No Disney live-action remake was more widely scrutinized before it was even released than their remake of Aladdin. And this was mainly due to the casting of Will Smith as the Genie, originally made famous in the animated movie by Robin Williams. Out of all Disney’s characters, no character is more closely associated with their performer than the Genie is with Williams. So when anyone else portrays the classic character - from Dan Castellaneta as Williams’ replacement in the television series to James Monroe Iglehart in the Broadway musical - audiences closely monitor every little movement of this newer incarnation, and Smith was no exception to the rule. While audiences were quick to dismiss the Aladdin remake mainly due to Smith’s casting, in a fitting bit of irony, not only is Smith one of the more entertaining aspects of the film, but the movie itself is actually one of Disney’s better remakes.
Smith is an absolute blast to watch, providing most of the film’s laughs as well as the movie’s heart. What’s especially great about his performance is that he still manages to capture the manic energy of the original Genie while still not doing a Robin Williams impersonation. The Genie, like in the animated film, is still flying all over the place, bouncing quickly from one thought to the next within seconds, acting out all his ideas, and saying things in funny voices.
Though Williams was known more for his many impersonations of famous figures - most of which were improvised for the original movie - and Smith wisely chooses not to go down this route, nor do the writers try forcing anything resembling the comedian’s distinct style into the screenplay. This Genie feels more like “The Fresh Prince of Agrabah,” resembling the characters in many of Smith’s earliest performances like Men in Black and Independence Day. He may just be “Will Smith playing Will Smith,” but this allows him to get in some really solid one-liners and memorable exchanges with the film’s titular hero, this time played by Mena Massoud.
The CGI when the Genie is in his famous blue form, on the other hand, is less than stellar, and looks noticeably awkward, like Smith’s face was just pasted on a hulking computer graphic. Luckily, he spends less of his time in this form and more time in a disguised human form as he accompanies Aladdin around Agrabah. This allows for a new side storyline to develop, in which he begins a romance with Jasmine's handmaiden Dalia, a new character written for the film played exceptionally well by Nasim Pedrad.
While the movie doesn’t devote as much time to this side plot as one would like so it could be properly fleshed out a little more, Pedrad winds up being a welcome addition to the cast. Her chemistry with not just Smith, but with Naomi Scott’s Jasmine, winds up being one of the most enjoyable aspects of the movie. Pedrad, an alumnus of Saturday Night Live, provides many moments of awkward humor and sitcom-like exchanges that would normally be a little cringe-worthy, but actually work out well here thanks to her solid comedic timing.
In addition to the Genie, a few other characters get their stories more developed. Jafar, played by Marwan Kenzari, now has a backstory where his villainy is driven by the fact that he’s always been considered second-best all his life, and he gets sick of playing second-fiddle to those he feels are less competent than him. While this is a more interesting story for the famous villain, Jafar still isn't as entertaining to watch mostly because of Kenzari’s performance. While he does a fine job, his style simply doesn’t fit as Jafar. He’s more soft-spoken, which causes him to not always feel so threatening or imposing, making some of the scenes he’s in feel flat.
Jasmine probably gets the best upgrade in this film. This time around, rather than just being a princess who wants to marry someone of her own choice, she’s given a new motivation where she wants to be the sultan herself. While this new drive gives way to some scenes that are bogged down in political talk that go on for just a tad too long, this allows for Jasmine to have much more of a distinct personality and not just another Disney princess who’s in the shadow of a male hero. She becomes much more intriguing to watch, which is especially bolstered by Naomi Scott’s fantastic performance.
Scott clearly gives it her all here, really nailing the emotional core of what makes Jasmine tick while never playing it too seriously for her own good. She’s absolutely charismatic right from the start, and draws audiences in a lot quicker than Mena Massoud does as Aladdin. While Massoud isn’t totally unlikable and gets in both some funny and emotional moments of his own, his performance feels a little flat from time to time, and he feels easily overshadowed in the scenes he shares with either Smith or Scott. There are even times where it feels like there's more emotion from the CGI Abu, who’s just as much of a joy to watch here as he was in the original movie (and like in the original movie, he's once again voiced by Frank Welker, who also reprises his roles as the Cave of Wonders and Rajah the Tiger).
While the moments in which the remake tries diverging a bit from the source material are more than welcome, its attempts to sometimes recreate certain moments from the animated movie tend to be some of its weaker moments. Mainly when it comes to the dialogue. Most of the dialogue is unique to this remake, but there are a fair amount of moments where it’ll reiterate exact lines of dialogue from the original movie.
And while it’s nice to try and retain a bit of what makes the original movie enjoyable, some of the lines they keep just don’t feel like they organically fit in with the rest of the screenplay. Certain exchanges and bits - especially in the film’s first act - feel more like they're just being recited simply because they were in the original. And when characters speak in these moments, their delivery doesn’t feel as convincing as the rest of the movie. It almost feels like the actors are sitting down at a table read, looking at their line as they say it, and it tends to take the audience out of the moment from time to time.
What’s much more lively, on the other hand, is the music, which was another point that was widely scrutinized going into the movie, with audiences fearing that Disney would completely change their favorite songs. Though while some songs have a few creative changes here and there, for the most part, they retain what made them so likable in the first place. The two biggest standouts wind up being “Friend Like Me” and “Prince Ali,” with Smith belting both of these out with such bravado (even if it’s noticeably auto-tuned at times) that audiences will find themselves tapping their feet along to the tunes.
“A Whole New World” is also fairly well done, being more so of an exact recreation of the original version. Notably absent - and sorely missed - is Jafar’s “Prince Ali” reprise towards the end of the original movie. Though, it’s questionable if that would even fit, given Jafar’s over-the-top delivery in the original, compared to Kenzari’s more soft-spoken delivery here. As an aside, given how successful the Broadway version of this story has been, it would have been nice to have seen one or two of those songs make their way into this, and would have been much more intriguing to see rather than some of the bloated political talk that drags this movie out to its unnecessary two hour runtime.
Instead, a new musical number not heard in either the original movie or the musical, “Speechless” is added, which goes hand in hand with the aforementioned new subplot that the movie gives for Jasmine. The song focuses on how Jasmine won’t stay silent as the men in her life try ruling her life for her, which helps give her such a distinct personality. The song is heard twice, once briefly towards the beginning, while a full version is heard towards the end of the movie. While the song is solid for backstory purposes, and Scott’s singing is top notch, it isn’t as catchy as all the other songs, and it becomes an eyesore to watch, due to Guy Ritchie’s well-known use of slow-motion employed at certain points.
Ritchie’s style also hurts the song “One Jump Ahead,” a chase song meant to have a wild energy about it. Rather than being fast-paced and full of quick edits, Ritchie goes in an odd stylistic direction and decides to have Aladdin and the guards’ movement slowed down throughout the song, despite Aladdin’s mouth still moving at normal speed, making for a jarring visual to see played out on screen. Ritchie employs this tactic at several non-musical moments throughout the film, either freeze-framing or slowing down the movement on screen. While these aren’t over-used, they come so sporadically and at moments where they don’t always feel warranted that they can be jarring to watch.
Despite a fair share of problems, Aladdin is surprisingly one of the better live-action remakes Disney has to offer. It’s not exactly an all-out amazing experience, due to its underwhelming villain, certain moments that just don’t feel natural, and its bloated runtime that cause it to drag from time to time. Yet, it has plenty that it does well, including some great performances by both Smith and Scott, some really funny moments, and some nice updates to the story that give it more of a heart and a fresher feel. There’s no topping the original movie, but despite its inconsistencies, this is still an enjoyable experience.
Recommendation: Watch It
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