22. Maleficent (May 30 US & UK)
Wicked was one origin story told from the perspective of a noted fictional villain that did extremely well in the musical realm; now Disney’s trying its own hand at showing how an ordinary-ish woman becomes The Mistress of All Evil in Maleficent (full disclosure: Maleficent is my favorite Disney character, and I, too, would be pissed off if I was the only person in the whole kingdom not invited to Aurora’s christening. I mean, RUDE.) The main draw, of course, is Angelina Jolie, and I’d like to think she took this role as a tongue-in-cheek fuck you to the legions of tabloid followers who think she’s a man-stealing sorceress. DID YOU HEAR THAT, RACHEL FROM FRIENDS.
However you feel about Jolie (I, for one, dig her schtick), you can’t argue against her being arresting enough to take a Disney movie to the dark places it needs to go. And Lana del Rey’s creepy baby doll voice is perfect for the haunting version of “Once Upon a Dream” in the recently released trailer. I’ll be seeing this, and I’ll be taking notes on how to destroy people’s lives. –GW
Whitlock&Pope 