Angelina Jolie's "Maleficent" has brought in a resounding $70 million during its box office debut where Disney retold the classic "Sleeping Beauty" story from the evil-fairy villain's perspective. 

Why was it so successful even amidst underwhelming critic review? Fox News writes, "Star power has been increasingly elusive in modern Hollywood, where name-brand concepts often rule the box-office. But Jolie, in her first live-action starring role in years, drove interest for 'Maleficent' despite lackluster reviews from critics."

This is the perfect example of the drawing power of actors and actresses. Even Disney executives recognized the lure of Jolie when it comes to films saying: "It's a unique thing," said Dave Hollis, head of distribution for Disney. "Her star power transcends borders and genre."

In the movie review site Rotten Tomatoes, critics only pegged the film with a 51% rating but fans rallied behind the female-empowered film, with a 77% review.

Rentrak summarizes the box office sales as follows:

"'Maleficent' brought it $100.6 million internationally and slipped past 'X-Men: Days of Future Past,' which brought it $32.6 million ($95.6 million internationally). Third over the weekend was 'A Million Ways to Die in the West,' with $17.1 million ($10.3 million internationally), 'Godzilla,' $12.2 million ($15 million internationally) and rounding up the top 5 was 'Blended,' totaling $8.4 million over the weekend."

Speaking to Giuliana Rancic of E! Online recently on the film, Angelina Jolie spoke about her role in the Disney reboot: "I've never done anything this big," said Brad Pitt's lady love. "I'm not really a theater actress and I'm not a comedian. I had to decide to just play and really do my best to just think of the fans and try to entertain and be silly and be what they needed me to be."

She added, "That's a really nice change, because you get out of your head and you remember that you're the court jester, you're there just to simply make a fool of yourself or not and hope that people enjoy it."

Have you seen "Maleficent"? Was it darker than you were led to believe by the trailers? What are your thoughts on the film?