Sleeping Beauty on the Woods

SLEEPING BEAUTY ON THE WOODS

Walt Disney's cartoon film from a tale by Perrault

Identification sheet:

1959, USA
Running time: 75 minutes
Direction: Clyde Geronimi, Eric Larson, Wolfgang Reitherman, Les Clark
Production : Buena Vista
Sound Track: George Bruns from Tchaļkovski

Main characters:

Princess Aurora is the Sleeping Beauty on the Woods (notice that in Perrault's tale Aurora is Sleeping Beauty's future daughter). Prince Philip is his fiance due to a royal engagement. But this couple is placed in the middle of contradictory forces. Maleficent plays Evil and Flora (dressed in rouge), Fauna (in green) and Merryweather (in blue) are the three good fairies who try to mislead Malificent's curse. Just three fairies, instead of Perrault's twelve fairies. This simplication allows a better understanding of each one. Flore leads the trio with her authority and lucidity. Fauna, the most foolish is sometimes the most sensitive. Merryweather hides a friendly heart under her grumpy appearance.

Moreover, there are all the royal families and many animals already found in Snow White (1937) and Bambi (1941): rabbits, deers, birds, squirrels... all under the authority of an Owl.

Charles Perrault adapted by Disney, manichean and fantastic:

Colouring the fight between Good and Evil is Disney's creation. The final combat between the Prince and the Dragon (Maleficent's metamophosis) faces opposing forces and the Prince fights with the Sword of Truth, given by the good fairies.
A part from this manichean aspect, Disney usually deals with Evil forces in a fantastic way, as with the dragon and the wild boars in the service of Evil.

A shortened story

The second part of Perrault's version (Sleeping Beauty on the Woods is one of the tales included in Tales from Time Past with Morals) has been omitted in the film. No Aurora or Jour (Sleeping Beauty's daughters according to Perrault), who were to be eaten by an ogre!

The French classic and the German version:

It's quite obvious that Disney has chosen to adapt Perrault's French version instead of the German one. Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm's version is less magical, for no fairies but midwives assist the birth of the Princess. Twelve fairies are invited and the thirteenth, who is left aside, takes revenge.