Disney’s live-action remake of Aladdin is a confectionery musical that boasts star-making turns for two relative unknowns (Mena Massoud as Aladdin and Naomi Scott as Princess Jasmine) and a knuckle-cracking, return-to-comedic-form moment for Will Smith. From the costumed characters to the eye-popping sets, there’s never been a movie that feels more like walking the streets of a Disney park.
For anyone with a memory of the 1992 original, Aladdin can also feel like a relentless insult to the artistry of 2D animation, paving over the vibrancy and imagination of the 2D feature with imitation and vacant photorealism. The adaptation skimps on the choreography and indulges in the intoxicating effect of the Disney brand as it goes through the motions. Even more so than Genie, the hands of writer-director Guy Ritchie (King Arthur: Legend of the Sword) are bound by unseen forces and masters who demand their wishes granted.
WALT DISNEY ALADDIN ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK CD - ROBIN WILLIAMS PEABO BRYSON (1992) $5.25 0 bids + shipping. Aladdin: Soundtrack by Alan Menken JAPAN CD W/OBI PCCD-00091 #105-3. $14.99 + $3.99 shipping. Disney's Aladdin 2 Song Soundtrack CD Sample. Olaf's Frozen Adventure is the soundtrack album for the special of the same name. The songs were written by Elyssa Samsel and Kate Anderson and the score was composed by Christophe Beck and Jeff Morrow. It was released on November 3, 2017. Original soundtrack to the 2019 motion picture. A thrilling and vibrant live-action adaptation of Disney's animated classic, Aladdin is the exciting tale of the charming street rat Aladdin, the courageous and self-determined Princess Jasmine and the Genie who may be the key to their future. Editors’ Notes The music accompanying Disney’s animated retelling of Aladdin and the Magic Lamp is lively yet meticulously put together, incorporating traditional Arabic music ideals into set pieces and tracks like the scheming “One Jump Ahead,” which features Brad Kane as the titular pauper.
The Disney animated classics of the ’90s had marketing plans, merch lines, and Happy Meal tie-ins, but the craft of hand-drawn cartooning ensured that a certain amount of vision made it into every frame. An artist drew Aladdin’s dreamy stares and leaps of faith. An artist calibrated the wind that blew through Jasmine’s hair in moments of carpet-flying exhilaration. An artist kept up with Robin Williams’ zany, constantly morphing persona (lest we forget the William F. Buckley Jr. impression in a movie targeting 10-year-olds). 2019’s Aladdin can’t crack the code on how to reignite that magic, so it settles for recreating the beats. By the end, one feels less entertained than successfully fluffed like a slumped-over couch pillow.
Really, for a remake of an animated musical standing the test of time, it’s all about the songs. This is where Disney makes the boldest choices, and in the end, where Aladdin gets a bit ... pitchy.
[Ed. note: The Aladdin soundtrack is out now, but could contain spoilers for those who have not seen the 1992 Aladdin.]
The movie opens with a revised rendition of “Arabian Nights,” performed by Will Smith ... who appears on a boat, in human form, with his two kids. Disposing of the more problematic lyrics, Smith’s ballad whisks us back in time to the streets of Agrabah, and sets the tone for everything to come. Every aspect of this new Aladdin feels auto-tuned for mass consumption.
Mena Massoud (Amazon’s Jack Ryan) is our new Aladdin, and he has movie star qualities. His rendition of “One Jump Ahead,” unfortunately, is the worst-case scenario for the live-action remake. Ritchie can’t find a way to glue the chase set-piece aspect of the number to the harmonious sounds of Massoud singing, even when the picture gear-shifts to slow motion to glimpse the star mouthing the words. Carpool Karaoke looks like a more physical act than Aladdin skirting and singing atop the rooftops of Agrabah. The result is a disembodied, discombobulated redo that never effectively introduces our live-action hero.
The reveal of Will Smith’s dad bod Genie stirred up the internet, and he remains the most head-scratching-yet-effective part of the movie. Hope seems to be lost when we first meet Genie in the Cave of Wonders; Ritchie and the Walt Disney Company task Smith with performing many of the same voices and bits as Williams (down to hyperactive wisecracks like “Phenomenal cosmic powers! Itty-bitty living space”), minus the elastic freedom of 2D animation. The act is, uh ... cue Genie’s Rodney-Dangerfield-clutching-his-tie impression.
