THE appetite for new adaptations of old classics is greater now than ever before — especially for The Walt Disney Company, which has demonstrated huge initiative to create live-action versions of classic animated films.
From Alice In Wonderland (in 2010) to Beauty And The Beast (2017), these adaptations have proven to be hugely successful, garnering billions of dollars for Disney.
As Disney has prepared to release several live-action remakes of animated classics, Aladdin is no exception.
Following the success of previous adaptations which included The Jungle Book (2016) and Beauty And The Beast (2017), Disney fans will experience a "whole new world" as the love story of Aladdin and Princess Jasmine comes to life once again.
The 2019 reimagining, based on the story Aladdin And The Magic Lamp from The Book Of One Thousand And One Nights , will feature not only the original classic tunes of its 1992 animation predecessor but also new music from composer Alan Menken such as Speechless.
As for Aladdin specifically, a live remake of the acclaimed love story offers not only a new take on the story but also an opportunity to promote further diversity in Disney's repertoire.
Although the studio received some backlash for casting decisions, in addition to accusations of whitewashing, Disney executives did make clear their intentions to accurately honour and portray the culture of the film throughout their search for a diverse cast. You can even hear the word "sultan" pronounced exactly the way you would from the Arabic-speaking world!
Principal photography for the film was supposed to begin in July 2017 but the challenge to find a leading man meant production only began last September, wrapping up only last January.
After talk of potential leads from big stars to total unknowns, Aladdin finally found its cast — with Grammy-winner singer and Oscar-nominated actor Will Smith to lead as the Genie with two relatively unknown artistes Mena Massoud (Aladdin) and Naomi Scott (Princess Jasmine).
While Smith is no Robin Williams (who lent his voice to the 1992 version's Genie), his version is fresh, with an unmistakable cocky demeanour one would remember from his Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air acting debut days. Of course, he is funny.
Incidentally, I wonder if some of the scenes he appears in and some of the lines he utters will send ultra conservative Malaysians to start picketing against the fantasy movie, perhaps in front of the US Embassy one Friday afternoon!
As for the human leads — Massoud and Scott — though they may be new to most of us, the chemistry they have in the movie makes it all the more entertaining.
They both give beautiful renditions of the songs in the movie, including that classic A Whole New World.
Meanwhile, the end-credits version of the song is performed by Zayn Malik and Zhavia Ward. Malik and Ward's version was released as a single on May 9.
The movie was directed by Guy Ritchie with Dan Lin as the producer.
Ritchie's action-packed style of directing is expected as the filmmaker brings into this movie his experience from his past work in the action and crime genres.
Meanwhile, besides the English version, the movie is also available in Malay here, with singer Sheila Amzah lending her voice for Princess Jasmine character and all the songs attributed to her.
It is touted to be the first live-action movie to have been dubbed in Malay.
It's quite timely then for its opening is around the upcoming school and Hari Raya holidays.
NOW SHOWING
ALADDIN
Directed by Guy Ritchie
Starring Will Smith, Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott, Marwan Kenzari, Navid Negahban, Nasim Pedrad, Numan Acar, Billy Magnussen
Duration 128 minutes
Rating PG13