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Last month at the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration, we were given a sneak peek at Disney’s newest movie, Maleficent. All phones and recording devices had to be put away in order to watch the exclusive extended clip from the film, which we all happily complied with in order to see a little bit more of this movie. At the time, I remember being in awe of the beautiful scene, from the costumes, to the set and scenery, and the commanding presence of Angelina Jolie as the evil fairy. I was already looking forward to this film, but after that nine minute scene, I couldn’t wait for the end of May to arrive.

And then? Maleficent herself made an appearance, dominating the room with her presence and ensuring we all understood her power. It’s rare anymore to see a Disney Villain in person if it isn’t Halloween, so this was lots of fun.

After she left the room, we had the chance to meet her out in the lobby. I can’t believe how nervous I felt as I waited to have my one-on-one with her.

(She touched me, and I lived to tell about it!)

What did we talk about? Magic, mostly. I asked her if you could learn magic or if it was something you were born with – of course she reminded me that only fairies have magic and therefore a person had to be born with it. That’s what happens when you’re nervous to meet someone – you think up dumb questions to ask them.

Anyway…the wait is finally over and Maleficent opens today! I went to a local preview screening on Wednesday night, still a little unsure of how it would compare to the well-loved story of Sleeping Beauty. How could a villain be the protagonist, and what new backstory would we learn about Maleficent?

Warning: some mild spoilers ahead, mostly about early parts of the film. But I’m not spoiling the ending at all.

Synopsis

(From the website) Maleficent explores the untold story of Disney’s most iconic villain from the classic Sleeping Beauty and the elements of her betrayal that ultimately turn her pure heart to stone. Driven by revenge and a fierce desire to protect the moors over which she presides, Maleficent cruelly places an irrevocable curse upon the human king’s newborn infant Aurora. As the child grows, Aurora is caught in the middle of the seething conflict between the forest kingdom she has grown to love and the human kingdom that holds her legacy. Maleficent realizes that Aurora may hold the key to peace in the land and is forced to take dramatic actions that will change both worlds forever.

The film stars Angelina Jolie as Maleficent, Sharlto Copley, Elle Fanning, Sam Riley, Imelda Staunton, Juno Temple and Lesley Manville.

The Feature

The film starts with a young Maleficent, a fairy child who doesn’t seem to have parents and is the protector of the moors – a fairy kingdom which has an uneasy relationship with their human neighbors. Enter the similarly parent-less Stefan, who enters the moors as a thief, but who strikes up a friendship – and ultimately, a romance, with the fairy. As time passes and the years move on, we learn that the human king wishes to take control of the moors, but Maleficent leads the charge in defending her land. Meanwhile, Stefan’s ambition takes him away from his first love, and into the service of the king.

Maleficent when she still had wings

When the king is injured in battle by Maleficent, his dying wish is to destroy her and reclaim the moors as a part of his kingdom, offering the crown to anyone who will fulfill his wish. Stefan’s ambition ultimately wins out over his loyalty to his lover, and as the old king dies, Stefan takes his place as the new King – while a betrayed Maleficent turns cold and bitter.

Incidentally, anyone who witnesses the moment where Jolie plays out Maleficent’s reaction to the betrayal and doesn’t feel their heart break, has no soul. It’s a masterful scene, and puts you completely on Maleficent’s side for the remainder of the film – if you weren’t there already.

This leads us to the throne room scene from Sleeping Beauty that we all know and love, where baby Aurora is showered with gifts and one nagging curse. Although Maleficent plays with a few details from the animated version, this is easily one of the best scenes in the entire film. Even though we already know what will happen, the tension and anticipation is palpable as the scene plays out.

enacting the curse

From there, the story follows the one we know, only this time Maleficent is not hunting for the missing princess for nearly sixteen years, but in fact watches her grow from infant to child to young woman. Aurora becomes aware of her “fairy godmother,” never knowing the truth about her until near the end. The relationship between Aurora and Maleficent, almost one of child and mother, is fascinating to watch.

