Sleeping Beauty and Maleficent
Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty story is widely considered one of Disney’s best traditional fairytales, and modern-day Disney executives decided to translate the entire story to live action. I’m going to be comparing the Disney storybook version of Sleeping Beauty, to the modern day, live-action film, Maleficent, highlighting differences and similarities.
In the Disney story, we don’t find out why Maleficent wished such a curse on Aurora. She just showed up at the celebration, and cursed the baby. The fairy, Merryweather, was able to soften the curse in the book, but in the film, Maleficent made it appear as if she was softening the curse, although she didn’t believe she was. In the film, Maleficent cursed Aurora because her father, now the king, had Maleficent deep in love with him since they were children. Aurora’s father had always dreamed about being the king, and when he got the chance to pursue this dream, he took it; breaking Maleficent’s trust and her heart. He took her most beloved possession from her - her wings. Maleficent Thought she had found true love, because on her 16th birthday, before the king had stolen her wings, he gave her true love’s kiss. After finding out that royalty was more important to Aurora’s father than she was, she began to believe that there was no such thing as true love. In the film Maleficent, there is a lot of background added to the story, whereas in Disney’s story Sleeping Beauty, there is virtually no background added to Maleficent’s character, or her intentions.
In Disney’s story and in the live action film, the three good fairies were sent into the forest, disguised as peasant women, to raise Aurora until the day after her 16th birthday. Aurora was raised with no knowledge of where she came from, or that she was the princess of the land; she was now named Briar Rose, for the sake of keeping her safe, and a secret. In the film, Maleficent watches over Briar Rose and begins to interact with her and care about her, and love her. In both the film and the storybook, a prince comes across Briar Rose, and they are instantly attracted to each other. It is soon time for the princess to return to the castle, and her parents. In the book, the
The story of the Beauty and the Beast is well known amongst all ages. Though the story they portray in the Disney version is much different than what they have portrayed it in France. La Belle et la Bête has been produced twice, once in 1946 and again in 2014. These two movies tell the same story but in very different ways. The perception of this story has changed between the different time periods.
Throughout the years there have been many versions of the classic tale, “Cinderella.” From European style all the way to Disney. However, they are all based on the same ancient story. Step mother, step sisters, Cinderella marries the love of her life, you get the idea. Yet, each individual story has its own unique touch to make it stand out just a little bit more than the previous story. The two Cinderella stories that I’m going to be comparing are two Disney films. The first one I am going to discuss was released in early spring of 1950, called “Cinderella”. The second story is a remake called, “Another Cinderella Story” released in 2008. Both films based on the same story line, yet completely different.
Giambattista Basile’s dark rendition of “Sleeping Beauty,” entitled, “Sun, Moon and Talia,” is a story that brings the reader into a world that encompasses the idea of women being submissive creatures only valued for their beauty and at the mercy of men. The 2014 movie Maleficent, directed by Robert Stromberg, tries to subvert the notions of a male patriarchy by establishing Maleficent as an unlikely hero whose motivations go beyond the classic architype of a handsome prince claiming a one dimensional princess. Despite the movies attempts at establishing a more feminist friendly view of “Sleeping Beauty,” both Maleficent, and “Sun, Moon and Talia,” reduce the central characters of Aurora and Talia to simple props; completely devoid of
The story of Sleeping Beauty is told in many different forms and is most famous from Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty. For example, the fairytale “The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood” by Charles Perrault is quite different than Disney 's version. This fairytale should be researched because it has an interesting historical background and it is still culturally relevant to this day. The three main points that will be discussed about Sleeping Beauty in this paper is historical background, the different ways this fairytale is represented, and the cultural significance this story has on society. Researching this story has opened my eyes that the Sleeping Beauty movie I
Everyone loves a good fairytale, and nothing is quite as magical and heartwarming as a Disney fairytale. The themes of love, comedy, and morality deem them as more than just little kids' stories, but suitable and entertaining tales for the entire family. This is known by a majority of the stories' readers. However, what one may not be so familiar with is the origin of these tales. Where did the stories of Cinderella, Ariel, and Rapunzel come from? The Disney writers certainly did not create them themselves. The differences in the originals will shock anyone familiar with Disney. And what about Snow White? There are differences between the original Brothers Grimm version of the ebony-haired, white-skinned princess and the Disney movie, believe it or not. Some major differences between both versions are the multiple ways the evil queen tries murdering her stepdaughter, the cause of Snow White's revival, as well as how the evil queen died. Why the story was altered is obvious:
the castle in order protect her. Candles also make many appearances in well-known fairy tales such as in the interior of Prince Charming’s castle in Cinderella, in Aurora’s bedroom in Sleeping Beauty, and most famously as a romantic character that comes to life in Beauty and the Beast. The large castles that these candles reside in belong to Princes or Princesses much like the candles in Prince Prospero’s castle. Main characters find themselves searching for enlightenment in non ideal situations and the use of candles in these pictures correlate wonderfully. Fairy tales revolve around self sacrifice and love; supporting the symbolism of candles. Robert Corman incorporates candles in his movie cleverly by exemplifying a repressed relationship between fairy tales and the gothic genre.
