Movie Review: Aladdin - New Take on the Classic Tale

We are familiar with the animated version of Disney's Aladdin but this live-action take by Guy Ritchie takes the story you know and gives it a spin in all the right places.

We get a brand new opening that actually has a wonderful payoff in the end. It begins with a family sharing the tale of Aladdin just as it has been passed down for generations. From there the story we know moves into a few new and unexpected places that adds a greater depth to the Disney animated version. Will Smith's take on the Genie makes it his own and the Genie's story moves from being just a sidekick in the animated film to one of the main characters in this live action version. The relationship between Smith and Mena Massoud's Aladdin feels real. Their story moves forward as both characters try to find a way out of their circumstances.

Naomi Scott as Jasmine not only gains a friend, her handmaiden Daila, but this princess wants to be more than someone looking for her prince. Jasmine knows that she is best suited to be the leader of her people. Her song "Speechless" will become the new Disney princess anthem. In many ways this movie could be retitled Jasmine.

Scott and Massoud have amazing chemistry from the start. Their version of "A Whole New World" is simply breathtaking. In fact, Ritchie's style and flair are brought to the other showstopper songs as well.

In the end, Aladdin is a sweeping tale, on par and at times even better than the animated version. A princess should want to be queen and lead her people. This is a narrative that needs to be told.

PHOTOS FROM DISNEY’S LIVE-ACTION “ALADDIN” WORLD PREMIERE

The cast and filmmakers of Disney’s live-action adaptation “Aladdin,” completed their Magic Carpet World Tour in Los Angeles today with the film’s star-studded world premiere at the El Capitan Theater on Hollywood Blvd. Will Smith, Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott, director Guy Ritchie and composer Alan Menken were joined by other cast and filmmakers and VIP guests including Helen Mirren and Darren Criss. “Aladdin” opens in theaters nationwide this Friday!

STARS OF DISNEY’S LIVE-ACTION “ALADDIN” RETURN TO JORDAN ON THEIR MAGIC CARPET WORLD TOUR

The stars of Disney’s live-action adaptation “Aladdin,” including Will Smith, Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott and director Guy Ritchie, returned to Jordan—where portions of the film were shot—today to participate in a press conference and attend a VIP screening of the film as part of their ongoing Magic Carpet World Tour. The press conference and photo call (with the Anman Citadel as a backdrop) was organized by the Royal Film Commission – Jordan and the screening at Abdali Malls Prime Cinema under Royal Patronage was hosted by HRH Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein. The “Aladdin” production was in Jordan for several weeks in November 2017 to capture the natural beauty of the stunning desert vistas for the big screen. Be sure to see “Aladdin” when it hits theaters nationwide May 24, 2019!

DISNEY’S LIVE-ACTION “ALADDIN” CONTINUE THEIR GLOBAL MAGIC CARPET TOUR WITH STOP IN BERLIN

The cast and filmmakers of Disney’s live-action adaptation “Aladdin,” including Will Smith, Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott, Navid Negahban, Numan Acar, director Guy Ritchie and composer Alan Menken, participated in a photo call and attended the German Gala Screening of the film at the UCI Luxe in Berlin earlier today. The German capital was their third stop on the Magic Carpet World Tour which will continue over the next two weeks and which you can follow at #MagicCarpetTour. Don’t forget to see “Aladdin” when it hits theaters nationwide May 24, 2019!

STARS OF DISNEY’S LIVE-ACTION “ALADDIN” CONTINUE MAGIC CARPET WORLD TOUR WITH STOP IN LONDON

The stars of Disney’s live-action adaptation “Aladdin” including Will Smith, Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott, Marwan Kenzari, director Guy Ritchie, producers Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich and composer Alan Menken, continued their trek across the globe with a stop in London to attend the film’s European gala at the Odeon Luxe Theatre in Leicester Square earlier today. London was the second stop on the Magic Carpet World Tour that will continue over the next two weeks and which you can follow at #MagicCarpetTour. Don’t forget to see “Aladdin” when it hits theaters nationwide May 24, 2019.

