Aladdin- Live Action 2019 - Guy Ritchie

Dades · 11-02-2019 3:42pm

I am still getting over that this was a real trailer and not a SNL parody with Will Smith doing a turn.

They really are trying to capture lightening in a lamp bottle twice with making the genie a wisecracking scene-stealer....

It worked before because of Robin Williams (and because it was animation), and dropping Will Smith into this awful CG avatar is surely not going to end well.

11-02-2019 4:46pm

Considering that Williams broke the animators hearts by constantly going completely off script and doing improv scenes, how do they think they can recreate that?

Hell they may as well done motion capture on Williams, as the animators ended up using film from his takes to draw geinie.

They should never have made Genie be the centre of any remake, it's a complete hiding to nothing. Smith is an entertainer and full of charm but no one is Williams

JP Liz V1 · 11-02-2019 10:34pm

Avatar 2?

johnny_ultimate · 11-02-2019 10:50pm

Think it was in the Lion King thread I mentioned how a big problem with the Disney live action remakes is how they abandon the rich, vibrant aesthetic of the original animated films for a bland photo realism and CG overkill that lacks character.

This is a much more literal adaptation by the looks of it - but that genie will teach me to be careful what I wish for :pac:

razorblunt · 12-02-2019 10:11am

Dades wrote: »

I am still getting over that this was a real trailer and not a SNL parody with Will Smith doing a turn.

They really are trying to capture lightening in a lamp bottle twice with making the genie a wisecracking scene-stealer....

It worked before because of Robin Williams (and because it was animation), and dropping Will Smith into this awful CG avatar is surely not going to end well.

It actually would have been a decent role for Terry Crews, the dude is stacked but seems to be scene stealing without going over the top.

I guess they needed the hook of the big name though to draw those on the fence in.

pixelburp · 12-02-2019 10:21am

johnny_ultimate wrote: »

Think it was in the Lion King thread I mentioned how a big problem with the Disney live action remakes is how they abandon the rich, vibrant aesthetic of the original animated films for a bland photo realism and CG overkill that lacks character.

This is a much more literal adaptation by the looks of it - but that genie will teach me to be careful what I wish for :pac:

+1 I mean it's obvious what the 'creative' decision here truly is - pinch the pockets of the 90s kids now grown up and feeling nostalgic (Dumbo being the exception here) - but to do so via what so far looks to be a bland shoulder shrug of aesthetic design just highlights the laziness of the entire enterprise.

Disney are really going for broke with these sequels and remakes of classics: one'd wonder if they run the risk of oversaturating their own market.

Dades · 12-02-2019 11:44am

razorblunt wrote: »

I guess they needed the hook of the big name though to draw those on the fence in.

That's potentially their big mistake, though. They went with essentially unknowns with some (on the surface) ethnic nods to the setting for most of the casting, and then dropped Big Willy into the mix. If the trailer seems anything to go by it's horribly jarring and pulls you right out of ancient [Asia] and into Bel Air.

I agree someone not stellar, like Terry Crews might have been a more subtle choice. Or even better someone actually from whatever part of the world they've set it.

Of course maybe WS will be picking up an Oscar for this next year. :pac:

Goodshape · 12-02-2019 12:47pm

Dades wrote: »

If the trailer seems anything to go by it's horribly jarring and pulls you right out of ancient [Asia] and into Bel Air.

Funny you should say that but that was always my problem with the 90's Disney's Aladdin too.

You had this wonderful setting in an ancient Arabian city and everything feels, looks, and sounds of that time and place... and then Robbin Williams' genie pops up making jokes about cars, doing showbiz impressions, and generally dragging us right back to the 20th century American pop culture.

Have always thought the film – and the genie in particular – was a bit overrated as a result to be honest.

I guess they felt they needed that modern pop-culture hook, and I guess they still feel that way. *shrug*

lizzyjam · 12-02-2019 7:30pm

I think it'll be awesome movie!

Agent Coulson · 12-02-2019 9:10pm

They should have done this as part of a One Thousand and One Nights series of films and not done a live action Aladdin.