The Fairy Queen controls the dynamics of their relationship. They meet and separate whenever the Fairy Queen feels the need to. The Fairy Queen’s beauty gives her power and control over Lanval. The concept of beauty as a method of control for women is not something new.
Finding the similarities and differences between two things using just the brain and memories can be difficult sometimes. Using the internet, books, and movies can be extremely beneficial when it comes to comparing and contrasting. Something good to compare and contrast , that is very popular, would be Beauty and The Beast, as there is an original book, a cartoon, and a remake movie. What is your favorite book that has a movie made about it?
The story Sun, Moon, and Talia by Giambattista Basile takes place in a medieval country house in the woods. The major characters in this version of Sleeping Beauty are Talia, the King, and the Queen. In the beginning of the story Talia gets put in a country house and gets raped by a King, Talia has twins, upsets the Queen who tries to murder the twins and Talia. The Queen ends up dead and the King, Talia, and their twins live happily ever after. Sleeping Beauty in the Woods by Charles Perrault is very different than the first and is set in a medieval castle. Sleeping Beauty, a Prince, and an Ogress are the main characters and there are also the fairies that gift Sleeping Beauty. The story all starts when Sleeping Beauty is born and an
Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm also known as the Grimm brothers are historically known for their uniqueness both in their styles of writing and the exceptional illustrations of their works. Their age old literature has been told and retold with the essence of gothic architecture and contemporary children's stories for decades now. This essay will contrast the Grimm brothers story of Rapunzel and Disney's story of Rapunzel, it will also include comparing their illustrations with Molly Bang's theory.
Cinderella by Grimm and its Disney version has the same plot and same main characters. Minor details are changed in the written fairy tale and its popular adaption but these changes can help to judge about the tendencies of the contemporary pop culture.
The portrayal of women, gender roles and stereotypes in Disney films has long been a controversial topic. Disney’s 1959 animated film, ‘Sleeping Beauty’, and Robert Stromberg’s 2014 live action remake, ‘Maleficent’, each provide a different take of Charles Perrault’s 1697 fairy tale, ‘La Belle au bois Dormant’ (‘The Sleeping Beauty’). The comparison of Aurora, one of the main characters from both films, brings into light the stark contrast in portrayals of gender roles as well as physical ideals and stereotypes in women. Emphasis or lack thereof on physical characteristics and gender representation from both texts challenge and reflect ideals and stereotypes that are impactful to the audience.
Although many view children's fiction as suitable only to children, and an embarrassingly immature pursuit for a serious person, children' stories mold the way we think. They allows us to look at very complex and difficult issues in a safe and playful way, and they give us the freedom to imagine the unimaginable.
So, is it reasonable to conclude that Princess Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty is just another condescending example of a maiden in distress saved by a man? Not in my opinion. All solid love affairs are partly founded on commensurate, mutual need: the greater the mutual need, the greater the love affair. Prince Désiré, who has difficulty relating to countless beautiful countesses in his kingdom, is a man clearly floundering. Unquestionably, Aurora saves him every bit as much as he saves her. There is no human relationship more apropos or equal, moreover, than that which binds two genuine lovers. What these two strangers separated by 3/4s of a century or so in age have in common is, furthermore, their golden inner core—their princely characteristics:
In Sleeping Beauty, the Prince is portrayed a strong and courageous person, he can be seen as a great character because he overcomes many obstacles to be able to help the Princess survive. Although Sleeping Beauty is a fairy tale and is stereotypically more admired by girls, the masculine tale might be liked by the male population because they aspire to be the male hero. Maleficent shows the feminine tale and warns the girls that not men cannot be trusted in some cases, and that there is no need to have a man by your side. A woman can survive on their own using her own intelligence and courage to overcome any obstacle that she might face. For the female population, this change is very important because this “hero” story helps us relate to the character and our desire to do great and special acts (Seger 387). This film proved that a woman is capable of defeating evil, and brings a new perspective into Disney