Sleeping Beauty

Plot synopsis:
King Stephen and his wife have been blessed with the birth of a daughter, Princess Aurora. Many travel to pay their respects to the birth of the Princess. Also attending the event, are King Hubert, and his son, Prince Phillip, who have journeyed from a neighboring kingdom. Through an agreement between the two rulers, Phillip is betrothed to Aurora, and their marriage will unite the two kingdoms when they come of age.Also in attendance, are the Three Good Fairies, Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather. Each has come to bestow a gift on the Princess. Flora gives the gift of beauty, Fauna the gift of song. However, before Merryweather can bestow her gift, a gale wind blows through the great hall, signifying the arrival of Maleficent, a sorceress from The Forbidden Mountain. Upset over not having been invited, Maleficent casts a spell, promising that once Aurora turns 16, she'll prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel, and die. Stephen orders Maleficent captured, but she disappears with a laugh and a plume of smoke.Flora and Fauna persuade Merryweather to use her 'gift' to possibly stave off Maleficent's spell. Through her 'gift,' Aurora will not die, but only lay in sleep, until kissed by her true love. Even so, King Stephen still is fearful, and orders every spinning wheel in the kingdom to be burned.The three fairies ponder what to do to prevent Maleficent's curse from taking effect. They then decide to hide their magic and change their appearances, appearing as peasant women. The three then persuade the King and Queen that they will hide their daughter until she turns 16, and take her to an abandoned woodcutter's cottage.The years pass by, and as Aurora's 16th birthday approaches, the people of the Kingdom rejoice, as atop the Forbidden Mountain, the atmosphere has stayed in a constant clouded thunder, a sign of Maleficent's mood, and that her own quest to find the hidden Princess has not been fulfilled. Maleficent's mood is also foul in that her minions have only been searching for a baby for the last 16 years, not realizing that Aurora would grow up. After punishing her minions, Maleficent sends her crow Diablo to find the Princess.After 16 years, the Princess has grown into a lovely young woman, whom the three fairies have named Briar Rose. On the eve of her 16th birthday, the three fairies (who've convinced the Princess that they are her 'aunts') send her out to pick berries, while they prepare a birthday cake for her. The Princess walks through the forest, confiding in some forest animals that follow her, that she dreams of one day meeting a handsome prince. Close by, some of the animals find a red cape, a hat, and some boots, and after taking their places, create a make-shift 'dream prince' for the young woman to dance with.However, it just so happens that these items belong to Prince Phillip, who has been riding through the forest on his horse, Samson. Phillip finds the Princess, and the two share a dance, though neither knows that they are their betrothed. The Princess is enchanted by the young man, but remembering how the fairies told her not to talk to strangers, runs away. However, she does tell the Prince where she lives.Aurora returns to the cottage to find a dress and a cake made for her by the three faeries. Excitedly, she explains how she met someone in the forest, whom she is in love with. It is then that the three faeries reveal who they really are, and that she is betrothed to Prince Phillip. When they explain that she must not meet this 'stranger' again, Aurora runs to her room, distraught. During all this, none of them have noticed Maleficent's raven, Diablo, peeking in through a window, before flying off to tell Maleficent.Back at King Stephen's Castle, King Hubert is also in attendance, as the entire court is preparing for Aurora to return. Stephen speaks grandly of the future for their children, as Phillip arrives. Phillip grandly tells his father about the 'peasant girl' he met in the woods, and hopes to marry. Hubert is upset at these turn of events, and tries to persuade his son to remember his betrothal, but Phillip rides back to the forest and to the cottage.In the meantime, the 3 faeries have brought Aurora into the castle through a secret entrance, to prepare her to meet her family. However, she is still upset about never seeing the young man in the woods again. The 3 faeries give her some time to herself, but in their absence, Maleficent opens a secret passage in the castle room, and Aurora, under a trance, follows a floating green orb through the passageway.When the three faeries enter the room, they find Aurora following the green light, and give chase. However, before they can catch her, Aurora has pricked her finger on an enchanted spinning wheel, and now lays crumpled on the floor, with Maleficent cackling wickedly over the faerie's failure to safeguard her.Outside in the castle courtyard, the kingdom prepares to welcome the Princess