TheLittleSongbird
There was a great idea for 'The Curse of Sleeping Beauty', one of the more intriguing ones for a less-than-high-budget film, and there was a good, or at least halfway decent, film in it somewhere that had great potential to come out and should have done.Which is why it is so frustrating and such a big shame that 'The Curse of Sleeping Beauty' was so disjointed and uneven, as someone who was really rooting for the film to work. Do have to agree with the general consensus that 'The Curse of Sleeping Beauty' started off well and promisingly, was really thinking that it would be surprisingly good, but fell apart completely in the second half and kept getting worse. There are definitely far worse wastes of potential and good concepts, but 'The Curse of Sleeping Beauty' was definitely a definition of a waste of potential and a waste of a great idea.It, as aforementioned, starts off well. Throughout the production values generally were atmospherically Gothic and nicely shot with eerie make-up. The music also has a haunting eeriness that doesn't feel intrusive, one-note or repetitive. Mostly the acting was better than average, having seen some very bad to terrible acting in modest to low budget films recently so that was refreshing. Atmosphere generated is genuinely creepy, wonderful mysterious and suspenseful going at a deliberate but assured pace. Sadly, again as already said, the second half sees 'The Curse of Sleeping Beauty' falling apart. And not just slightly, we're talking significantly. Not that the film was perfect already. There was some choppy editing, cheap costuming and Ethan Peck doesn't always look comfortable or engaged in his role. Really, it is frustrating that the more the second half progressed, the duller, more confused, more clichéd and more predictable it got, and the mystery, creepiness and suspense got lost and instead was replaced by dreariness, ridiculousness and a draggy pace. All capped off by an ending that was far too abrupt and incomplete. Overall, good first half, disappointing second half with a bad non-event ending. 5/10 Bethany Cox
Michael Ledo
This is an Asylum film whose main goal is to sell DVDs by creating covers that look like hit films such as "The Huntsman..." The biggest problem with this film is that you expect something very much related to the fairy tale, i.e. a sequel and what you get is a modern day "B" horror film loosely connected to the aforesaid tale. Much of the plot details come late in the film. I will try to be kind.Thomas (Ethan Peck) has dreams about a Sleeping Beauty/ Briar Rose (India Eisley). When he inherits his uncle's creepy estate, it becomes apparent he is part of a bloodline curse going back to the crusades although how things managed to come to Oregon (?) from Europe considering the nature of the curse was a plot hole never discussed. The film involves demons and the occult.Thomas, as in "Thomas can you hear me" one of those ouch lines, gets help from realtor Linda (Natalie Hall) and paranormal investigator Richard (Bruce Davison). James Adam Lim is also utilized because they couldn't afford a hot Asian chick for the role.This film was tough on the actors. None of them brought their "A" game and demonstrated they all made bad career choices.Guide: No swearing, sex, or nudity. India shows off a whole bunch of A cup cleavage.
Renee Harper
I was more than intrigued by this take on Sleeping Beauty, and it showed a lot of promise. It wasn't fancy or big budget, and the acting had some not-so-great moments, but I still highly enjoyed it. Until the end. It doesn't end, it just stops. It sets up for a sequel, but you can do that without having such an unsatisfying ending. And if no sequel is planned that makes it even worse. There is no resolution, no conclusion...it just stops. And leaves you angry. I liked it otherwise, but I just can't get past the end.
