Aladdin (Live-Action)

[D82]

Alan Menken talks a bit about the changes they made to the lyrics of the original songs in this article:

He continued to explain that more of his original 1992 version of Aladdin had to be updated for modern audiences when it came to this big-budget 2019 remake, including the lyrics in the classic song 'Prince Ali', which is performed by Will Smith as the Genie.

“It is no longer 'Sunday salaam'. It's 'Friday salaam'. Things got corrected, certain things got removed. Like, we used to have [in the lyrics to 'Arabian Nights'], 'The heat is intense / It's barbaric / But hey, it's home'," Menken recalled.

"But originally, what Howard [Ashman, Menken's late collaborator] and I wrote actually was, 'Where they cut off your ear if they don't like your face / It's barbaric / But hey, it's home'. That went fast. We thought it was funny. But I don't think Arabic people thought it was all that funny, so that got changed.

"Then the word 'barbaric' came out. It's a filter, you have to look at what's happening today. Values go upside-down in a blink. It's inevitable, you have got to take that really seriously."

[Old Fish Tale]

Disney are really missing a trick by not promoting Speechless more. Naomi sounds amazing.

It seems they have heard you! Disney has released a featurette about Jasmine and her new song. I must warn the people who don't want to know too much about the plot that it's a bit spoilery, because the song seems to take place during the third act of the movie.

It looks like they copied the idea behind 'On the Steps of the Palace' from 'Into the Woods'.

[D82]

^It's true. It seems they've used a similar artistic device.

[Disney's Divinity]

Changes are inevitable. As Menken himself says, lyrics were changed for this film almost immediately after the original release of the animated film, too.

[nomad2010]

Am I the only one who thought “barbaric” was referring to the heat, not the actual location/culture?

Wish they’d have gotten rid of the “red letter” line more than anything

[D82]

Am I the only one who thought “barbaric” was referring to the heat, not the actual location/culture?

No, I thought that too.

Alan Menken sings a couple of additional lines from "Speechless" he hadn't sung before in this recording.

Here's also the LA press conference:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WdeWPGYvEI

And more costumes on display:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kREwCusKXU8
https://twitter.com/laughing_place/stat ... 4954867712
https://twitter.com/minkus/status/1130221400697004032
https://twitter.com/minkus/status/1130221898007162880
https://twitter.com/minkus/status/1130222522677391360

[ChrisLyne]

Alan Menken talks a bit about the changes they made to the lyrics of the original songs in this article:

He continued to explain that more of his original 1992 version of Aladdin had to be updated for modern audiences when it came to this big-budget 2019 remake, including the lyrics in the classic song 'Prince Ali', which is performed by Will Smith as the Genie.

“It is no longer 'Sunday salaam'. It's 'Friday salaam'. Things got corrected, certain things got removed. Like, we used to have [in the lyrics to 'Arabian Nights'], 'The heat is intense / It's barbaric / But hey, it's home'," Menken recalled.

"But originally, what Howard [Ashman, Menken's late collaborator] and I wrote actually was, 'Where they cut off your ear if they don't like your face / It's barbaric / But hey, it's home'. That went fast. We thought it was funny. But I don't think Arabic people thought it was all that funny, so that got changed.

"Then the word 'barbaric' came out. It's a filter, you have to look at what's happening today. Values go upside-down in a blink. It's inevitable, you have got to take that really seriously."

Yeah, if you’ve seen the stage production recently then you’ll have heard what replaces the barbaric line.

Another, unsurprising, change is that Prince Ali no longer has “He's got slaves, he's got servants and flunkies”. Now “He's got 10,000 servants and flunkies”

[JeanGreyForever]

Wish they’d have gotten rid of the “red letter” line more than anything

Lol I wouldn't have been opposed to this either.

[D82]

The soundtrack is already available on Spotify. I'm not sure if the link will work in all territories though.