home. However, in a tower room, the 3 faeries have placed Aurora on a bed, distraught over what has happened. It is then that Flora decides to put the entire Kingdom to sleep, until Aurora is awakened. As they finish putting King Stephen and King Hubert asleep, Flora hears Hubert talk about the Prince meeting a 'peasant girl.' Deducing that it was Phillip that Aurora had met in the forest, they remember her saying how the person she met would be coming to the woodcutter's cottage. Hoping to get to him and awaken Aurora, they set off through the forest, only to find the cottage door wide open, and Phillip's hat on the floor. The three deduce that Maleficent must have captured him, and taken him to her castle on the Forbidden Mountain.The three sneak into the castle, where they find Maleficent's goons celebrating, while she pays a visit to Prince Phillip, stuck in a dungeon. Maleficent taunts Phillip with images of Aurora sleeping, and of one day, sending him off to wake the Princess, once he and his horse Samson have aged considerably, laughing at the very idea.Once she leaves, the three faeries free Phillip, and arm him with the 'Shield of Virtue,' and the 'Sword of Truth.' With his new weapons, and the faeries' help, Phillip finds Samson, and they ride off toward King Stephen's castle.Maleficent tries to strike down Phillip with lightning bolts, but the 'Shield of Virtue' deflects them. Before he can reach the castle, her magic creates a forest of thorns that surrounds the structure. Phillip triumphs and cuts his way through with the 'Sword of Truth.' Outraged at his determination, Maleficent appears before Phillip, transforming herself into a dragon. The Prince appears to be no match for the enormous beast, until the three faeries guide the 'Sword of Truth' into Maleficent's heart, felling her once and for all.With evil vanquished, Phillip is led to Aurora's bedside, and his kiss awakens her and the entire kingdom. As King Hubert and King Stephen awaken, the sound of trumpets heralds the arrival of Phillip and Aurora, and it is soon made clear to Hubert that it was actually Aurora that Phillip met in the woods. The two then share a dance as their parents and the three faeries watch.

Tags: good versus evil, psychedelic, fantasy

Review:
When I was a little girl, Sleeping Beauty was my all time favorite Disney film.
I really miss these old Disney movies where the animation was so bright and beautiful, the characters were so lovable, and the story was so magical.
Sleeping Beauty is just a timeless story and has so much wonderful romance, I guess since I'm a girl, I just couldn't help but still be in love with this beautiful story.Princess Aurora is born and is the future queen of her land, three fairy's, Flora, Merryweather, and Fauna bless her with three gifts: beauty and song, right as Merryweather is about to bless Aurora, the evil witch, Maleficent, comes in and curses Aurora that she shall touch a spinning wheel by her 16th birthday and die!
Now the fairy's need Phillipe to save Aurora before it's too late.Everything about Sleeping Beauty is just a perfect Disney film and I can't wait until to show this to my future kids one day.
The voices, the animation, the story, Sleeping Beauty is the most romantic fairy tale that anyone could easily fall in love with.
However, like it's predecessor "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (1937) which was Disney's first fairy tale, as well as his first full-length film, this screen adaptation of "Sleeping Beauty" strays from it's origins.
(I love the sequence with the forest animals as they are awakened by the singing of the barefoot princess and join up with her, like multiple chaperons, in harmonious whistles.) Even the fairy godmothers- who may initially appear as sugary stereotypes- spend so much time bickering (well, two of them do anyway) that you get to identify them as thoroughly fleshed out personalities.
This is a film that can be enjoyed on so many different levels--music, animation, story, art work--it ranks with the very best of the classic fairy-tales from Disney.
This Disney cartoon feature has the familiar-princess-in-distress theme of a lovely girl, kind fairies, a handsome prince, forbidding castles and an evil witch.
If there was no other likable thing about the movie, the animation would go a long way to saving it.The story of Sleeping Beauty is, of course, set in stone.
Only "The Black Cauldron" took as much time as this to be made, but we can't compare "The Black Cauldron" to the undeniably superior "Sleeping Beauty".There is a curious fact that surrounds the movie's final scene (when Prince Phillip and Princess Aurora dance above the clouds): that "trick" was actually tried in "Cinderella", but they only managed to do it successfully in "Sleeping Beauty".As a movie, generally speaking it is pretty good, happy, pleasant, magic, romantic, sometimes dramatic and emotional, while classic humor is not forgotten either (there are many funny moments, actually).
