Film Review - Aladdin (PG)

You ain't never had a friend like me.

Here it is - the second in Disney's 2019 trio of live-action remakes. March release Dumbo had that sense of Tim Burton world-building to it, plus a completely original second act, to mark it out from the source material. Doubt was cast, however, on the wisdom of a whole new Aladdin and whether it could establish its own credentials with the help of a dyed-blue Will Smith. So does it succeed in doing so? I'd say... yes. Just, but yes.

Some story-tweaking aside, this is pretty much Arabian business as usual, Smith himself narrating the tale (albeit as a far-travelled mariner rather than the pedlar from the 1992 version). Aladdin is the same orphaned street-thief in the city of Agrabah, outrunning both starvation and arrest and singing jauntily about it as he goes. But a series of unexpected encounters change his life forever. He meets and falls in love with the Sultan's daughter Jasmine, who's out and about incognito, so she can rub shoulders with the common people. Then he's forced on pain of death by scheming vizier Jafar to seek out a mythical treasure. And on discovering said artefact - the famed magical lamp - he ends up with a very powerful friend at his command, one capable of helping him woo the woman so far out of his league. See? All the familiar elements are in place.

As with all Disney's retreads, the biggest hurdle is comparison with the original - more so here, in the light of Robin Williams' Genie and the groundbreaking animation that sprouted from his manically iconic voice performance. The moments when the new film comes closest to faltering is when it pays CGI tribute to those former glories. It's all visually clever stuff, but simply can't live up to our memories of 1992's crazily abstract interpretation. Good job then that the film goes the way it does - switching the Genie into more human form. Smith's amiability is allowed to shine in its own right, while his rapport with Aladdin (Mena Massoud) takes on a more grounded quality. There are neatly played comic interactions along with some fun hip-hop stylings during the musical numbers, creating a buddy-buddy connection between the two characters.

Massoud himself makes for a likeable Aladdin (he sings passably if not magnificently well), while Marwan Kenzari's Jafar is stone-cold as opposed to the cackling pantomime villain of before. The cast's stand-out, however, is the UK's Naomi Scott as Princess Jasmine, whose bolstered role is one of the movie's strongest assets. As much concerned with being a political force for good as escaping the confines of the palace, she's a young woman finding her voice - not least when powering out 'Speechless', the original song written by Alan Menken for this adaptation. Embracing all facets of her role, Scott turns in one belter of a performance, boosted by one-time Saturday Night Live comedian Nasim Pedrad as her witty maidservant Dalia. 

The film's new storytelling flourishes provide it with much-needed purpose (one other narrative twist towards the end proved a real crowd-pleaser where I was watching). Meanwhile Lock, Stock and Sherlock Holmes director Guy Ritchie beefs up the action sequences and can't resist giving them a bit of his trademark slo-mo. The costume and set design is as colourful as you'd expect - bright pastel to begin with and going full exploding spice market once Aladdin gets his 'Prince Ali' on. Menken has reworked his entire 1992 score - not just Jasmine's song - for the occasion with a full orchestra and there's a vitality to the entire enterprise best embodied by sprightly CGI monkey Abu. (Jasmine's tiger Rajah is impressively realised too.)

In short Aladdin 2019 pulls out all the stops to create a fun and contemporary version and does a creditable job. True you'll want to revisit the classic Disney take and revel once again in that Genie's groundbreaking antics, but taken on its own terms this is a success. Not a whole new world, perhaps, but fresh enough to put a whole new smile on your face.   

Gut Reaction: Mid-level enjoyment throughout, with occasional spikes into joy. 

Memorable Moment: Jasmine refuses to be 'speechless' second time around. That bit gave me goosebumps. 

Ed's Verdict: 7/10. Kids will love it and adults will be entertained, even if they can't help hankering for Robin Williams.