The film’s climax follows the similar broad path of Sleeping Beauty, but the details are different enough to make you feel either relieved or betrayed from how it varies, with saviors found in unexpected places, and villains found in others.

the big moment with the spinning wheel

My thoughts

I knew a little bit about this film going into it. I was already aware of the history between Maleficent and Stefan and how it was his betrayal that led to the evil fairy in black we all know and love. For Maleficent to be sympathetic in any way, we had to have a backstory that humanized her, and even made her vengeance seem righteous, if misguided in who she targeted.

The romance between Maleficent and Stefan was rushed in the story. I’m sure cuts had to be made to keep the movie short enough for kids, but we didn’t get the chance to know Stefan enough before he turned against her. This left his character feeling flat: a one-dimensional ambitious, vengeful, and mad villain, willing to remove nearly anyone or anything in his way to winning against Maleficent. I had to wonder what she ever saw in him when they were younger.

But I wasn’t prepared for the amount of contact between Maleficent and Aurora as she grew up. Instead of Aurora relying on the nurture of the three fairies, Flittle, Thistletwit and Knotgrass are silly, useless creatures who manage to do nothing effective throughout the course of the film. They are Aurora’s appointed caregivers, but they’re unable to do even the most basic tasks, like know what to feed a baby, or keep the little girl out of danger.

WHO IS WATCHING THIS CHILD?

Instead, it’s Maleficent hiding in the shadows, protecting the young girl so that Aurora has a chance at reaching sixteen in order to see the curse enacted. The reasons behind her protection change as the girl grows and Maleficent develops an affection for her.

The real highlight of this movie is Angelina Jolie as Maleficent. This role was intended for her, and she so completely becomes the character that it’s easy for the audience to join her in this magical world. She is a magnificent, striking presence on screen, beautiful and grand, and every word she speaks has just the right amount of weight and significance. Even through the makeup and effects, her emotions are both delicate and powerful.

Perhaps my favorite interactions are those between Maleficent and Diaval, the crow (and sometimes human). He is her loyal servant, and yet as the film progresses you can see a deeper relationship develop between them – not in a romantic way, but a deep trust in each other. In her lonely world, he is her constant, and unlike other magical creatures, he’s the one who is often unafraid to say what he thinks is right. In a way, his difference of opinion has him often serving as her conscience, and there is definitely a shared tenderness between them by the end.

Diaval and Maleficent

Aurora (played by Elle Fanning) is delightfully innocent, and with that innocence is utterly fearless. Young girls will admire her ability to see beyond the facade and find the good inside. The animated Sleeping Beauty is somewhat of a dull character (partially due to the source material, since she’s asleep through much of the action), but with this Aurora we’re given more time to see her growing up, and learn more about the person under the pretty blonde hair.

I also appreciated that Aurora was played by an actress who is still a teen herself. Elle didn’t turn sixteen until after the film was done – we sang Happy Birthday to her at Disney Social Media Moms because it was just a couple of days after her sixteenth birthday!

and we all had cupcakes!

The ending is handled a little differently from the animated film. I expect there will be debates on if this is a better ending or not, but because many haven’t seen the film yet, I won’t discuss the details here. I’ll say that I liked the ending and thought it was an interesting way to resolve the story. (Aaron did not like the ending as much, and we’ve debated it at length already.)

The biggest question is probably: is this movie for kids? Yes, I think it is. Cordy and Mira haven’t seen it yet, but I now have no worries about them seeing it. The preview trailers make the movie seem a lot darker than it actually is, both in tone and in actual darkness. I remember seeing the images of Maleficent meeting a young Aurora in a preview, and it looked almost like nighttime when they met. In the film, it’s a much brighter and cheery location.

There are a couple of scary scenes peppered through the film. These are mostly large battle scenes, with primarily nameless extras in danger. The dragon is present in the final battle, and looks just as fierce as the animated one, but knowing who the dragon is may make it seem less scary for kids. The overwhelming majority of the film isn’t frightening, though, and it provides so much beautiful visual stimulation that any of the short scary moments should soon be forgotten by the next scene.