Even if "Sleeping Beauty" has its dark side, it isn't much darker than what we see in many other Disney animated films.Maleficent is the kind of villain I can't find a correct word to describe: an evil queen?
Speaking of animals, Maleficent's pet raven is an interesting character yet a bit annoying - what a snitch that thing is!As for the soundtrack, it is entirely beautiful but the best is in "Once Upon a Dream" and the famous classical music "Sleeping Beauty ballet" by Tchaikovsky.Just to finalize my review, this movie was very unsuccessful when it originally came out in 1959, almost bankrupting the Disney studio.
Sleeping Beauty is one of Disney's finest, and a perfect example of how the make-believe world of witches, fairies, kings and princesses can truly enthral and fill a young heart with wonder.King Stefan and Queen Leah welcome the birth of their daughter, Princess Aurora (Mary Costa), and invite their subjects to pay homage at their castle.
The curse is dented somewhat when Merryweather intercepts, meaning that Aurora will not die, but will fall into an eternal sleep unless she receives true love's kiss.Inspired by the Brothers Grimm's Little Briar Rose and The Sleeping Beauty by Charles Perrault, the film, under the directorial supervision of Clyde Geronimi, has some of the finest animation work ever put out by Disney.
But after a series of missed opportunities, I finally watched Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" all the way.Still, it wasn't that new an experience, I remember being mesmerized by the TV versions of the classic fairy-tale, I saw two when I was 9, and the story had no secret for me, especially because the two films where relatively faithful to Perrault's original book (in one of them, Aurora was actually named 'Briar Rose' and I thought it was just an artistic license).
Speaking of the story, I thought it was surprisingly dark, projecting our deepest fears like being struck by a malevolent curse such as the spindle of the wheel, and living in the constant fear that it would be complete, not to mention the creepy vision of a whole town put in a comatose state for a whole century, a device that a child could easily assimilate to death.Although it deviates from the original material, "Sleeping Beauty" magnificently renders the sinister atmosphere of the story and one of its strongest aspects relies on the depiction of magic through the eternal opposites: good and evil.
In fact, for a Disney film, the film gets strangely explicit by always referring to the antagonism between good and evil through the devilish incarnation of Maleficent, who's more than your usual Witch.And perhaps this is the main achievement of "Sleeping Beauty", to exploit familiar archetypes from previous Disney classics, without recycling them.
Given the role she's supposed to have in the original story, the main players being the fairies, Maleficent and the Prince, her lack of screen-presence doesn't damage her characterization at all, hell, even her smile when she's waken up isn't the same ecstatic enthusiasm than Snow White but rather looks like a clever 'here you are' wink.
The four roles are fairly distributed and the best thing it did was to spare us from too much cute little animals as time-fillers.If not as revolutionary as "Snow White" or as popular as "The Lion King", the film features three classic scenes, so-defining of what Disney stood for: the magic christening, the climactic good vs.
"Sleeping Beauty" uses all the archetypes of the fairy-tales and Disney previous successes and the result is a classic masterpiece of Animation, certainly the most defining of Disney, since even the castle where Aurora lies in the highest tower became Walt Disney's all-time trademark..
For some reason, there's a whole swathe of classic 40's and 50's Disney classics I've not yet seen, including "Cinderella", "Pinocchio", "Dumbo", "Bambi", "101 Dalmations", "The Lady & The Tramp" and up until now, this lovely, warming re-telling of the classic "love conquers all" fairy tale.It's a long time since I've sat so rapt by a movie, an animated one at that, my eyes and ears never leaving the screen, even knowing as we all do, how the story ends.
Only once did I detect the encroachment of the modern, with references to "this is the fourteenth century, you know!", but this was only the mildest of jarrings if I'm being honest.The animation is delightful, particularly the backgrounds and there are some particularly eye-catching segments, two I particularly liked being the three good fairies' transformation into pixie-size and one of Malificent's entrances where she's reduced to a set of eye-slits and green light.Tchaikovsky's orchestral music is lovely, although some of the songs are a little starchy plus there's a bit too much of the young lovers' royal fathers if I'm carping, but with its gentle humour ("make it pink, make it blue") and sheer Disney magic firmly in place, this delightful movie will waft all but the coldest heart to a lovely place long ago and far away..