Here are also Youtube links to the songs:

1. Arabian Nights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFF8-ywCQZk
2. One Jump Ahead: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VqRzEEKUYE
3. One Jump Ahead (Reprise): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOA1cFSRoeY
4. Speechless (Part 1): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHjn7N5jk1I
5. Friend Like Me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mp01r_1g7tE
6. Prince Ali: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toMGNHMrP94
7. A Whole New World: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAe325dOhlo
8. One Jump Ahead (Reprise 2): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOH2oPUS2j0
9. Speechless (Part 2): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCTb5jEzAPA
10. A Whole New World (End Title): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9XjKrTg56U
11. Friend Like Me (End Title): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbko6XV6Yoc
12. Speechless (Full): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vU4qYnyOlY

[D82]

World premiere livestream:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiTmR_FrNQA

New promos:
https://twitter.com/disneyaladdin/statu ... 5978554368
https://twitter.com/disneyaladdin/statu ... 7333721088

The cast answers some Twitter questions:
https://twitter.com/disneyaladdin/statu ... 0101997568

And new articles about the costume design:
A whole new wardrobe: How Aladdin's costumes were created
Why is Aladdin wearing so many layers in Disney's live-action remake?

[ChrisLyne]

Thanks for the song links!

[D82]

^You're welcome.

Here are a new poster and a new Japanese trailer.

[nomad2010]

Soundtrack is out officially on iTunes and Spotify in the US.

I’ve listened through, and I’ve gotta say, Aladdin is my favorite Disney movie, and I was scared going in. But they absolutely knocked it out of the park. Arabian Nights gave me chills. Prince Ali’s build is incredible. And even Friend Like Me is surprisingly great. I honestly don’t think I could be more pleased, and the new lyrics! They’re... actually good? I’m beyond relieved. And A Whole New World... Mena’s delivery is so earnest. I’m thrilled. What a pleasant surprise.

[Atlantica]

I'm really glad you enjoyed it nomad2010, but I have to say, I'm the total opposite

I was shocked at how bad it was ?! Speechless doesn't fit at all with rest of the songs, and she sort of yells it rather than purveying the emotion behind it. You couldn't pick it out from being in Aladdin at all; there is nothing that blends it into the soundtrack. The buildup to AWNW was almost non-existent, it sort of just starts ? The autotune on Mena Massoud was just as bad as Emma Watson, in my opinion. And I was cringing at Will Smith sing-talking / Fresh Princing all over his iconic songs. I appreciate a different twist to Robin Williams, but at least have someone who can sing.

It really and truly makes me appreciate how skilled you have to be to perform a song, have it laid down forever on a soundtrack, and for it to live and breathe that moment in the film without seeing it.

I appreciate star power, but I can really see the old Hollywood way of having 'ghost voices' to sing for their main stars, ensuring a brilliant performance from all aspects.

I dunno ... I'm fresh off my first couple of listens, but I'm gutted. Hopefully it will get better with watching the film, but at the moment, I'm truly stumped as to why they have picked who they've picked and chosen to perform the songs in this way.

[UmbrellaFish]

I liked it. Will Smith sounds a little flat sometimes, but overall, it’s not a bad interpretation and I’m glad he was cast. It’s a very different interpretation than Robin Williams’ and that’s okay. The two leads are fantastic, as well— I don’t really notice much, if any auto tune, to be honest, but I will have to give it another listen. In Emma Watson’s case, that auto tune was unmissable. I actually really love “Prince Ali” and I am very excited to see it in movie theatres. “Speechless” does stick out a bit like a sore thumb as it really is a Pasek and Paul track. Naomi gives a great interpretation and hopefully the song does well on the charts because I think that’s Disney’s real goal with this soundtrack. All in all, a good soundtrack.

I hope The Little Mermaid gets treated as well as Aladdin has.

[DisneyFan97]

I will see Aladdin later this day with my best frined and mom.

Sad that lago has a little role in the movie

I thought he was so funny in the original .

[disneyprincess11]

First: Did they, actually to God, just changed “We heard your princess is a sight, lovely to see” to “We heard your princess is hot, where is she?” For trying to be PC, calling a woman something that can be called demeaning is a huge step down.

Overall, it is mixed to positive for me. Mena and Naomi are terrific. Their "A Whole New World" is fantastic (minus some articulation problems with Naomi. "Anywhere" and "Share"). I got used to the orchestration for it, but I wish it remained flowing like the beginning. I am so impressed with Mena! This is his first time singing and it sounds natural. He sounds just like Brad.