Bowlardo · 14-02-2019 12:33am

Just watch the trailer. Will smith looks dreadful. This will be a **** show of the highest order.
**** Disney not going to this one

TerrorFirmer · 14-02-2019 9:02pm

Film looks alright, but Will Smith - much as I like him - is miscast in this. Not necessarily because it's Will Smith, more the fact that they made Genie Will Smith, rather than just Genie voiced by Will Smith.

TheIrishGrover · 15-02-2019 12:09am

Nope nope nope.... Just say no, kids

Circuital · 15-02-2019 12:00pm

batgoat wrote: »

I have zero faith in Guy Ritchie so have low expectations of this as a result.

Guy Ritchie is a complete bluffer. Awful, awful director. I was disappointed when I heard he was directing RDJ's Sherlock Holmes movies. And he delivered on those feelings. Cannot stand anything he does.

I might watch this to see how laughable it is.

p to the e · 15-02-2019 3:49pm

Circuital wrote: »

Guy Ritchie is a complete bluffer. Awful, awful director. I was disappointed when I heard he was directing RDJ's Sherlock Holmes movies. And he delivered on those feelings. Cannot stand anything he does.

I might watch this to see how laughable it is.

You better believe it. Goes on like a cockney geeza when he's from an extremely privileged background.

LazerShark · 15-02-2019 6:42pm

It was weird when Will Smith wasn't all in blue and now it's weird that he is. Will have to wait and see.

TheIrishGrover · 16-02-2019 2:31pm

filters wrote: »

Wy did they not get a arab actor to play genie?
Will Smith is african american, is this classed as cultural appropriation?
Is it only cultural appropriation if white people are involved?
Is this double standards?
As for the movie , i reckon it will bomb, has Hollywood ever had a time like now where they are so short of original ideas?

I hate this bullsh*t. It's business!!! If there was an "arab actor" who can be the main attraction in a 150 Million + dollar movie then they would have used them. If there was a pan-sexual Martian who could headline the movie they would use them.

Having said that, the trailer is just godawful.

mikhail · 17-02-2019 11:20am

filters wrote: »

Idris Elba is a Norse God in Thor!!

The character Elba was playing is somehow 'whiter than white' in norse mythology, and so is used in some neo-nazi bull****. Casting Elba was a preemptive snub to those people. Or so I read somewhere, anyway.

The White Wolf · 17-02-2019 11:39am

Everytime I see this genie That Yellow Bastard is what keeps coming to mind.

Diemos · 17-02-2019 12:01pm

Agent Coulson wrote: »

Smith will inject the magical wish-granter with a little bit of the Fresh Prince and a little bit of Hitch.

“Aladdin” will also get a feminist makeover.

“Aladdin” will also feature new music

I just can't see how this will be anything other than a roaring success.......:rolleyes::p

Mr E · 12-03-2019 2:19pm

First full trailer...

It does look pretty good in fairness. Better than I was expecting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foyufD52aog

Dades · 12-03-2019 3:29pm

Well that's an improvement.

What's still putting me off is the mix of tone. Is it is drama/love story, is it a comedy, or is it a musical??

Blue Willy is still in there.

Agent Coulson · 12-03-2019 3:50pm

Naomi Scott is a stunner.

pixelburp · 12-03-2019 3:52pm

So ... why not save a few bucks and just watch the animation again?

12-03-2019 7:50pm

That looks more like it, there's now a 'world' on screen which lives up to the original. Still though, Jafar is just not right. I get that it could come across quite hammy having a real life actor try to imitate Jafar's personality and characteristics from the original, but he's not intimidating at all here.

Plus, it seems like they are more or less going for a shot for shot remake if that trailer is anything to go by. Aladdin is the spit of his animated counterpart, same with Jasmine, I'm surprised they've gone for their own version of Jafar.

Busi_Girl08 · 12-03-2019 9:29pm

I've honestly never been more conflicted about a movie before.

On the one hand it looks and sounds great, and Iago is going to be amazing, but on the other hand I really hate this ongoing unnecessary moneymaker remake trend, and I'm still unconvinced about Will Smith.

kerplun k · 12-03-2019 11:22pm

Mr E wrote: »

First full trailer...

