My favorite classic Disney animated film is 1992's Aladdin. It's got catchy songs, great performances, and some nice visuals in creating Agrabah. The characters are not your typical stereotypes that the studio is known for. This live action imagining was on my radar a little bit, but my expectations were not too high. I expected something at least decent, but it was way better than I anticipated.
The premise is still the same. Vizier Jafar wants his hands on a magic lamp in the Cave of Wonders. It wants a diamond in the rough person, which happens to be street thief Aladdin. What ensues is a big adventure full of surprises and twists and turns. However, Guy Ritchie's vision is a little different. This adaptation is more straight forward with the characters. Jafar is more direct with what he wants, whether he talks to Aladdin or the Sultan. There is a little more to him, wanting to take over various lands and starting war. A lot more ruthless and it's rather good.
My take on Aladdin is that he is not overly cocky like the animated counterpart. We see a bit more thievery that benefits and hurts him. He is also quite nervous. Obviously he has feelings for Princess Jasmine. This version of her is not a total bitch, but they retain a lot of what made the animated one such an excellent character. She is still strong willed and doesn't want anything low budget. You can't buy her happiness, but having strong intelligence and understanding her will. Mena Massoud and Naomi Scott give strong performances and do the characters justice. One nice touch is the Sultan not being a complete idiot and having a new character in the form of handmaiden Dalia, who has quite a few scenes and isn't forgotten.
Of course, we have to talk Will Smith as the Genie. People overreacted. His performance is excellent. I personally think it's on par with Robin Williams' animated version. There is a different approach that seems very natural and it's a more genuine character with a few flashes of imitating Williams. Getting into the visual effects, they put up a big effort with the Genie scenes when he isn't in human form. Stuff like the Cave of Wonders and the fight at the end of the film are amazing and a sight to see. Even the magic carpet scenes, are handled very well.
There is a bit of humor throughout Aladdin, and it doesn't go overboard. The songs are all here and the performances are well done. There is one new song exclusively for Jasmine and it is a nice touch to what she is as a character overall. How Agrabah looks is a sight to see. A couple negatives are here, however. A warning to some families is that it is a little over two hours, so be aware. The only thing that bothered me was Iago not having too many scenes. I feel they didn't utilize him that much and the few scenes he had were either funny or advanced the plot. There is no doubt in my mind. You need to see this movie. It is a bit different execution, but it's still the same great premise.
Score: 9 out of 10
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