MALEFICENT (PG, 97 mins)  ****
Starring Angelina Jolie, Sharlto Copley, Elle Fanning, Sam Riley, Kenneth Cranham, Lesley Manville, Imelda Staunton, Juno Temple, Brenton Thwaites. Director: Robert Stromberg.

Inspired by Disney's 1959 animation Sleeping Beauty, Maleficent is a visually-stunning fantasy, which re-imagines the Grimm fairytale through the eyes of the eponymous villainess, who curses a fair princess to 100 years of slumber.

Lines between good and evil become blurred in Jolie’s delicious portrayal of the vengeful fairy queen, whose belief in the power of “true love’s kiss” is corrupted by the betrayal of the man she loves.

Sporting a hefty pair of horns, Jolie slinks through every frame, rolling menacing lines of dialogue around her mouth like candy and accentuating thinly veiled threats with an arched eyebrow.

Her nemesis is King Henry (Cranham), a greedy monarch, who yearns to expand his kingdom by conquering the forest where Maleficent holds sway.

In the ensuing battle, the king is badly wounded and pledges his crown to any man who can defeat the “winged elf”.

Lowly underling Stefan (Copley), who befriended Maleficent in childhood, tricks the fairy and steals her wings, thereby securing the throne. Following his coronation, King Stefan is poisoned by power and greed.

In the forest, Maleficent bides her time with her shape-shifter henchman Diaval (Riley).

When the queen gives birth to a daughter, Maleficent journeys to the castle to curse the infant Aurora: on her 16th birthday, the princess will prick her finger on a spinning wheel and fall into eternal slumber.

Only true love’s kiss can break the enchantment.

King Stefan entrusts the babe to bickering fairies Knotgrass (Staunton), Flittle (Manville) and Thistletwit (Temple), who raise Aurora in a secluded woodland cottage.

The princess blossoms into a caring young woman (now played by Fanning) and Maleficent wonders if this innocent could unite the feuding kingdoms and earn her happy ever after in the arms of dashing prince Phillip (Thwaites).

Maleficent is anchored by Jolie’s tour-de-force theatrics. She casts a stylish shadow over every frame and her twisted maternal bond with infant Aurora mellows into something genuinely heartfelt.