It does look pretty good in fairness. Better than I was expecting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foyufD52aog

Yeeeeep, that’s definitely another billion in bank for Disney.

El Duda · 13-03-2019 9:14am

In an ideal world, Jafar would be played by Tim Curry in his prime.

Dades · 13-03-2019 11:53am

kerplun k wrote: »

Yeeeeep, that’s definitely another billion in bank for Disney.

Yeah, I think you're right about that. And magic carpets for everyone from the Disney Store.

p to the e · 14-03-2019 11:35am

Agent Coulson wrote: »

Naomi Scott is a stunner.

I was sure it was Freda Pinto. Scott is like a slightly more tanned version of Felicity Jones.

Dades · 14-03-2019 12:52pm

I think she has the look of Buffy about her!

I see from IMDB she was in that 2011 show Terra Nova. Really enjoyed that while it lasted.

El Duda · 22-05-2019 12:14pm

Early reviews are actually saying that this is good.

I am shocked. I refuse to believe them.

pixelburp · 22-05-2019 12:23pm

I suspect with any of these live-action remakes, prior fandom for the original animated version & susceptibility to the tickle of nostalgia might slant a lot of perspectives. Not meant as a criticism, but these remakes are precision engineered to pick the pockets of those with fondness for Disney's 'renaissance' period.

Slydice · 22-05-2019 5:21pm

If it's good, I'm in!

mikhail · 22-05-2019 6:20pm

Early reviews are often skewed as the people most motivated to see the movie are those who are anticipating it. Right now it's 60% on rotten tomatoes. That's all right, no more. Certainly nothing to get excited over.

CastorTroy · 23-05-2019 12:50am

If you want to check out the soundtrack, including the new versions of A Whole New World

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiNVoBckLqLnv2rddKZSTFs7a96z06qbt

5star02707 · 23-05-2019 11:12am

seen it last night, better than expected. i did not have high hopes before watching it but in the end you;ll have a smile on your face.

Nostalgic and every 90's kid would enjoy it too

Will Smith made this version of Genie his own.

SharpshooterTom · 26-05-2019 8:46pm

A lot of people I've spoken to saying this has easily surpasses the original.

Is that the case with people here too?

pinkypinky · 26-05-2019 8:55pm

Just saw it. I enjoyed it - William Smith did his own interpretation and it was fine. I was a little thrown by the additional songs and the

new more feminist ending (in a good way!)

.

The songs are what make this and they're still great. Agrabah is fully realised.

I haven't seen many of these live action remakes and still think they're just a cash cow for Disney but part of me is still a 14 year old who dragged her too cool for school friends to see Aladdin in the UCI Coolock...

titan18 · 26-05-2019 11:25pm

It was alright. Actors for Aladdin and Jasmine are pretty good tbh. Jafars actor is horrific though. Songs are good too as expected although Ritchies direction is a bit ropey (slow mo in a song

).

Bits of it ruined by a rather ****ty audience though. Guy in front of me was vaping through the film

SharpshooterTom · 27-05-2019 3:41am

titan18 wrote: »

It was alright. Actors for Aladdin and Jasmine are pretty good tbh. Jafars actor is horrific though. Songs are good too as expected although Ritchies direction is a bit ropey (slow mo in a song ).

Bits of it ruined by a rather ****ty audience though. Guy in front of me was vaping through the film

How did it compare with the animated version? There was some people I spoke to saying it was so good its made the original kind of redundant now, admittedly they were fairly big Will Smith fans who largely went to see it for him as much as anything.

Rubberchikken · 27-05-2019 3:49am

we are hugh fans of the animated version in our house. always remember when the genie aka robin williams first appears. very funny and i always thought he was perfect for the voice.
will have to see this version to compare but something tells me the animated one will always win for us.

titan18 · 27-05-2019 7:30am

ThomasFlynn wrote: »

How did it compare with the animated version? There was some people I spoke to saying it was so good its made the original kind of redundant now, admittedly they were fairly big Will Smith fans who largely went to see it for him as much as anything.

