![]() ![]() ![]() When the movie itself was released, gaping jaws turned into wide-stretched grins: Not only was Will Smith’s genie actually kinda awesome – in motion and with effects actually completed – but Smith had done the seemingly impossible. Listen Now: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | TuneIn | Google Podcasts | Radio Public | Deezer | iHeart | Art19 A Den of Geek headline read: “First look at Will Smith’s Genie Horrifies Just About Everyone.” There was something so seemingly “off” about the first images released of the superstar in his new, very digital, blue look that fans of the animated original balked and the Internet piled on. It seems like everyone remembers where they were when they first saw it: the first look at Will Smith as the blue genie in Disney’s live-action remake of Aladdin. If, however, you are looking for a movie that tries to do something creative with the popular property, you'll find the film lacking.īased on the success of the Beauty and the Beast remake from a couple of years ago, it seems like moviegoers are perfectly happy with just getting the same story over again and so the new Aladdin may be about to make a billion dollars.(Photo by © Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection) In the final analysis, it seems quite clear that if what you want from the new live-action Aladdin is a slightly modified version of the movie you already, know and love, then you will likely enjoy the new movie. ![]() She has a lot more agency in the new film, and even gets her own song, an original tune written for the film called "Speechless." If we're being honest, many reviews don't think the song is all that good, however nobody is blaming Naomi Scott's performance for that. The one way that the new Aladdin does make significant changes to the original animated movie is in the way it handles Princess Jasmine. “A Whole New World” is more moving than the original. Massoud and Scott make a live-action “Aladdin” succeed on a different level than a cartoon can - as a teary romance. Mena Massoud who plays the title character and Naomi Scott's Jasmine are getting generally positive reviews for their performances. The top performances in the new Aladdin however, clearly belong to the two human lead characters. He spends a large part of the story "disguised" as human in order to actually play a part in the story beyond simply being the source of magic when needed. The Genie does also get a bit more to do in this version of the film. His infectious personality shines throughout, and he even manages to infuse his martini-swilling Genie with moving emotional moments. Smith, faced with the impossible task of living up to Robin Williams' iconic voice performance, easily makes the role his own. THR says Smith infused the role with his own personality and made it work, even if the CGI maybe doesn't work all the time. Many reviews think that Will Smith did a good job, or at least a good enough, job, in that regard. How in the blue hell does Will Smith try to take on a role like that, still make it feel like Disney's Genie, while somehow avoiding a comparison that is not going to go well? It became one of the great animation performances of all time. Robin Williams' version of the character from 1992 wasn't just great, it was iconic. One of the hardest jobs that the new Aladdin had to accomplish was making the Genie work. ![]() Whether making Smith’s computer-enhanced and cerulean-skinned Genie look natural sharing the screen with Aladdin or swooping the camera along magic carpet rides through virtual sets, Ritchie’s style embraces the kind of expressionism needed to pull off such a fanciful tale. Where the director really shines is in melding practical elements with virtual ones. Variety finds the melding of live-action and CGI to be a task uniquely suited to a stylish director like Guy Ritchie. However, while some find the new movie weak, for the most part, critics are giving the new film, passing, if not stellar grades. Aladdin then uses the Genie's magic to transform himself into a prince in order to try and impress the princess he's fallen in love with. He gets enlisted by the Sultan's villainous vizier Jafar to obtain a magic lamp, but ends up unleashing the Genie trapped inside himself. Aladdin is a homeless beggar on the streets of fictional middle eastern Agrabah. If you've seen the 1992 animated movie then you know the story. It’s the guy behind the camera who should be doubted. It’s pretty clear after watching the new live-action Aladdin that doubts about Will Smith’s casting as the Genie are overblown. ![]()
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