I like your reference to Maleficent; it’s definitely a violation of more than one kind. I don’t know what else there is to say, I only wish it was handled better.
As for player agency, I definitely think there’s a way to make the reader feel understood and seen, whilst still communicating that the main character is in an unfamiliar and helpless headspace.
You’re right on the mark about the ‘canon’ MC feeling; I played it both angry (super unsatisfying with the exception of one choice), and then tried the more defeated/ cooperative options and was trying to put my finger on why the choices and outcomes weren’t jelling no matter what I did. I came away confused or resentful after every interaction.
If I’m playing a character that’s a “skilled infiltrator”, who is calm and unassuming, who didn’t brandish a weapon, then what about her would be so intimidating that everyone consistently turns on her? What would warrant immediate suspicion about a young woman saving a girl from the rubble and getting onto the last transport they can find? What about her would make other characters comfortable being witness to a man gloating about assaulting her? Why am I always getting the stink eye? Am I wearing a “make killing great again” company baseball cap or something??
In retrospect, it feels like there’s a broader perspective that’s missing from the writing, which makes it less interactive and accessible imo.