Aladdin

I would watch this film over and over as a 10 year old. I am very thankful I was the right age when this film was released. As an adult, it is still one of my favorite animated films at #5 and it is my favorite film released in 1992. This film had to follow up two animated blockbusters, being “The Little Mermaid” and “Beauty and the Beast”. The first showed that Broadway and animation are great bedfellows while the second (and its Oscar nomination for Best Picture) showed that animated films could once again compete with any other genre. "Beauty and the Beast" also showed the world that "Mermaid" wasn't a fuke. Despite this pressure, the creators of “The Little Mermaid” (Ron Clements and Jon Musker) were able to match up to, and in this critic’s view, surpass their earlier success. The film is successful because of its cast/characters, story, music and themes. The balance between the story and its comedy is well done.

In this comedy, you get to watch a young handsome hero and a funny man go up against an evil but appealing schemer and his loud sidekick to get the girl. The contrast between the characters as well as how they add to the comedic nature of the movie is the reason you believe them on screen. Aladdin is a very believable hero with dreams and also youthful energy. CEO Jeffery Katzenberg seemed to clash with his fellow filmmakers at Disney during "The Little Mermaid" but on "Aladdin", he seemed to hold the right answers. For example, he pushed for Aladdin to be more like a young man than a young boy and I am in favor of that. Aladdin also had a mother during production but Katzenberg decided to delete her from the story. Scott Weinger does a great vocal performance and is the major reason why you root for “Al”. In recent years, I have watched episodes of “Full House” and "Fuller House" where Weinger plays Steve. Many times, I can see a connection between both characters especially when girls are the subject of the scenes. Scott is great at playing the teenage boy out to get the girl. Al’s intelligence creates some funny moments in the film such as when he uses Abu to tell Jasmine his inner feelings. Future Oscar-winner Robin Williams is so dominant in this film that it seems pointless to critic him because of his genius but yet, he does not overshadow Aladdin as the main character. As a child listening to him, Robin Williams first showed me that you can change his voice to sound like someone else and this has become a major part of my life. The Genie as a character is a great example of how collaboration of talent can create something special. In Genie’s case, you have Robin’s voice work and Eric Goldberg’s animation in the style of Al Hirschfeld. The character is also influenced by other sources such as Cab Calloway. I like how Genie is a shape shifter, breaks the 4th wall and references pop culture that has nothing to do with the fictional world of this particular story. The serious scenes are really important for the character of the Genie in that you see him as a person with his own desires and not as just a funny sidekick to our hero. “Serious Robin” has become very important to me as an adult when I watch “Aladdin” because it is important for the story. Robin Williams’ comedy also has purposes for the story but he is not there just to make the audience laugh. Genie’s happiness for example contrasts Al’s guilt in the scene where Aladdin has to take back his promise to Genie. Al and Genie have a wonderful friendship that does amazing things for the story. When Al asks Genie was he would wish for, Genie suddenly realizes that this master is different. Aladdin is not only crafty but a good soul. When Al is about to drown, Genie saves his life even though he wasn't ordered to do so. I think this was possible because Aladdin would have wished to live if he could speak. Still, Genie did something touching. By the end of the movie, it is tough watching these two characters say goodbye (especially now that Williams is no longer with us). A hero is only as good as the villain and at this point in my life, I can say that Jafar is my favorite Disney bad guy ever. He is not only evil but seeing as how this is a comedy, he is amusing in his performance and he has style. I tend to like villains like Jafar because he was one of my first film villains as a child. My favorite funny scene for Jafar is when he is laughing and Iago (as well as the audience) knows that it is not like Jafar to be acting like this considering what has just happened in the story. We just got finished laughing at one of Iago's best gags and suddenly hear histerical laughter from an unknown source. I love that moment. The character of Iago is well crafted because he gets the audience laughing at the start of the film. Without Iago, the opening part of the film would be lacking in the humor that swells when Genie shows up. The audience would not be able to deal emotionally with Robin and so Gilbert Gottfried, as an opening act, is perfect. All the characters serve their purpose in this comedy, whether they are outright comic or not.

