Nonetheless, the frisson of the story relied on keeping the character at least somewhat morally ambiguous – and since she was unequivocally redeemed at the end it’s not immediately clear where a sequel could go. Among those tasked with solving the problem are screenwriters Noah Harpster and Micah Fitzerman-Blue, who previously worked together on four seasons of Transparent. Unsurprisingly, they’ve arrived at a stock sitcom solution: a big wedding that forces a bunch of ill-assorted characters together. In the enchanted forest kingdom known as the Moors, former sleeping beauty Princess Aurora (Fanning, girlish as ever) finally coaxes a proposal out of the handsome if regrettably named Prince Phillip (Harris Dickinson, spectacularly feeble). Maleficent – Aurora’s adoptive mother in this timeline – reluctantly consents to the match. But Aurora still has one challenge to overcome: introducing Maleficent to her future in-laws. Queen Ingrith (Michelle Pfeiffer) is the film’s true representative of evil, plotting a war between her kingdom and the Moors – and while Pfeiffer’s performance is more campy than alarming, the film’s initial flippancy soon gives way to relatively earnest melodrama, possibly under the influence of Game of Thrones. From start to finish, however, this is one of those effects-heavy…