In most of the world, the new year has begun. As such I decided to put on one of my favorite Disney films that reflects some of my personality. That movie is Disney's Sleeping Beauty. This film is not as old as some may think. Released in 1959, Sleeping Beauty has one Disney's most iconic villains, castles, but least popular Disney princess. (Who happens to be my favorite.)
Once upon a time, there lived a king and queen who desperately wanted a child. At long last a daughter was born, and named her Aurora. "Yes they named her after the dawn, for she filled their lives with sunshine." At the christening of her birth, she receives gifts, (from her betrothed Prince Philip and the fairies: Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather,) such as beauty and song. Just as Merryweather is about to give her gift, the evil fairy, Maleficent interrupts. She is angry that she wasn't invited, so in response to this, she places a curse upon the baby princess. "Before the sun sets on her sixteenth birthday, she shall prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and die!" Laughing evilly, Maleficent vanishes. Now Merryweather has her chance to bestow her gift on the princess. Since she cannot undo the spell, she changes it. "Sweet princess, if through this wicked witch's trick, a spindle should your finger
prick... a ray of hope there still may be in this, the gift I give to
thee. Not in death, but just in sleep, the fateful prophecy you'll keep.
And from this slumber you shall wake, when true love's kiss, the spell
shall break." Will true love conquer, or is the Sleeping Beauty doomed to endless slumber? 
For a Disney animated feature, Sleeping Beauty is set apart from the others because of its style. For our characters, the Disney artists used a technique known as "ink and paint" to color them. The rest of the film has a medieval, or gothic, look to it. The forest and castle backgrounds are beautiful. This is great considering that the time period set for the film is the 14th century. One of the absolute best features of Disney's Sleeping Beauty is the music. The entire film is set to none other than Tchaikovsky's ballet of Sleeping Beauty. (Fun fact: The film makers chose this music because it hadn't been copyrighted yet.) The score is beautiful, and meshes perfectly with the look and characters of the film. Sleeping Beauty couldn't possible be any better without this. Only Disney himself could get a film like this together.
A word concerning the title character: This is my only criticism for the film. Princess Aurora, AKA Sleeping Beauty, only has 18 lines throughout the entire film. Most of her screen time is when she's in the forest. Otherwise, a lot of the story seems to be centered around the three good fairies and what lengths they're taking for Aurora.
Despite this, Disney's Sleeping Beauty is a MUST for any Disney collection. If you haven't seen it already, I recommend it!
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