We received a review copy for editorial purposes.
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil Available on Digital 4K Ultra HD™,
Movies Anywhere and on 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray™
Disney’s live-action adaptations of their animated classics have proven to be a commercial success with the global audience. However, most of those features don’t have sequels, and if they did, they were given the direct-to-video treatment. That said, something like Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil is an opportunity to do something exciting and new. It is an expansion of the Sleeping Beauty mythology and the titular anti-hero that everyone loves. The sequel takes the popularity of the Game Of Thrones franchise and molds it so that it fits into this world that is beautified by its flora and fauna and chilling with its ice-cold queens.
Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil centers on Maleficent (Angelina Jolie), who travels outside of her woodland home to celebrate the wedding between her daughter Aurora (Elle Fanning) and Prince Phillip (Harrison Dickinson). The gathering is supposed to be joyous, but in reality, it is a trap set by Queen Ingrith (Michelle Pfeiffer), Philip’s mother, who plans to frame Maleficent for putting King John under the same eternal slumber that Aurora was under. This would trigger the land to attack the land’s fairies. Hoping to stop her, Maleficent joins forces with a seasoned warrior and a group of outcasts to battle the queen and her mighty army.
Bonus features include “Origins of the Fey” which takes a look at the world of Maleficent and her kind, including the cave dwellings and character designs. Other character designs bonuses include “Aurora’s Wedding,” which puts a fun twist on some unseen footage to turn the wedding preparations into a wedding video. Not exactly clear how medieval folk has access to this kind of technology, but it’s a silly bonus nonetheless. Another character-centric bonus feature is “Lickspittle” which goes behind the scenes of Warwick Davis‘ character and the laboratory that he is confined to.
But for those who are more interested in the technical aspects of the film, there’s some fun bonus features there as well. “If You Had Wings” takes a look at the technology that was used to make many of the flying sequences possible and how they achieved the look of Maleficent’s wings. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil VFX Reel takes a look at how the film blended practical and digital effects seamlessly.
Of course, you can expect to see the typical extended scenes and outtakes. Finally, there’s the music video for Bebe Rexha’s “You Can’t Stop the Girl,” which is a song that was featured at the end credits of Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil.