Animated one is better. Some sections are better in this (the introduction parade to Prince Ali is fantastic) and Jasmine is a large improvement as she's not just there to be saved and the new song is quite good (one of the few times adding feminist stuff into a film has actually been worth it imo), but overall animated is way better. Robin Williams is better as the genie imo. Will Smith is still good, but he's not Robin Williams.

The biggest drawbacks that the original doesn't have are Jafar, who's actor is porn parody quality tbh, and Ritchie's direction being ill-suited to a musical (slow motion scenes in the number where Ali and Jasmine are in the market running away). A better director and a better villain and it'd actually have been quite good. As it is, it's like a 6 or maybe 7/10 film that's quite passable to watch but not really going to be worth rewatching like the original is.

MarkY91 · 27-05-2019 9:40am

I really enjoyed it. No complaints except for jafar.

He was horribly casted and horribly portrayed. Just seemed like a gay drama queen instead of a scary, dominant character.

jones · 28-05-2019 1:16pm

Saw this over the weekend with my daughter and was not expecting much. It's definitely better than i thought it would be with some good elements, Jasmine (what a cracker) and the genie were great IMO but agree with above about Jafar. He seemed miscast with no real threat as the villain of the piece. The actor who played Aladdin was ok but i think suffered from the lack of menace from Jafar's character.

Decent enough and not the car crash i was expecting.

Zwillinge · 30-05-2019 9:54am

Seen this the other night - was enjoyable, but not worth a rewatch.

The Aladdin and Jasmine (Sarah Michelle Gellar double at times) actors were decent, though Jafar's was super ropey and he didn't seem at all bothered.

The new songs were forgettable and Will Smith did a decent enough job, though I think he needs to stick to the genre of nice rap :pac:

Patser · 01-06-2019 8:08pm

Seen it today with 3 kids, and we all loved it. Will Smith's genie is entirely his, no attempts at all at imitating Robin Williams, and as so works in it's own way. Not better, but still v good.

Some impressive set pieces, especially Prince Ali introduction, and as as the genie is toned down more room for other characters (Jasmine especially) to offer more.

I'm a bit mixed on Jafar. Definitely lacks the pure Disney evil of original, but more believable in other ways.

Good movie

ThePott · 02-06-2019 12:30pm

Overall felt it was a mixed bag but more positive than negative, more or less felt the same as I did with the other Disney remakes which is what's the point.
Naomi Scott was great and the genie wasn't too bad.

Went into more detail in the video below if anyone is interested:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLO00Y0yW-0

tunguska · 04-06-2019 11:21am

Saw this last night, going in with zero expectations. I havent even seen the Robin williams version so I had no preconceptions either. Have to say I loved it. Alarm bells went off when Will smith broke into song within the first 2 minutes.......Had no idea I'd signed up for a musical. Expectations were now even lower. But it won me over, songs musical numbers and all. It had this really positive vibe to it, good pure fun, a film you could definitely take the kids to without any fears. The screening I went to the entire audience broke into spontaneous applause at the end, which is something I never see happen. All in all a lovely film with a great message.

El Duda · 04-06-2019 11:33am

Saw this last week. It feels like they did just enough to merit its existence but overall it's fairly forgettable fluff. It will be forgotten about in a few years, just like that live action Jungle Book from 1994. The new Jafar is pathetic. Baffles me as to how he got through the casting stage without being laughed out of the building. The Sultan was more intimidating, in fact, I've seen scarier villainous performances on British daytime TV.

The best things are Aladdin, Jasmine and the Genie (when he's not blue CGI). I expected them to give Jasmine more to do given the current climate, but I was expeting to hate it. I thought Aladdin would become a punchline and Jasmine would be a Mary Sue, but the feminist subplot was the most interesting thing about the whole film. Very well woven into the film without feeling contrived. The guy who played also Aladdin did a great job and the chemistry was good.

Not as cynical as expected but still fairly mediocre. The original is far far superior.

Aladdin- Live Action 2019 - Guy Ritchie

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