Aladdin (2019): Film Review

Synopsis

Aladdin follows the story of Aladdin (Mena Massoud) and his quest to be with Princess Jasmine (Naomi Scott). But, the evil Jafar (Marwan Kenzari) stands in his (and her) way. With the help of the Genie (Will Smith), Aladdin must defeat Jafar and win  over Jasmine.

Review

First, a disclaimer. This is NOT a slavish adaptation of the original cartoon (naturally because it’s a half an hour longer). The director does take some liberties in terms of character portrayal and subplot, but the baseline plot is the same. Aladdin (1992) purists might not appreciate the changes, though a good chunk of it is the same. If they could look past the differences, they'll see that the film is overall fairly well done. The amount of attention, appreciation, and time put in to this movie is so apparent. The film is very technically successful. The production design is great and very intricate. All of the dance sequences and musical numbers are exquisitely detailed and choreographed. The visual effects, camera work (except for the slo-mo; stop it Guy Ritchie, seriously), whatever: It all works. The acting is mainly good. Will Smith knocked it out of the park with the Genie. It wasn’t an imitation (thank god) of Robin Williams unmatchable VOICE performance in the original, but a different take on the character. He put his own Will Smith flair on it (BRASS!). I will say, though, that he was ultimately underused, especially in the last 30 minutes or so. Suffice it to say, the film struggles without his charm and, I’ll say it again, his charisma. Mena Massoud was fine as Aladdin. I didn’t have and qualms with his performance but there also wasn’t anything particularly of note. The character portrayal of Jasmine, I thought, was interesting. She is given more to do and gets more of a central story, which I appreciate. Her character arc provides positive messages about powerful women (and Naomi Scott can SING). The film’s portrayal of Jafar I felt separated the character from the film, ultimately creating some jarring tonal shifts that disrupt the momentum built by the film’s strong scenes. He is portrayed as more sinister than jokey. However, the intention of his portrayal works for the film because of the overall darker tone of the remake than the lighter tone of the original. Overall, I thought that the acting (and the rest of the film, really) was strong in most parts, but weak in others.