I'll be surprised if this isn't the film you're talking about, Karo.
#11 – Sleeping Beauty (1959)
Best Character: Maleficent
Worst Characters: The Three Fairies
It’s unfortunate that Sleeping Beauty was so poorly received at the time of its release. Disney took a risk and brought in a totally different visual only for it to be received very negatively. The film was much more angular than its predecessors, a style employed to give the film a more medieval look to it. The look worked perfectly for the film, and the animation is one of my favorite parts about it. The film cost a lot of money to make and was unfortunately met as a box office failure, spiraling Disney downwards into the decision to cut animation costs with 101 Dalmatians. Unfortunate as this was, I can’t hold it against Sleeping Beauty.
There are a few plot holes that frustrate me too much to place this film into the top 10, despite how much I love the art style and Maleficent. Firstly, why do they need to hide Aurora as a baby? Couldn’t the king and queen raise her on their own until, say, when she turned 15, just before the curse took effect? At least then they could spend some time with her before her prophesized untimely death. As it was the fairies royally screwed up anyways, so at least the king and queen could have spent some time with their daughter. Seriously, the three fairies showed so much will power living without magic for 16 years only to stupidly relapse on literally the very last day the curse could have taken effect. I don’t think they understand how prophecies work. Secondly, why even risk brining Aurora back home on the day of her birthday, i.e. the very last day the curse could take effect. All of those years of hiding Aurora from Maleficent were wasted due to the decision to host a GIANT parade announcing her return. Pretty sure Maleficent would catch wind of that one. Now here is where the fairies really show how inept they are. They leave her alone inside the castle. I don’t remember how they justified leaving her alone, but whatever it was I can tell you it was completely inane. Of course while she’s alone Maleficent is able to get a hold of her and Aurora pricks her finger. The fairies know they screwed up. So what do they do? They cast a spell to place the entire kingdom in a deep sleep so that no one will have to endure the grief caused by Aurora’s own endless sleep. They clearly didn’t consider how stupid this idea was for a second, as had they really looked into it they would have realized that by putting everyone to sleep they would also put to sleep the one guy whose kiss could awaken Aurora and end the curse. Thankfully Prince Phillip avoided their idiocy and was literally the only person in the kingdom who managed to get out of range of the fairies’ spell.
Prince Phillip is the saving grace for the heroes. In contrast to some of the other princes of his time, Prince Phillip is miles ahead in terms of screen time and presence. He shows a little bit more personality than the others and has by far the greatest scene in the film. I mean, he’s kind of a creep, but he’s still likable. I just know if I were singing to myself in the woods I would freak the f*** out if some stranger creeped up behind me and started to sing along with me. Apparently it worked for Aurora however, as she fell head over heels in love with Prince Phillip immediately. The love at first sight is a nice concept, and it’s certainly used as a trope in many Disney films. For me though I need a little bit more development to truly appreciate a budding romance. It’s thus a little strange for me to see Aurora freaking out over not being allowed to visit Phillip again. Although I prefer Snow White and Cinderella to Aurora, she’s still likable enough. She doesn’t have much of a personality, but considering she’s asleep for half the film she doesn’t really need to. Her absence is a good thing, actually, as it gives Maleficent much more time to shine on her own.