Sleeping Beauty mayn't have the strongest story development in a Disney movie, but neither the ballet or the fairytale have the best story development either, no matter how beautiful the film really is.The characters were unforgettable.
The good fairy helps turn this around, but only in a little way...Recommended to anyone who likes the fairytale, the ballet or the princess stuff of "Sleeping Beauty".
The story itself is a pure joy, based on Charles Perrault's ever enduring fairytale, it's awash with rich characters, led by the delightful three fairy godmothers - Flora - Fauna and Merryweather, all plumpy and sweet, while evil witch Maleficent is brilliantly produced, with a long pointy chin and devil horns on her head.There's a whole bunch of charming fun on show, as the three ladies bring the magic and potter around while gently ribbing each other, but it's with the drama where Sleeping Beauty most soars.
The nightmare sequence luring Briar Rose (Princess Aurora) to the dreaded spinning wheel is unnerving, and the battle between Prince Phillip and Maleficent is exhilarating and shows the animators at their best.
Sleeping Beauty, from 1959, was the final fairy tale produced by Walt Disney himself and remains one of his studio's most under-cherished works.
Tchaikovsky's music from the ballet Sleeping Beauty is beautifully adapted into the musical numbers and background scoring.Not for people looking for emotional depth, but for those who aren't adverse to style over substance films, this is excellent stuff.
It for me comes joint first with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1936) and heres why.Apart from the amazing scenery and beautiful bewitching score, like all of Disney films, its the voices of the actors that made the characters come alive.
Walt Disney's first widescreen animated film is a variation on the "Snow White" legend, as Princess Aurora is cursed by evil witch queen Maleficent to die before her 16th birthday by pricking her finger on a spindle wheel.
To prevent this, her father the King sends her into the care of three good but bumbling fairy godmothers who raise her, but are still unable to prevent the curse, though Aurora's love Prince Philip will revive her with a kiss, if he can first survive the trap set for him by Maleficent, and then battle her when she transforms herself into a huge dragon.
In spite of the screenplay being quite straightforward and predictable (like you can expect from Disney at that time), there are some clever twists on the love story, which catches the interest of the viewers.So don't miss "Sleeping Beauty".
Classic Disney fairy tale adaptation about a princess named Aurora who is cursed by an evil witch named Maleficent.
I'm no film historian but it seems like, in many ways, this movie represents the end of an era for animated Disney films that began with Snow White in 1937.
Either way when I sat to watch this the other day as a man in his mid-30's it did very much feel like I was coming to the total film for the first time and I was quite surprised by how simply it engaged and entertained me.The plot is simple and will be known to all and within this telling we do pretty much go from one bit to the next with little in the way of extrapolation or development – a potential problem for older viewers looking to get into it, but it still manages to work.
The broad strokes of a fairy tale are here – the good fairies are non-threatening and comic while the evil fairy is tall, lean, strict and menacing; the prince is handsome, the princess stunning etc and it does feel like being read to as a child because it is simple yet vivid in the way it is told.It is easy (and tempting) to look at the film with a cynical modern eye and criticise it for its presentation of beauty and its gender politics but, while I do believe that things like this film and Barbie and others had a major role in shaping the view of beauty, it is not a thought that occurred to me once while watching the film.
The voice work perhaps lacks the character of modern animated films, but all are good in their various roles – in particular the evil fairy is strong in her presence.Overall Sleeping Beauty is considered a classic and it is so for good reason – because it is.
It is the type of film that parents will want their children to see because it is simple, engaging, well presented, beautiful to look at and tells a story that has danger and evil in it while also showing the power of love and that good will always prevail.
Sleeping Beauty is a film filled with captivating animation, beautiful music, and loving characters.The film starts off with the revealing of the princess Aurora and how the kingdom loved her and even the three good fairies Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather loved the young princess.
Sleeping Beauty was my first ever Disney film, I saw it when I was 4 years old, I loved it and still do!
"Sleeping Beauty" is one of my favorite fairy tales from Charles Perrault, along with "Cinderella" and "Puss n' Boots."I'd love the scenery, it's like stepping through a magic tapestry and going back in time to the Middle Ages.