Smith finds a groove by turning “Friend Like Me” into a Fresh Prince number. He grabs the mic. He works the audience. The CG animation abandons reason and becomes a Willennium Fantasia. The whole shebang could get cranked up a few hundred decibels, but this is Smith finally popping out of the comfort zone of the lamp.
Like the original movie, Aladdin refuses to elaborate on its Eastern influences. Agrabah is in the “Middle East,” and the dance numbers are vaguely Bollywood. The movie cries out for cultural touchstones, which may have provided a semblance of choreographic philosophy. Trapped on stages, the dancing suffocates under point-and-shoot direction. Turns out, much like Aladdin’s alter ego Prince Ali, no amount of swaying handmaidens, fire breathers, and elephants paraded down a street can fake the mojo required to capture the hearts of onlookers. “Prince Ali” is conjured from the assumptions of what makes musicals work.
Annie Leibovitz’s portrait of Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony as Jasmine and Aladdin had more gusto than what Disney is able to do in its live-action riff on “A Whole New World.” The canned vocals and Skyrim-like landscapes of this new version shatter the link Massoud and Naomi Scott form over the first half of the movie. This is deeply unromantic.
Jasmine is the most successful part of Aladdin, thanks to how Ritchie and screenwriter John August imbue the princess with a quest to become sultan, and the ferocity that Naomi Scott brings to her every move. To embolden her, Disney hired Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (Dear Evan Hansen, La La Land, The Greatest Showman) to add a number to Alan Menken’s original slew of songs. Those familiar with the duo’s work see their fingerprints all over “Speechless,” a hammy anthem destined for high school musical recitals. The song’s calculated message of rah-rah self-actualization devolves into what might be described in 2019 as “Instagram fierce,” more like a “Let It Go” meme than “Let It Go” itself. Jasmine’s story, and Scott’s tremendous performance (she’s in the new Charlie’s Angels, so get pumped), deserved better than “Speechless,” even if she sings the hell out of it.
Will Smith made an Aladdin end-creditsrap in the style of “Men in Black” and “Wild Wild West”! And it opens with DJ Khaled saying “another one,” as if to pull back the curtain on what Disney just pulled off.
The amazing part is comedian Demi Adejuyigbe nailed Smith’s “Friend Like Me” rap two years ago as a goof.
wow- just saw a preview of Will Smith's credits music from the new Aladdin!! managed to sneak a video- watch before Disney takes it down!! pic.twitter.com/XOGdSIc8up
— demi adejuyigbe (@electrolemon) July 19, 2017The original Aladdin rode the wave of a Disney animation renaissance. The new Aladdin arrives at a hyper-saturated moment between a live-action remake of Dumbo and a live-action remake of The Lion King that echoes the company’s post-renaissance, direct-to-DVD scramble. The meta text creeps into the vacuum of sitting down and watching the movie because Aladdin feels like cobbled-together, bubble-wrapped, shipped-off-by-release-date product; while Disney — in movies, in parks, in experience — has always prided itself on immaculate immersion, the seams holding this remake together show. It’s unusual.
Marvel has Kevin Feige. Star Wars has Kathleen Kennedy. Disney’s live-action slate has ... Disney executives who remain behind the scenes and do the job. For many, the company’s classic animated films are as precious as those massive franchises. The songs need to skyrocket and the dance moves should sweep us off our feet. In this era of corporate nostalgia, the least a movie like Aladdin could get is a protector. Hell, a friend.
Look up Aladdin in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
Aladdin is a story of Middle Eastern origin, interpolated into One Thousand and One Nights by its European translators and editors, and widely known as part of that collection.
