Maleficent

The biggest challenge for Maleficent, which has little to do with its actual quality, might be finding an audience.

This live-action reworking of the 1959 animated film Sleeping Beauty gives a female-empowerment angle to the venerable fairy tale. However, the material seems too dark and violent for the target demographic, who could have difficulty finding a rooting interest in characters that possess more degrees of villainy than heroism.

The story is told from the perspective of the title character, a cold-hearted fairy whose unrequited love as a teenager drove her into exile. She becomes especially enraged when her former lover (Sharlto Copley) becomes king after defending the human kingdom in war against the forest-dwelling moors that Maleficent helps to protect.

After being snubbed during a christening of the king’s newborn daughter, her ultimate act of revenge is to place a curse on the baby — one that can only be reversed by “true love’s kiss,” of course — that would relegate her to eternal sleep on her 16th birthday. But while watching Aurora (Elle Fanning) grow up in relative seclusion, Maleficent has a change of heart.

The film marks the directorial debut of Oscar-winning production designer Robert Stromberg (Avatar), so there’s no surprise that it’s such a visual delight. While it’s not necessary to bother with the 3D in this case, Maleficent boasts sharp cinematography by Oscar-winner Dean Semler complementing the handsome fantasy-world sets and costumes along with seamless visual effects that include various creatures large and small.

The lavish film contains plenty of classic fairy-tale themes, with forbidden love leading to betrayal and revenge. Yet the screenplay by Linda Woolverton (Alice in Wonderland) doesn’t contain much subtlety or surprise, and its efforts to inject humor in the proceedings feel strained.

In her first starring role in almost four years, Jolie is appropriately menacing, as her hair and makeup remain immaculate throughout. Still, the focus on her character’s redemption relegates Aurora to the background, and might drain the emotional investment of young girls.

Perhaps Maleficent deserves credit for at putting a new twist on something during a summer stuffed with big-budget sequels and superhero retreads. But this update lacks the enchantment of the original.

Rated PG, 97 minutes.