Sleeping Beauty : Aurora is not the main character in this movie

Aurora is not the main character in this movie

One of the biggest criticisms of Sleeping Beauty is that its anti-feminist because Aurora is a passive heroine that has to get rescued by a man. And that is a pathetic criticism.

It frustrates me because anyone who actually watches the movie should realize that the fairies, not Aurora, are the protagonists of the story. Every major event of the film that takes place is the result of either their actions or Maleficent's. Aurora is not the heroine of the movie.

Aurora is more of a plot device than an actual character. And that is fine because the movie is NOT her story. Several of the events of the movie revolve around her, but these events are never caused by her own actions.


The three fairies, ALL of which are FEMALE are the ones who save the day. They RESCUE Phillip, they give him the magical weapons, they use spells to fight off Maleficent's minions and are the ones who arrange for Phillip to be able to kiss Aurora.

Case in point, this movie is not anti-feminist. Aurora is not a feminist character, but she is not the focus of the story. And neither is Phillip for that matter. If it were not for the fairies, he would have remained Maleficent's prisoner for the rest of his days.

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

''Anti-Feminist'' what a load of crap. This film is based on a story centuries old-and, it's always an unmitigated disaster when someone tries to ''reboot'' a classic to conform to the current ''sensibilities'' of contemporary audiences. See ''Maleficent'' (2014) for proof of that.

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

"...it's always an unmitigated disaster when someone tries to ''reboot'' a classic to conform to the current ''sensibilities'' of contemporary audiences. See Maleficent (2014) for proof of that."


Maleficent was No. 1 at the box office, and to date has grossed over $700 million mark in global box office (on an estimated $180M budget).

I suspect more studios would like to have such disasters.

Post deleted

This message has been deleted.

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

I'm not saying Aurora is a good character (she really isn't), but just because she herself isn't a strong female does not mean that the movie lacks strong female characters.

I think the fairies are very good characters and they are female. Yes they can be goofy and unconventional, but at the end of the day they are the most active characters and they save the day (Phillip would not have escaped or have gotten magical weapons or have been able to get through the thorns without the fairies).

Post deleted

This message has been deleted.

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

I don't even get the criticism for Cinderella's character. What else was she supposed to do in her situation? In that time period a woman could not simply leave her family and get a job. Marriage was really her only ticket out.

Post deleted

This message has been deleted.

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

Very true. I agree.

RIP
Jeff Hanneman
1964-2013

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

You are absolutely right. I never thought about it before but Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather are the heroes of this story. Thanks for your outstanding insight!

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

and that's not forgetting that, from a feminist perspective, Maleficent is a good villain. Her gender is kind of incidental. The story would still pretty much be the same if she were a male. She's not jealous of Aurora's beauty, she doesn't want to enslave men, she's simply just pure evil.

I'm gonna die of long hair!

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

Great point! Yes, I love that Maleficent is not motivated by vanity like the queen in "Snow White." The female characters in "Sleeping Beauty" are terrific feminist icons.

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie


It frustrates me because anyone who actually watches the movie


That's just the thing--the harshest critics either haven't actually watched this movie (and others) or watched it but did not see what is actually in it (or saw only what they wanted/expected to see instead).

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

The fairies are hardly main characters either. They take Aurora to the woods, prattle on about "Oh we'll miss her now that she's growing up", take her back, recruit Phillip to fight Maleficent, and...that's it. Even this common defense people use doesn't really work, and possibly makes the movie seem WORSE if they WERE supposed to be the main characters that do so little and have so little character.

Post deleted

This message has been deleted.

Post deleted

This message has been deleted.

Post deleted

This message has been deleted.

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

All I've seen in this forum thus far is threads like this, with people trying to prove that the film isn't misogynistic or anti-feminist or whatever. There doesn't seem to be a single thread on the front page actually claiming the film is "anti-feminist" or anything like that. Just all of you diehard defenders whining about the fact that someone once criticised something you like, swatting at phantoms. It seems like you all are kind of trying a little too hard to excuse something that no one is all that worried about.

Either way, it's undeniably a "damsel in distress" story. A prince rescues a princess from eternal sleep with true love's kiss. It doesn't get much more damsel in distress-y than that. But hey, it's a fairytale. A lot of the most classic of our storytelling tropes lie in these tales - no surprise there. And the film doesn't exactly make old prince Philip out to be the man of the year or anything. Though Aurora is a passive character who barely features in the film, Philip is also kind of a turd. He putzes around for a while before being captured and thrown into Maleficent's dungeon, unable to do anything useful until he's sprung by the fairies who arm him and protect him every step of the way. Sure, he accomplishes heroic feats. But it's on the magic of the fairies to ultimately pull off every major step of the victory against Maleficent. Even that bastard crow only gets his at the hands of a fairy.

Ultimately, the fairies still need Philip as a vessel though. They rescue him for a reason, after all. They need him to wield the magic items and to wake Aurora. While it's far from a cut and dry "perfect man saves useless woman" story, it does still retain the essence of the "damsel in distress" theme. I just don't see why we can't acknowledge that, and also not be bothered by it. Seems to me that it's better to just accept that it is ultimately a movie about a guy who saves a girl and loves her back to life (and that's okay).

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

Personally, I think Maleficent and the Three Good Fairies are the main focus. I understood the conflict to be based on the idea that the fairies were invited to Aurora's christening, and she was not, only mocking them in disgust. I have noticed a rivalry between Maleficent and the fairies throughout the film, leading me to believe Aurora was designed more as a pawn for the conflict.

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

I didnt like the faires at all. In fact they are the reason the film is flawed. Because they get the screen time instead of the two leads. The faires are boring and really annoying. To the guy who said they are good characters and feminist characters. You are wrong. They were a giant mistake by Walt Disney. Had they been taken out of the film entirely "Sleeping Beauty" would be one of the best Disney films of all time.

I think my favorite moment in the film Maleficent was when they turned the faires into annoying and stupid characters. Because thats exactly how they came off as in the original film.

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

I completely agree with the OP. The movies IS about the fairies, Aurora and Phillip are side characters. They try to keep Aurora safe from Maleficent, they try to be human and have many fun adventures. They rescue Phillip from Maleficent. They organize they rescue of Aurora. They guide Phillip to the castle. They provide him with the means and power to defeat her too. I'd even go so far as to say that THEY were the ones to truly defeat Maleficent. They claimed that their magic could only be used for good, as such, they used Phillip to defeat her, even empowering his sword with magic to kill her before he threw it. This was their story, Aurora was just the driving force and Phillip was the solution to the problem.

Re: Aurora is not the main character in this movie

it isnt about about the 3 stupid fairies its about the one and only maleficent and her evil curse the fairies just bring up aurora and the prince phillip is your typical boring prince
Top