"A Whole New World" of Aladdin
*heavy spoilers so read with your own caution*
Since Disney has started releasing out live-action films of iconic Disney princess movies, the journey of anticipation and emotions have been a rollercoaster ride.
Last week, Disney has released a live-action film of one of its classic '92 Disney movie, Aladdin, starring Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott, and Will Smith. Quite frankly, there was close to zero promotions on the film, besides the YouTube hateful petty comments that they've received once the trailers were uploaded on the web. Interviews on talks hosts started spilling out this week, but no one really knew that the film has hit the theatres.
You can't talk about the new Aladdin without talking about the much hate they've received before its release date. The hate revolved on just about everything - from the choice of casts, the wardrobe and its lack of respect and remembrance to the original, the whole "it-looks-like-a-low-budget-film" opinions, and of course, the recast of Will Smith from Robbie Williams as the Genie. However, Aladdin wasn't a disappointment.
While it's true that the 2019 Aladdin lacked the childish romance that the original had managed to radiate, it's also inevitable to say that it successfully did relieve the childhood nostalgia through vibrant colours, exciting music, surprisingly cute cast, and comedy that managed to keep the audience awake and laughing throughout the whole movie.
And of course, Will Smith. Though this may be disappointing to many loyal '92 Aladdin fans, Will Smith did not disappoint the audience. While many fans may have been expecting Will Smith to bring back Robbie Williams' interpretation of Genie, Smith had other ideas in his head. Instead, he brought out his own interpretation of the Genie.
There were some new changes to the film, of course. For instance, Princess Jasmine had a handmaid that also happened to be the Genie's love interest. Princess Jasmine also leaned intensely on the whole "you can't buy me" attitude (along with her new solo song "Speechless"), where she had also been named Sultan by her father in the end. Jafar, though both '92 and '19 shared crazy ambitions to become Sultan, was replaced to be a much younger character with a deeper depth of character and background story.
In conclusion, Aladdin managed to pull off an exciting new twist to the original film. It definitely managed to live up to the hype (yikes, because there were none). If you haven't watched the classic, it's definitely a movie that gives off a The Greatest Showman vibe and something that's not wasteful to watch on a summer day.