It’s a whole new world… and a whole new movie (sort of) with Disney’s live action movie, Aladdin, which is now available on Blu-ray, DVD, 4K Ultra and on digital.
The new film stars Will Smith, Naomi Scott, Mena Massoud, and Marwan Kenzar, to name a few.
I remember seeing the animated film when it was first released. I saw it in the movie theater with a few friends of mine. That was way back in November of 1992 (Sheesh! I feel old!).
One of my favorite things about the film was the soundtrack. Even to this day, when I hear the song “A Whole New World,” I can’t help but sing along (although badly) and think of that scene in the animated film.
For the past few years, Disney has taken their beloved classics and created live action versions of the films. Some of the live action films closely mirror their predecessor, while others (such as Maleficent, which was “sort of” based on Sleeping Beauty), were entirely new films.
The live action version of Aladdin is one of the films that closely mirror the animated original. There are a few different scenes, and a few new songs, but aside from that, if you’ve seen the animated version of Aladin, you pretty much know what to expect in this film. Although I should mention that in this version, Princess Jasmine is a bit more of a “bad a$$” than she was in the original.
Aladdin is a young peasant that lives on the streets in the city of Agrabah, along with his pet monkey, Abu.
Agrabah is ruled by a Sultan, who has a daughter, Princess Jasmine. Princess Jasmine is tired of living a secluded life, so one day she sneaks out of the castle to explore. That is when Aladdin meets her and befriends her.
A man named Jafar is the Grand Vizier of Agrabah, and he has plans on overturning the Sultan so that he can rule the city. In order to do that, he requires a special magic lamp that is hidden in the Cave of Wonders.
Jafar meets Aladdin and captures him. He convinces him to help him obtain the magic lamp. Aladin fulfills his obligation to Jafar, only to find out that Jafar tricked him and traps him inside the Cave of Wonders after her gives him that lamp (the lamp is stolen back by Abu).
Inside the cave, Aladdin accidentally rubs the magic lamp and releases a magical genie. As a “thank you,” as as part of being a genie, the genie offers to give Aladdin three wishes. Aladdin tells the genie that he wants to be a prince so that he can win over the heart of Princess Jasmine and be with her. The genie grants his wish.
What will Aladdin do with the two remaining wishes? Can he win over the heart of Princess Jasmine? And what will happen when Jafar finds out that Aladdin double crossed him. He’s certainly not going to give up that easily. He has his sights on overturning the Sultan and becoming the ruler of Agrabah… and perhaps even more.
To find out what happens, you need to pick up or rent Disney’s Aladdin. Look for it where ever movies are sold/rented.
The part of the genie is played by Will Smith. For me there is only one genie, which was voiced by comedian Robin Williams. I was totally on board with the live actors who played Princess Jasmine and Aladdin (Scott and Massoud respectively). I actually think the film makers did an outstanding job casting them. They truly look like the animated characters came to life. Even Marwan Kenzari was a great choice to play Jafar. It was Will Smith that took me the longest to “accept” as the genie.
I love Will Smith. I think he’s a great actor. I love him in The Pursuit of Happyness (it’s spelled that way), Men in Black, Independence Day, and Enemy of the State. Seeing him as a larger than life blue genie, just threw me off. He still looked like Will Smith, and he certainly sounded like Will Smith. So instead of a genie, I just kept seeing a blue Will Smith (if that makes any sense). After a while, he eventually grew on me.
The music is a vital part of this film, as it was in the original. Most of the same songs are in this film, but a few seem to be slightly different versions of the songs we’ve come to love.
In this film, Princess Jasmine gets a song of her very own. It’s a new song that was made just for this film. Princess Jasmine is a lot more tougher in this film too. She’s more of a strong character in this live action version than she was in the animated version. I kind of like the stronger version of Princess Jasmine better.
The special effects in this film were pretty good. Even the animals in this film (Abu, Lago and Rajah) looked pretty realistic, which was good because there is nothing worse than fake looking characters, especially when you have some pretty impressive cinematography.
Overall I really enjoyed the film. I still have a hard time seeing the genie instead of Will Smith, the actor, but I’m sure in due time I’ll get over that (ha ha).
There are some bonus features (of course!) with the Blu-ray/DVD version. Sadly, I did not have a chance to watch them yet (I normally do try to watch the bonus features). I will eventually, but for now, this is what I know about them.
BLU-RAY & DIGITAL BONUS:
ALADDIN’S VIDEO JOURNAL: A NEW FANTASTIC POINT OF VIEW – Watch behind-the-scenes moments captured by Mena Massoud (Aladdin) in this fun, fast-paced look at his personal journey.
DELETED SONG: “DESERT MOON” – Experience a moving duet performed by Jasmine and Aladdin, fully shot and edited, with an introduction by Alan Menken.
GUY RITCHIE: A CINEMATIC GENIE – Discover why director Guy Ritchie was the perfect filmmaker to tackle this exhilarating reimagining of a beloved classic.
A FRIEND LIKE GENIE – Discover how Will Smith brings talent, experience and his own personal magic to the iconic role of Genie.
DELETED SCENES
- Falling Petals Into OJ
- Jafar’s Magic Orrery
- Anders’ Gift
- Wrong Wishes
- Silly Old Fool
- Post Yam Jam Debrief
BLOOPERS – Laugh along with the cast and crew in this lighthearted collection of outtakes from the set.
MUSIC VIDEOS
- “Speechless” – Music video performed by Naomi Scott
- “A Whole New World” – Music video performed by ZAYN and Zhavia Ward
- “ A Whole New World” (“Un Mundo Ideal”) – Music video performed by ZAYN and Becky G.
I also have some fun, movie related activities, you might be interested in.
Below is the film’s trailer for your enjoyment.
Kimberly
*I received a free screener copy to review. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are my own and not influenced in any way.