The story and music are important elements and as with all great musicals, the songs further the story. Sometimes when I watch "Aladdin", the romantic relationship appears to develop a little too fast even compared to Eric and Ariel's relationship. In the previous Disney movie, Belle and the Beast had all sorts of time together. Most times I watch the film, we can suspend our disbelief when it comes to Aladdin and Jasmine's love and I don't mind that. "A Whole New World” is an example of how a song can further the story and win the audience over. During the song, Jasmine sees Prince Ali as different from other princes. This song is so amazing to me and I feel like Hollywood has forgot just how special it is. At least it won the Oscar for that year (Alan Menken’s 6th). The film's initial version of "Aladdin" was rejected by Katzenberg and the studio had to race to fix the problems as they were not able to change the release date. The final story is so good. Before “Pirates of the Caribbean”, “National Treasure”, “The Road to El Dorado” and “Shrek”, Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio’s first major success as writers was “Aladdin”. All the writers on this film did a great job in creating humor, touching moments and a classic Disney Princess story. The theme in this movie is simple and obvious: “Be yourself”. I also like Aladdin’s line “I gotta stop pretending to be someone I’m not.” This film depicts the consequences of trying to hide who we are and acting as if we are someone else. The filmmakers especially target kids by portraying situations they are familiar with so they understand the theme. First, we have a person (Princess Jasmine) who runs away from home and tries to start a new life. Because of her actions, not only does she put herself in danger but she thinks that she has caused an innocent boy she met to be killed. Also, we have a boy who changes who he really is for a girl as Aladdin tries to be a prince in order to win Jasmine’s heart. One lie leads to another and at one point he loses everything. In contrast, whenever Aladdin was himself, he found favor in Jasmine’s eyes. In the end, he wins her over because he did not deny himself as a streetrat. We also have a man who disguises himself for evil intentions which is Jafar. Even though he is the Sultan’s councilor, in reality he is the Sultan’s enemy and hides that. Kids learn that nice strangers could be bad from Jafar who disguises himself as a beggar to trick Aladdin. As Jafar ironically says himself: “Things are not always what they seem.” I like how our hero and villain are not who they really are in each other’s presence until the climax. The first time, Jafar is in disguise and the second time Aladdin is the one in costume. Maybe this is what Jafar finds so funny in the aforementioned scene. Even more interesting is how Jafar changes himself again into a giant snake in order to fight Aladdin only to get carried away and lose. The music, story and theme are all entertaining and dramatic. All these elements work together to create something special. I should also mention some of the animators involved in "Aladdin". We have Glene Keane animating "Aladdin" (he was also the animator for Ariel and the Beast). There is also Mark Henn who based Jasmine on his sister (he also animated Ariel and gave us Belle). Andreas Deja was the animator on Gaston and so while he again is cast creating the villain, Jafar is quite different.

This film changed the animated comedy genre and made known to the world that the other recent successes in Disney Animation were not just flukes. This movie was also influential in getting Hollywood Superstars, like Robin Williams, to take roles in animation. Williams won a Golden Globe for his role as Genie. Alan Menken won the most awards out of anyone involved. He got two Golden Globes for Best Song and Score and in addition to his Oscar win for "A Whole New World", which I already mentioned, he won the Academy Award for Best Musical Score. Lyricist Tim Rice shared the two wins for Best Song by the way. "Aladdin" is one of four films that I consider to be the Crown Jewels of the Disney Renaissance. You laugh but more than that, you root for the characters and sing along. It is another contributor of what my high school English teacher described as the world being a “Disnified Society”. Whenever people think of “Aladdin” for example, they most likely will think of the Disney version. The musical score is one of my favorites from any movie and this is my favourite film directed by Clements and Musker. Any film that can still be funny after the viewer has memorized the entire movie is special and “Aladdin” doesn’t show any signs of becoming boring any time soon. It is a time capsule for comedy in the early 90’s. While this film was a big hit, I don't think anyone could have imagined things getting even more successful only two years later.

5 Stars out of 5