You know your own child better than I do, so I can’t say yes, it’ll totally be fine. But other than one scene in the last 15 minutes that might upset more sensitive kids, I think it’s totally a kid-friendly film. (And I’ll update this if Cordy gets scared when she sees it.)

Speaking of the backdrop…Maleficent is SO pretty. There was so much enchanting scenery filling every edge of the screen, with the characters blending into this world seamlessly. It’s not a musical, so you won’t find characters breaking into song in the movie, but the haunting version of “Once Upon A Dream” at the start of the credits is worth sticking around for. (There’s nothing at the end of the credits, FYI.)

Overall, I’m glad I had the chance to see Maleficent and look forward to the second viewing with my kids. Your feelings on the ending will determine your ultimate love of the film, but even if you dislike the way the ending unfolds, you will still have plenty to praise in the acting, the stunning cinematography and CGI, and the touching emotional moments of the film. Personally, I loved this take on Maleficent, including the exploration of what drives someone to ultimate evil, and also what could possibly make someone reconsider their past actions and seek redemption.

No matter what, I think there’s going to be a new demand for the movie version of Maleficent to appear more often in the Disney Parks, in all of her evil glory. And that’s not a bad thing at all.

Disclosure: I received a pair of tickets to attend the preview screening of this film. Also, I was invited to attend the #DisneySMMoms Celebration. I paid my own conference and travel fees and received gifts during the conference from conference sponsors. All opinions, experiences and thoughts are my own.

One of the experiences I was most excited about when going to Disneyland for the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration was the two mile Fun Run being planned for some of the conference attendees by the RunDisney team. I had already been trying to get back into running, but seeing the opportunity to run through Disneyland and California Adventures gave me a renewed motivation to train harder.

Of course, this would happen to be the coldest, harshest winter we’ve had in a long time, meaning that the majority of my training was done indoors on my treadmill. I started back at week 1, day 1 for a couch-to-5K training program, finding even the first week difficult. I’d later realize that starting a running program when you have a bad cold, which then turns into sinus and ear infections, makes the path a little more rocky, but hey, I had a deadline to meet, as well as a time: they wanted us to average a 13 minute mile.

In the week before I left, I started to worry that I wasn’t ready. I had yet to get beyond week 3 of the training program, unable to run longer than three minutes without a break, and I couldn’t get my time to anywhere under a 14 minute mile. The weather had FINALLY turned nicer, though, and I decided to switch my running to the outdoors. I also ditched the couch-to-5K program and decided that I’d run until I just started to feel out of breath, then walk for a minute or two, then run again. The combination of finally running outdoors with more than the wall in front of me and running without a timed schedule worked: on my last run before I left for the conference, my two mile time was 25:42, just barely under 13 minutes per mile!

At registration in Anaheim, those of us who were running were asked to go to the end of the hallway, where we were fitted with new shoes, courtesy of New Balance, one of the sponsors. Their team of fit experts made me feel like Cinderella, only instead of a glass slipper they found the perfect running shoe for my foot. I also stopped to admire the limited edition Disney-themed running shoes they had on display. It’s only natural that Cinderella was one of the character-inspired designs.

Photo credit: Josh Hallett @hyku

With new shoes for my feet (thank you, New Balance!), I then visited the runDisney/ESPN table to talk a little more about the runDisney events. I had originally thought they only did marathons and half marathons, but learned last year that there are 5K and 10K events that often go with each of the larger events. (Kids races, too.) Each event looks like so much fun!

The run wasn’t until Sunday morning, which meant I had three days to wear out my feet with all of the walking around Disneyland. Luckily, I had spent a week walking around Walt Disney World not even two weeks prior, so my feet handled the stress without any problem. I was smart and stuck to sensible shoes, too.

We had to be up SUPER early on Sunday morning. Check-in was at 5:30am. I wondered how many people would show up in costume, or show up at all, at that early time. Part of my motivation was wearing something fun and Disney-themed to run in. I dressed as Anna from Frozen, with a little help from my soon-to-be favorite running skirts, SparkleSkirts:

And I found Olaf!