ZAYN AND ZHAVIA WARD TO PERFORM "A WHOLE NEW WORLD" AS FEATURED IN DISNEY'S "ALADDIN" FILM AND SOUNDTRACK

ZAYN AND ZHAVIA WARD TO PERFORM 

 OSCAR® AND GRAMMY®-WINNING SONG “A WHOLE NEW WORLD” AS FEATURED IN DISNEY’S “ALADDIN”

ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK TO FEATURE CLASSIC SCORE AND ORIGINAL SONGS BY COMPOSER ALAN

MENKEN, LYRICISTS HOWARD ASHMAN AND TIM RICE, PLUS A NEW SONG

WRITTEN BY MENKEN, BENJ PASEK AND JUSTIN PAUL

WILL SMITH AND DJ KHALED TO PERFORM NEW UPDATED RENDITION OF

 OSCAR-NOMINATED SONG “FRIEND LIKE ME” 

DIGITAL ALBUM SET FOR RELEASE MAY 21

PHYSICAL ALBUM TO BE RELEASED MAY 24

Multi-platinum and global award-winning superstar singer/songwriter ZAYN and emerging sensation singer/songwriter Zhavia Ward are set to perform the Oscar and GRAMMY-winning duet “A Whole New World.”  The song will be featured in the film’s end credits and on the Walt Disney Records soundtrack, and is available today as a single and music video, which can be seen here. The new updated rendition of the classic song is produced by Saltwives aka Alex Oriet and David Phelan (ZAYN and Charli XCX) and the music video was directed by Philip Andelman (Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran). 

“The selection of artists, producer and tonal direction was critical for the success of updating a classic song like this,” said Mitchell Leib, president of Music & Soundtracks for the Walt Disney Studios.  “ZAYN’s vocals are like no other and his artistic imprint immediately brought a contemporary and diverse presence.  Additionally, ZAYN could have chosen any artist in the world to collaborate with on the duet, but he personally selected Zhavia for her unique perspective, powerful vocal abilities and to platform a talented new artist, ensuring that the audience could discover this song, again, for the first time.”  

The timeless ballad, featuring Alan Menken’s beautiful melody and Howard Ashman’s unforgettable lyrics, received an Academy Award®, Golden Globe® Award and GRAMMY Award, among other accolades, upon its release in 1992. 

The “Aladdin” original motion picture soundtrack features an unforgettable score from eight-time Oscar-winning composer Alan Menken (“Beauty and the Beast,” “The Little Mermaid”), along with new recordings of the original songs written by Menken and two-time Academy Award winner Howard Ashman (“Little Shop of Horrors”), three-time Oscar winner Tim Rice (“The Lion King”) and one song written by Menken and Oscar and Tony Award®-winning songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (“La La Land,” “Dear Evan Hansen”). From Walt Disney Records, the digital soundtrack is set for release on May 21 at 9:00pm PT and will be followed by the physical album on May 24.

A thrilling and vibrant live-action adaptation of Disney’s animated classic, “Aladdin” is the exciting tale of the charming street rat Aladdin, the courageous and self-determined Princess Jasmine and the Genie who may be the key to their future.  “Aladdin” opens in U.S. theaters nationwide May 24, 2019.

Oscar-nominated actor and multi-platinum recording artist Will Smith and GRAMMY-nominated superstar songwriter, producer and multi-platinum selling artist DJ Khaled are set to perform a re-invented version of the classic Oscar-nominated song “Friend Like Me.” The song will be featured in the film’s end credit, on the Walt Disney Records soundtrack, and released as a single.  The new updated rendition of the song is produced by DJ Khaled. 

The new original song featured in the film and included on the soundtrack is “Speechless,” performed by Jasmine (Naomi Scott).  The song is Jasmine’s big breakout song in the film about finding her voice, and was written by Alan Menken and songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.

The Aladdin soundtrack includes "Arabian Nights," "One Jump Ahead," "One Jump Ahead (Reprise)," “Speechless” (Part 1), "Friend Like Me," "Prince Ali," "A Whole New World," "One Jump Ahead” (Reprise 2), "Speechless” (Part 2), "A Whole New World” (End Title), "Friend Like Me” (End Title), and “Speechless” (Full), plus 25 score cues composed by Alan Menken.

The Aladdin original motion picture soundtrack physical album is now available for pre-order, pre-add on Apple Music, and pre-save on Spotify.  “A Whole New World” is available at streaming and download services.  For more information on Walt Disney Records releases, follow us atFacebook.com/Disney, Instagram/disneymusic, Twitter.com/disneymusic and our Disney Hits Playlist at http://disneymusic.co/DisneyHits.

