Summary
Scene 9 (Bring Them To Me)
Aurora grows into a young woman, beautiful just as the fairies' gifts intended. Aurora explores the natural world fearlessly and cares for living things, just as Maleficent did as a young girl. Maleficent watches Aurora with curiosity. One winter, Aurora approaches the wall, wondering what lays beyond. Maleficent puts Aurora into an enchanted sleep.
While Aurora is unconscious, Maleficent approaches the ironworkers stationed at the wall and levitates them to demonstrate her power and for her own amusement. After ceasing her curse, Maleficent realizes the soldiers' armor is made of iron.
Scene 1 (Goodnight Beasty)
Maleficent brings the unconscious Aurora through the wall of thorns and into the Moors. Aurora awakens and looks with delight at the magical creatures. Maleficent hides from Aurora, who eventually convinces her to show herself, despite Maleficent's assertions that Aurora will be afraid to see her.
Aurora mistakes Maleficent for her "fairy godmother" and explains how she knew Maleficent watched over her for her entire life. Though Maleficent is startled by Aurora's mistake, she goes along with the story so she can maintain her relationship with Aurora. Maleficent then places Aurora into another sleep and leads her out of the Moors and back to her cottage. After laying Aurora carefully in her bed, Maleficent says, "Goodnight, beasty."
Scene 11 (Trying to Resolve the Curse)
Stefan sits alone in a dark room, talking to Maleficent's wings about how he plans to vanquish Maleficent. A palace servant tries to summon Stefan to see the queen, who is unwell and might not survive the night. However, Stefan dismisses the servant, maddened by his inability to resolve the curse. Alone, Stefan states that "when the curse fails," Maleficent will come for him, and he "will be ready."
In the Moors, Maleficent watches Aurora play with the magical creatures, throwing mud. One creature accidentally splashes mud on Maleficent, who smiles instead of retaliating. Later, while Aurora sleeps, Maleficent goes to Aurora's bedroom and attempts to revoke her curse. However, Maleficent realizes that she cast the curse so it will "last till the end of time" and "no power on earth can change it," and it is thus unbreakable.
Scene 12 (I Have A Plan)
One evening, Aurora asks Maleficent why she doesn't have wings like the other fairies. Maleficent explains that her wings were "stolen" and says how much she loved them. Nostalgically, she explains that her wings never failed her, and she could "trust" them. Wracked with guilt, Maleficent tries to explain the truth of the curse to Aurora, but Aurora interrupts her, explaining that she has "a plan" to move to the Moors and live with Maleficent when she turns sixteen. Maleficent invites Aurora to move into The Moors.
Stefan wakes up in the middle of the night, dreaming of Maleficent's screams when she realized he had stolen her wings. Frantic, Stefan goes to his military and commands the general to wake up the workers and continue to try and enter the Moors.
Analysis
Aurora's childhood parallels Maleficent's both visually and narratively. Child Maleficent is depicted caring for other living beings and exploring the world fearlessly. An orphan, Maleficent was often alone, just as Aurora, who believes her parents are dead and is ignored by the three fairies, is often alone. As Aurora experiences moments of authentic joy, like rolling in autumn leaves and running through fields, the film cuts to shots of Maleficent watching Aurora curiously. This visual choice demonstrates how, as Maleficent sees herself in Aurora, she grows to love the princess and accept herself in the process.
The parallels between Maleficent's childhood and Aurora's also mark Maleficent's growth as a character. For example, when Maleficent is a child, magical creatures throw mud at her, and she reacts with anger. However, Aurora plays with the same creatures, throwing mud, which hits Maleficent in the face. The creatures respond with fear of Maleficent's reaction but Maleficent, inspired by Aurora's kindness, simply laughs. Thus, Aurora's character arc not only parallels Maleficent's, but propels it.
Maleficent's wardrobe visually reflects her mood and character arc. When Maleficent is enraged, like when she attacks the soldiers, she dresses in all black and wears a leather crown over her hair and horns. However, in moments that demonstrate her love and affection for Aurora, she wears lighter colors. For example, when Maleficent visits the cottage to revoke the curse, she wears a golden-brown dress, and golden magic flows from her hands. These colors symbolize Maleficent's "heroic" attributes, whereas black and acid green symbolize her "villainous" choices.
The film's color and light theory are best represented in the scene when Maleficent tries to tell Aurora the truth about her curse. In this scene, Maleficent wears all black, though she and Aurora sit in the brightly lit, flowering Moors. Thus, the scene visually contrasts Maleficent's pure and selfless love for Aurora, represented by the setting, against the pain Maleficent feels at dealing with the consequences of her hatred-motivated actions, represented by her costuming.
Maleficent conjures the wall of thorns to physically prevent Stefan from entering the Moors. The wall of thorns symbolizes the emotional barriers she used to protect herself after Stefan's betrayal. Stefan's early visit to the Moors allowed him to metaphorically enter Maleficent's heart, making his betrayal emotionally painful. By barricading "what little [is] left of [her] heart," Maleficent closes herself off to others. However, Maleficent willingly leads Aurora through the wall of thorns, demonstrating that she is slowly growing to love Aurora and letting her into her heart.
When Maleficent attempts to revoke the curse and fails, the film plays audio of Maleficent saying "this curse will last till the end of time. No power on earth can change it," from the scene where she curses Aurora. This callback reinforces that Maleficent alone is responsible for the curse she placed on Aurora, and must reckon with the consequences of her own actions.
Similarly, Stefan is shown talking to Maleficent's wings and hearing Maleficent's screams. Rather than putting the past behind him, Stefan mounts Maleficent's wings in a cabinet. In this cabinet, the wings are neither a hunting trophy nor a hidden source of shame, but a combination of both. When Stefan misses the queen's death to talk to the wings, his madness demonstrates how deeply his betrayal corrupted him as well.
When Aurora asks Maleficent about her wings, Maleficent initially does not want to speak of them beyond explaining that the wings were "stolen." However, since Maleficent's love for Aurora allows her to be emotionally vulnerable, Maleficent begins to share more about the strength of her wings and the freedom flying gave her. Maleficent speaks about her wings as though they are a separate, sentient entity. This choice demonstrates the depth of Maleficent's loss, as she grieves the loss of a close friend rather than a change in her physical body. This choice also foreshadows a future scene, when Maleficent's wings reattach themselves to her body of their own volition.