After a pep talk and warm ups, we all gathered at the starting line. They split us into two groups: the runners, and those who would follow a 30 second run/walk pattern. I could run longer than 30 seconds, but knew I couldn’t run all the way without a walk break. So I positioned myself somewhere in the middle, between the two groups. I’d try to stay with the runners as best I could.

I was starting my running music…the Frozen soundtrack, of course

It was amazing to run through the parks! For someone who loves Disney, having the chance to run down Main Street towards the castle, with the street quiet and empty, is simply surreal. As I ran (and walked), I kept thinking, “Is this really happening? Am I actually here, running through the castle, past the statue of Walt and Mickey?”

a sideways shot running out of the castle

Disneyland itself was fairly quiet, but once we left the gates and crossed the lot into California Adventure, we were presented with a different atmosphere. More cast members were on hand, directing us which way to go and cheering us on. You could feel the energy in their smiles. I was tiring out by this point, taking more walk breaks, but it was their enthusiasm that kept me going.

After running around the Paradise Pier area, we made the final turn into Carsland. I could see the balloon arch for the Finish line up ahead, along with the families and the runners who had already finished. I was already breathing hard with a pain in my side, but nearing that crowd made me launch myself into a sprint for the finish. I made it!

Photo credit: Josh Hallett – @hyku

I was tired at the end, but I also felt exhilaration for what I had just done. Two miles isn’t a lot to many people, but two miles in under 26 minutes was a great accomplishment for me. And there are few experiences that compare to running through the Disney parks in the quiet of the morning!

Lightning McQueen is holding me up at this point.

Reflecting on the experience, I picked up a few valuable lessons from this run:

1. “That’s what friends are for. They help you to be more of who you are.” Christopher Robin’s words reinforce the idea that a good community is invaluable. Some of the runners had formed a Facebook group to encourage and support each other as we trained for this event. Some were new to running, others experienced runners, and a lot fell in-between. Just when I felt like giving up before we even arrived, there were community members there to remind me that I could do it, I wanted to do it, and I wasn’t alone.

I wouldn’t have felt as prepared if it hadn’t been for the advice and encouragement I received from that group. It’s hard to do anything alone, but it’s so much easier when you have friends to remind you to keep going and not give up. It was wonderful to see each of them cross the finish line, too!

2. “Just keep swimming.” I’ve used Dory’s phrase many times since I first saw Finding Nemo, in many different situations. When you’re running, and your lungs are burning as you huff and puff for air, the finish line can seem awfully far away. I remember coming around a corner and seeing Paradise Pier, and then realizing I still had to run alllllll the way around it. But I wasn’t going to quit, right? No way! I had to keep going, reminding myself that I could get through it if I just kept swimming, swimming, just keep swimming…

3. “A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.” Mary Poppins was right – find the fun in any task, and it’s far easier to accomplish. Why did I put together a running costume? Because when you’re running through Disney, it feels more fun to run as a character! For that time, I was Anna, running through the magical world of Disney with the Frozen soundtrack in my head. Running is hard, but that two miles was probably the most fun I’ve ever had while running, which only makes me want to do it again.

This was a big revelation for me: if I want to find more success with running (and anything else in life), I have to find ways to make it more fun for me.

4. “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” Walt Disney’s quote is popular for a reason: there’s some solid truth in there. If you told me ten years ago that I could run two miles, I’d have laughed until I cried. I’ve always admired runners, but I was never a runner. Well, now I’m willing to challenge that idea. I want to be a runner, and I’m willing to pursue it. I feel that, with the right motivation, I can keep training and push myself further. I can apply this philosophy to anything I want to pursue in life as well.

It was a magical experience, and I’m so glad I decided to do it and didn’t give up.

Neither Aaron or I have done a runDisney event yet (other than this unofficial one for me), but the announcement of the new Avengers Super Heroes Half Marathon at Disneyland was enough inspiration for Aaron – he’s vowed that he will run in that event for his 40th birthday in three years. I’d be happy just to train for and run in the Princess 10K at Walt Disney World – a half-marathon seems far too out of reach for me, but if it’s a runDisney event to motivate me, I think I could be ready to attempt my first-ever 10K by next year.

Photo credit: Josh Hallett – @hyku