CAST FROM DISNEY’S LIVE-ACTION “ALADDIN” KICK OFF MAGIC CARPET WORLD TOUR IN PARIS WITH FRENCH GALA AND PHOTO CALL

The cast and filmmakers of Disney’s live-action adaptation “Aladdin,” including Will Smith, Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott, director Guy Ritchie and composer Alan Menken, participated in a photo call and attended a gala screening of the film at the historic Le Grand Rex in Paris earlier today, where they were greeted by throngs of  passionate fans lining the streets. The City of Light was the first stop on the Magic Carpet World Tour that will continue over the next two weeks which you can follow at #MagicCarpetTour. Don’t forget to see “Aladdin” when it hits theaters nationwide May 24, 2019.

DISNEY, WILL SMITH AND MAKE-A-WISH® LAUNCH #FRIENDLIKEME CHALLENGE TO CELEBRATE UPCOMING RELEASE OF LIVE-ACTION “ALADDIN”

THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY AND MAKE-A-WISH® 

LAUNCH #FRIENDLIKEME CHALLENGE WITH WILL SMITH 

IN CELEBRATION OF STUDIO’S UPCOMING RELEASE “ALADDIN” 

Disney to Donate up to $1 Million to Help Grant Wishes for

Children with Critical Illnesses via Global Challenge 

Movie Tickets Now on Sale 

BURBANK, Calif. (April 29, 2019) – The Walt Disney Company and Make-A-Wish® launched the #FriendLikeMe Challenge today – World Wish Day® – to celebrate the May 24, 2019 release of the studio’s much anticipated new movie, “Aladdin.” Movie tickets are on sale now. 

The #FriendLikeMe Challenge is part of a global cause marketing campaign supported by two Make-A-Wish wish granters, Disney and Will Smith. The actor/recording artist, who stars in Disney’s “Aladdin” as the wish-granting Genie, encourages fans and celebrities to participate in the campaign and help show the world: Where there’s a wish, there’s a way. The campaign poses the question: “If you were the Genie in Disney’s ‘Aladdin’ and had the chance to grant three heartfelt wishes for someone, who would you share them with? Tag a friend on Twitter and/or Instagram. For every public post with #FriendLikeMe from April 29 through May 24, 2019, Disney will donate $5 up to $1 million to Make-A-Wish to help grant life-changing wishes to children battling critical illnesses all over the world. For more information, go to FriendLikeMe.org. See Disney’s ‘Aladdin’ in theaters May 24.”

“The release of ‘Aladdin’ presents an authentic opportunity to connect the film’s powerful theme of wish-granting to the wonderful work Make-A-Wish does in support of children dealing with serious illnesses around the world,” said Elissa Margolis, senior vice president, Enterprise Social Responsibility for The Walt Disney Company. “Wishes are all about hope and we’re so glad to be able to continue our work with Make-A-Wish and invite fans to join us in helping grant more wishes that will bring hope into the lives of deserving kids and their families.”

Since 1980, Disney and Make-A-Wish have helped grant life-changing wishes for more than 130,000 children with critical illnesses around the world. Today, one out of every two wishes granted in the U.S. is a Disney wish. When a wish is granted, a child replaces fear with confidence, sadness with joy, and anxiety with hope.

Granting wishes is a part of The Walt Disney Company’s philanthropic and outreach initiative, Disney Team of Heroes, which delivers comfort and inspiration to families with children facing serious illness. 

“The #FriendLikeMe Challenge unites two of our longest-tenured and most passionate wish granters in Disney and Will Smith,” said Richard Davis, president and CEO of Make-A-Wish America. “Both Disney and Will have forever transformed the lives of countless wish kids by allowing them to experience the hope and healing of a wish come true.”

Michel Rudolphie, president and CEO of Make-A-Wish International added, “By participating in the challenge, members of the global community can do their part to bring the life-changing impact of a wish to more children. We are grateful to Disney and Will Smith for joining us on this journey to transform the lives of more children, families, volunteers, supporters, medical professionals and entire communities worldwide.” 

