Henry leads an invasion of the Moors. When Maleficent steps up, the King says patronizingly, “We’re not listening to some winged elf.” Maleficent responds by having her creatures lay waste to Henry’s army and mortally wound Henry.
Meanwhile, Maleficent has fallen in love with Stefan, Henry’s son. But after a while, Stefan begins to prioritize being king, and to avenge his father, he cuts off Maleficent’s wings. Critic Matt Zoller Seitz aptly points out the rape symbolism in this act. As revenge, Maleficent puts that curse on Stefan’s daughter, Princess Aurora, where she will fall into a permanent slumber on her 16th birthday. While Aurora is under the care of the three fairies, our protagonist spies on her. Gradually, she begins to develop an affection for the girl, who sees Maleficent as her “fairy godmother.”
The movie plays with the formula of the traditional romance. We have the “breakup” when Aurora finds out Maleficent placed the curse on her. Since it can only be broken by true love’s kiss, we would think that Aurora’s boyfriend and King Stefan’s son, Prince Phillip, would break it by kissing her. Most of us likely predict that Maleficent would break the curse since she truly loves Auror like a daughter, and it comes to fruition.
That ending makes this film a pro-single one for it. Although there’s romance, the movie decenters traditional romance in favor of a maternal bond. When Maleficent met Stefan, I thought they’d be together by movie’s end. But I’m glad Maleficent doesn’t “couple up;” she’s free to co-rule the united kingdoms with Aurora.
She may not be single at heart, but at least she doesn’t get together with Diaval, her male sidekick. I might have cringed at that.