Angelina Jolie, in taking her first major acting role in years, wanted something “crazy and silly” to counter the more serious parts of her life and her idea of fun was to play a baddie who looks pretty darn scary to children. Maleficent is a villain, and one of Disney’s most popular since she appeared as the wicked fairy in the 1959 animated feature “Sleeping Beauty,” in which she casts an evil spell on the princess. The modern reimagining of that allows Jolie to show the hurt that sparked her character’s evil side and how she overcomes it.