Aladdin may also refer to:
Entertainment[edit]
Disney franchise[edit]
- Aladdin (franchise)
- Aladdin (1992 Disney film), a 1992 animated film by Walt Disney Pictures
- The Return of Jafar, a 1994 direct-to-video sequel to the original film
- Aladdin and the King of Thieves, a 1996 direct-to-video second sequel to the original film
- Aladdin (1992 soundtrack), the album from the 1992 film
- Aladdin (2011 musical), the 2011 musical based on the film
- Aladdin (animated TV series), animated TV series based on the film
- Aladdin (Disney character), the protagonist of Disney's Aladdin franchise
- Disney's Aladdin (Capcom video game), game made by Capcom for SNES based on the film
- Disney's Aladdin (Virgin Games video game), game made by Virgin Interactive for various consoles
- Aladdin (1992 Disney film), a 1992 animated film by Walt Disney Pictures
Lirik Lagu Ost Disney's Aladdin
based on the film
- Disney's Aladdin (1994 video game), game made by SIMS for Sega's 8-bit consoles based on the film
- Aladdin (2019 film), a live action film adaptation of the 1992 animated film
- Aladdin (2019 soundtrack), the album from the 2019 film
Films[edit]
- Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp (1917 film), a silent film directed by Chester and Sidney Franklin
- Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp, 1939 short film with Popeye as Aladdin
- Aladdin (1958 film), 1958 television musical by Cole Porter
- The Wonders of Aladdin, a 1961 film
- Aladdin and His Magic Lamp (1967 film), a 1967 Soviet film
- Aladdin and His Magic Lamp, a 1967 British TV movie starring Arthur Askey
- Aladdin and His Magic Lamp (1970 film), 1970 French animated film
- Allauddinum Albhutha Vilakkum, translated as Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp,a 1979 Malayalam film starring Kamal Haasan, Rajnikanth
- Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp (1982 film), also known as Aladdin and the Magic Lamp, a Japanese animation film by Toei
- Aladdin (also known as Superfantagenio, 1986 Italian film
- Aladin (film), 2009 Hindi Bollywood film
Musicals, operas and plays[edit]
- Aladdin (play), an 1805 play by Adam Oehlenschläger
- Aladdin (opera), 1941 opera composed by Kurt Atterberg
- Aladdin (1979 musical), 1979 pantomime style musical by Sandy Wilson
Music[edit]
- Aladdin (Nielsen), a 1919 score written by Carl Nielsen to accompany the play
- Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp (Cliff Richard and the Shadows album), a 1964 pantomime cast album, primarily by Cliff Richard and the Shadows
- Aladdin Sane, 1973 album and song by David Bowie
Television[edit]
- Aladdin (Indian TV series), an Indian TV series
- Aladdin - Naam Toh Suna Hoga, 2018 Hindi Fantasy Series
- 'Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp' (Faerie Tale Theatre), an episode of Faerie Tale Theatre from 1986
Technology[edit]
- Aladdin (BlackRock) or Asset, Liability, and Debt and Derivative Investment Network, an electronic system by BlackRock Solutions
- Aladdin Deck Enhancer, a converter from cartridge to Nintendo
- Aladdin Enterprises, a software company founded by L Peter Deutsch
- Aladdin Knowledge Systems, software DRM and Internet security company in Israel
- ALADDiN, a line of chipsets produced by the ALi Corporation
- Allume Systems, a software company in New York originally known as Aladdin Systems
Other corporations[edit]
- The Aladdin Company, a company that sold mail-order houses
- Aladdin Industries, makers of vacuum flasks and lunchboxes
- Aladdin Paperbacks, a division of Simon & Schuster, USA
- Aladdin Records, a record label
Places[edit]
- Aladin, Azerbaijan, a village in Zangilan Rayon
- Aladin, Iran, a village in Ardabil Province, Iran
- Aladdin (crater), a crater in the northern hemisphere of Saturn's moon Enceladus
- Aladdin (hotel and casino), a Las Vegas resort in operation from 1962 to 1997
- Aladdin, California, a former town in the United States
- Aladdin, Wyoming, a community in the United States
- Aladdin Theater, a historic theater in Cocoa, Florida
- Planet Hollywood Las Vegas, a Las Vegas resort formerly known as 'Aladdin' from 2000 to 2007
Other uses[edit]
- Aladin Music Hall, Bremen, Germany
- Aladdinn, a famous Arabian horse
- Aladdin (name), the name of many medieval rulers in the Middle East and South Asia, as well as some modern people
- Project Aladdin, intercultural project launched by UNESCO
See also[edit]
- Aladin (magician) or Eenasul Fateh
- Aladin Sky Atlas, astronomy software
- EMT Aladin, a German military Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
- Alaeddin or Alaed Din, alternate spellings of Ala ol Din