Look, sometimes you just need a bit of variety in your life, you know? Of course I didn't have high expectations. The Asylum surprises every now and again, but they have their reputation for a reason; in the latter part of his career Casper Van Dien unfortunately hasn't been very discriminating in the projects he takes on. It's not that there's anything abjectly terrible about this, I don't think, and it's actually better than I anticipated - only, 'Sleeping Beauty' is commonly characterized by heavy-handed, forthright brusqueness in most every regard, dampening whatever value it may have to offer. Maybe I'm being overly generous but I don't know if I can even blame Van Dien in this case, who also serves as director; I'm inclined to think it's the oversight of the producers, and of The Asylum at large, whose guiding hands have led this feature to such an end. It's not as awful as its reputation would portend, but given the general tactlessness with which it was made, it's also difficult to specifically derive ideal enjoyment from it.
There is little to no subtlety or nuance to be had in any aspect of the picture, and as a result it feels at times like the bare minimum effort is being applied, and/or that the proceedings are bereft of authenticity or perhaps sincerity. This isn't true across the board - costume design, hair and makeup, and practical effects are all pretty great, and I can honestly say 'Sleeping beauty' can claim higher quality than other titles I've seen. Still, one readily detects a curt falseness in the acting first, then the direction, though even these have moments of more commendable strength. Some of the special effects are decent enough, though of course the grander they try to be, and the more prominently they are, the worse the CGI looks. Even the production design and art direction ride a line between being lovingly detailed, and bald-faced in their contrivance.
Meanwhile, I don't think the screenplay attributed to Van Dien and R. Dessertine is all that bad overall; in the broad strokes the narrative, scene writing, and characters are solid, suitable material for a fantasy film, and an adaptation of the classic fairy tale. However, above all when it comes to even the slightest measure of exposition or plot development, one is forced to wonder if the writing team has ever watched another picture. The narration (poor Michael York), opening sequence, and repetition later on of the same plot points are all awfully forced; viewers better come with foreknowledge of the long-gone practice of the whipping boy, because the movie doesn't actually explain this itself. Moreover, one crucial detail of the nature of "kind of sort of" protagonist Barrow is left totally unexplained until it's poorly inserted as a revelation in the last act. The climax is a tad unconvincing, the ending is altogether shoddy - and please note the name of a young supporting character to be introduced partway through, a detail which doesn't even try to hide the fact that it's outright lifted from another title.
It's not that care and hard work wasn't poured into this to any degree; it's distinctly uneven, but I recognize the value in the production just as surely as I recognize its weaknesses. It's just that under the auspices of The Asylum, I feel like those involved were robbed of the opportunity to make the best fantasy they could have. A little more time developing the screenplay would have smoothed out the rough edges in the storytelling; a little more time and resources devoted to any other element, or simply more takes of particular scenes or lines, would have surely painted over the deficiencies that we see in the finished film as it is. Sadly, however, if any of this were true, then it just wouldn't be an Asylum piece, would it? The company is known for churning out content quickly and cheaply, so here we are. Genuinely, I had a reasonably good time watching this; it's a fair way to pass the time as far as I'm concerned, and you could do a lot worse. On the other hand, unless you're super curious or a huge fan of someone involved, there's also regrettably just not much reason to watch 'Sleeping beauty.' C'est la vie.
There is little to no subtlety or nuance to be had in any aspect of the picture, and as a result it feels at times like the bare minimum effort is being applied, and/or that the proceedings are bereft of authenticity or perhaps sincerity. This isn't true across the board - costume design, hair and makeup, and practical effects are all pretty great, and I can honestly say 'Sleeping beauty' can claim higher quality than other titles I've seen. Still, one readily detects a curt falseness in the acting first, then the direction, though even these have moments of more commendable strength. Some of the special effects are decent enough, though of course the grander they try to be, and the more prominently they are, the worse the CGI looks. Even the production design and art direction ride a line between being lovingly detailed, and bald-faced in their contrivance.
Meanwhile, I don't think the screenplay attributed to Van Dien and R. Dessertine is all that bad overall; in the broad strokes the narrative, scene writing, and characters are solid, suitable material for a fantasy film, and an adaptation of the classic fairy tale. However, above all when it comes to even the slightest measure of exposition or plot development, one is forced to wonder if the writing team has ever watched another picture. The narration (poor Michael York), opening sequence, and repetition later on of the same plot points are all awfully forced; viewers better come with foreknowledge of the long-gone practice of the whipping boy, because the movie doesn't actually explain this itself. Moreover, one crucial detail of the nature of "kind of sort of" protagonist Barrow is left totally unexplained until it's poorly inserted as a revelation in the last act. The climax is a tad unconvincing, the ending is altogether shoddy - and please note the name of a young supporting character to be introduced partway through, a detail which doesn't even try to hide the fact that it's outright lifted from another title.
It's not that care and hard work wasn't poured into this to any degree; it's distinctly uneven, but I recognize the value in the production just as surely as I recognize its weaknesses. It's just that under the auspices of The Asylum, I feel like those involved were robbed of the opportunity to make the best fantasy they could have. A little more time developing the screenplay would have smoothed out the rough edges in the storytelling; a little more time and resources devoted to any other element, or simply more takes of particular scenes or lines, would have surely painted over the deficiencies that we see in the finished film as it is. Sadly, however, if any of this were true, then it just wouldn't be an Asylum piece, would it? The company is known for churning out content quickly and cheaply, so here we are. Genuinely, I had a reasonably good time watching this; it's a fair way to pass the time as far as I'm concerned, and you could do a lot worse. On the other hand, unless you're super curious or a huge fan of someone involved, there's also regrettably just not much reason to watch 'Sleeping beauty.' C'est la vie.