This film has a top-notch voice acting like : · Mary Costa...Princess Aurora/Briar Rose, · Bill Shirley...Prince Phillip, · Eleanor Audley...Maleficent, · Barbara Luddy...Merryweather, the Blue Fairy, and...
Widescreen Disney animated fairy tale with music classily adapted from Tchaikovsky has three good fairies sheltering a princess, who has been doomed by a curse.
Walt Disney's 16th full-length animated feature "Sleeping Beauty" (1959) could really be retitled "The Three Good Fairies" instead.
The prince is probably the best developed out of the three Disney princess movies made while Walt was alive ("Snow White", "Cinderella", and "Sleeping Beauty").
Though not a success on its release, Sleeping Beauty is a visual wonder and has some of the best elements ever put in a Disney film.
But I've become curious about the old Disney films, so I thought I'd take a look.While the title focuses on sleeping beauty, the movie itself focuses on good and bad magic, the good represented by three fairies, the bad by the wicked Malificent.
This is fortunate, because the beauty and her love interest are painfully dull; Disney's attempt to create classically attractive people is rather unattractive.The fairies, on the other hand, are delightful and often quite funny, and Malificent is a wonderful character who I imagine would be rather scary for children.
Sleeping Beauty (1959) *** 1/2 (out of 4) Disney classic about an evil fairy who puts a curse on a young princess putting her to sleep and only a prince can awaken her with a kiss.
"Sleeping Beauty" looks like an actual film - rich in color, detail, staging, etc.And this is all, of course, rooted in one thing, which the unbelievably convincing artistry of the Disney staff in creating this world.
Four stars for "Sleeping Beauty", the best of the "Classic" Disney films.
I don't think Disney could ever make a "They lived happily ever after" type story again and that is why we must appreciate the classics left from the past, Sleeping Beauty being (in my opinion) the best of them all.
Sleeping Beauty is one of those animated Disney movies with some of the best elements ever created by them and at the same time it has drawbacks which stick out like sore thumb.
If you like exeptional artwork, great music, entertaining side characters and all power of hell brought to you by The Queen of Darkness herself then you definitely must see Disney's Sleeping Beauty..
Just as his "Snow White" (1937) was a cinematic breakthrough years before, Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" is a masterpiece of animation.
Memorable scenes include: the good fairies trying to prepare a birthday party without their magic, Aurora's meeting with Phillip in the forest, and the thrilling showdown between Malificent and the prince.A truly wonderful piece of art, and one of the best animated features.
Sleeping Beauty is absolutely one of the best Disney movies ever made, truely standing the test of time even now forty years after it's creation.
If she will fall asleep the only thing that can save her is a prince who kisses her.'Sleeping Beauty' is not as good or charming as the early Disney classics like 'Snow White', 'Dumbo' or 'Pinocchio' but it has some wonderful moments.
With music adapted from Tchaikovsky's 'Sleeping Beauty Ballet' and some nice animation it is worth seeing, and for Disney fans may be more..
And, back at the time (1959), it would also be their most expensive and elaborate production ever.Set in 14th Century England, this film's story is actually a very simple and straightforward telling of the classic fairy tale, with music adapted from Tchaikovsky.At birth, Aurora, daughter of King Stefan and Queen Leah, is cursed by the wicked sorceress, Maleficent.
Sleeping Beauty is not among my favorite fairytales,but this movie is nice.Voice acting and animation are great,especially by Maleficent.Maleficent is my favorite Disney villain,even though her character ,like Ursula's ,is made more evil than in the original fairytale.She is cruel,yet elegant.Also,she is one of the first people to say Hell in the animated movie.Music is inspired by Tchaikovsky and is very good.Aurora,Philip and the fairies are very nice.Overall,great.10/10.
Sleeping Beauty is one of Walt Disney's greatest films made.
The music is forgettable and Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) is the worst Disney princess she has nothing going for her in anyway.
Walt Disney's Sleeping Beauty is one of those movies.
As for me, I am perfectly comfortable in going further than that to call Sleeping Beauty the best animated film of all time..
Maleficent is by far the best character in the film and probably the greatest Disney villain ever to step onto the screen.
Sleeping Beauty is the perfect Disney animated feature.
The tale of the Sleeping Beauty is a well known fairy tale, but I personally thought this animated Disney movie was actually quite forgettable.