I agree with "Speechless" sticking out like a sore thumb. I liked it, but I'm actually a bit underwhelmed by it. Thankfully, Naomi's vocals save it, even if it is screaming in the second part.

Will Smith is okay. He is actually decent in "Arabian Nights," which new version I really liked. Nice for them to borrow music from the Broadway version. Prince Ali and Friend Like Me are better than I thought. Will's autotune voice doesn't fit the grand chorus.

So disappointed Desert Moon or any demos aren't in the CD.

[nomad2010]

First: Did they, actually to God, just changed “We heard your princess is a sight, lovely to see” to “We heard your princess is hot, where is she?” For trying to be PC, calling a woman something that can be called demeaning is a huge step down.

I took that as them trying to amp up why Jasmine gets so upset and feels demeaned? Like intentionally worse to reinforce her feelings of being seen as just a prize and only wanted because she’s beautiful.

[DisneyFan97]

The ”new” Aladdin is very much like the original except with a more muted Genie. I liked the new version of Arbian Night and Naomi Scott was great this movie will probably make her a star. But there are no surprises. Jafar doesn't get to sing. Wil Smith is very good.

I don’t like the ending because the Genie loses his powers.
The Sultan was very well played. But i wishhe was older. Really miss Jago. Nomin and Mena are very good singers.

Jafar is less theatrical. He is kind of dull. Also he doesn't really look Jafar.

But the guy wasn't a bad actor. the new song was good. And the Prince Ali sequence was probably the highlight of the movie.

I miss the more can turn into anything Genie but i don't know if that’s really possible to work in Live Action.

I wish the Genie got more backstory. I really hope that Genie origin movie by the Dracula Untold writers gets made

Agrabah looks really impressive and the costumes are great . Jasmine has some fabulous dresses.

Overall well made but inferior to the Animated, Will Smith and Naomi Scott are the standouts.

[DisneyFan09]

I finally saw the movie today and I must say that I was a little dissapointed. Not that this movie is horrendously bad, but overall it's my very least favorite of the remakes. I've never truly been against these remakes and while 2017's Beauty and the Beast were blatantly attacked for being an inferior copy of it's highly regarded predecessor, the same actually goes to Aladdin; It simply comes across as being inferior to it's animated counterpart in every single way.

My main problem with this movie that it was (mostly) just bland and generic. The comedic parts with the Genie felt out of place and were jarringly cartoony at first. Though the first act came across as a rushed, as most of the story points were rapidly introduced in a not very fluid manner in Arabian Nights. I didn't like how the movie instantly introduced Aladdin and Jasmine to each other without setting up the characters up first (yes, I know that it's needless, due to how this is a remake, but nonetheless).
I didn't like that Aladdin had a couple of moments of genuine unlikable traits, as him being a thief and afterwards not wanting to let the Genie go for keeping his facade (which was hinted in the deleted scenes of the animated movie, though). I disliked the escape of The Cave of Wonders, which lacked the thrill and adrenaline from the animated movie. The moment before the climax was certainly bittersweet.
I wasn't particularly fond of Speechless, which was melodramatic and tedious and though setting up Jasmine's arc at the climax, it felt a little contrived. Yet to talk about the casting, the one who was the least successful of the actors was Marwan Kenzari, having absolutely no charisma nor spark as Jafar. He was simply just bland and wooden as the rest of the film. Prince Anders was just awkwardly ridiculous and extremely cringeworthy.

Okay, bitch and moan. At least to talk about what was done well is that Jasmine was not as bratty in this movie and was more tolerable. Naomi Scott was fine enough, though. Mena Massoud was plucky and spunky enough. I did enjoy the musical moments in the film, especially One Jump Ahead and A Whole New World. I found the pop-vibe to the latter song to be remarkable, yet it worked well. Just as with 2017's Beast, it felt like a carbon copy of it's predecessor, yet making it it's own and covering certain story points that plagued the story.
The dance sequence was fine, though, as was the Carpet and Rajah. Nasim Pedrad as Dalia was fun enough, though her relationship with both Jasmine and the Genie was not enhanced enough. As for the visuals, they were nice, though the setting felt like an amalgam of Arabia and India (which it was cited to be).

Overall, the film had it's couple of moments, yet it's been my least favorite of the Disney remakes. Let's hope the remake for The Lion King is going to be way better.