FIRST TV SPOT FOR "DISNEY'S" ALADDIN

A thrilling and vibrant live-action adaptation of Disney’s animated classic, “Aladdin” is the exciting tale of the charming street rat Aladdin, the courageous and self-determined Princess Jasmine and the Genie who may be the key to their future. Directed by Guy Ritchie, who brings his singular flair for fast-paced, visceral action to the fictitious port city of Agrabah, “Aladdin” is written by John August and Ritchie based on Disney’s “Aladdin.” The film stars Will Smith as the Genie; Mena Massoud as Aladdin; Naomi Scott as Jasmine; Marwan Kenzari as Jafar; Navid Negahban as the Sultan; Nasim Pedrad as Dalia; Billy Magnussen as Prince Anders; and Numan Acar as Hakim. “Aladdin” is produced by Dan Lin, p.g.a., and Jonathan Eirich, p.g.a., with Marc Platt and Kevin De La Noy serving as executive producers. Eight-time Academy Award®-winning composer Alan Menken provides the score, which includes new recordings of the original songs written by Menken and Oscar®-winning lyricists Howard Ashman and Tim Rice and includes two new songs written by Menken and Oscar and Tony Award®-winning songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.

Disney's Live-Action Aladdin Teaser Poster and Trailer

“Aladdin” is the exciting tale of the charming street rat Aladdin, the courageous and self-determined Princess Jasmine and the Genie who may be the key to their future. Directed by Guy Ritchie, who brings his singular flair for fast-paced, visceral action to the fictitious port city of Agrabah, the film is written by John August and Ritchie based on Disney’s “Aladdin.” “Aladdin” stars Will Smith as the larger-than-life Genie; Mena Massoud as the charming scoundrel Aladdin; Naomi Scott as Jasmine, the beautiful, self-determined princess; Marwan Kenzari as Jafar, the powerful sorcerer; Navid Negahban as the Sultan concerned with his daughter’s future; Nasim Pedrad as Dalia, Princess Jasmine’s free-spirited best friend and confidante; Billy Magnussen as the handsome and arrogant suitor Prince Anders; and Numan Acar as Hakim, Jafar’s right-hand man and captain of the palace guards. The film is produced by Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich with Marc Platt and Kevin De La Noy serving as executive producers. Alan Menken provides the score, which includes new recordings of the original songs written by Menken and lyricists Howard Ashman and Tim Rice and two new songs written by Menken and songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.The film, which was shot on practical stages in London and on location amidst the stunning desert vistas of Jordan, has a talented creative team helping to bring Agrabah to life, including: director of photography Alan Stewart, production designer Gemma Jackson and costume designer Michael Wilkinson. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DisneyAladdin Twitter: https://twitter.com/DisneyAladdin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/DisneyAladdin YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/DisneyMo... Hashtag: #Aladdin

CASTING IN PLACE FOR "ALADDIN," THE LIVE-ACTION ADAPTATION DIRECTED BY GUY RITCHIE

BURBANK, Calif. (September 6, 2017) – Casting for “Aladdin,” the live-action adaptation of the studio’s animated classic, is complete and production is currently underway at Longcross Studios outside London. 

The “Aladdin” cast includes: Two-time Oscar® nominee Will Smith (“Ali,” “Men in Black”) as the Genie who has the power to grant three wishes to whoever possesses his magic lamp; Mena Massoud (Amazon’s “Jack Ryan”) as Aladdin, the hapless but lovable street rat who is smitten with the Sultan’s daughter; Naomi Scott (“Power Rangers”) as Princess Jasmine, the Sultan’s beautiful daughter who wants to have a say in how she lives her life; Marwan Kenzari (“Murder on the Orient Express”) as Jafar, an evil sorcerer who devises a nefarious plot to unseat the Sultan and rule Agrabah himself; Navid Negahban (“Homeland”) as the Sultan, the ruler of Agrabah who is eager to find a proper husband for his daughter, Jasmine; Nasim Pedrad (“Saturday Night Live”) as Dalia, Princess Jasmine’s hand maiden and confidante; Billy Magnussen (“Into the Woods”) as Prince Anders, a suitor from Skanland and potential husband for Princess Jasmine; and Numan Acar (“Homeland”) as Hakim, Jafar’s right-hand man and head of the palace guards. 

“Aladdin” is directed by Guy Ritchie (“Sherlock Holmes,” “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.”) from a screenplay by John August (“Dark Shadows,” “Big Fish”) based on the 1992 animated film “Aladdin” and stories from “One Thousand and One Nights.” The producer is Dan Lin (“The LEGO Movie”) with Golden Globe® winner Marc Platt (“La La Land”), Jonathan Eirich (“Deathnote“) and Kevin De La Noy (“The Dark Knight Rises”) serving as executive producers. Eight-time Academy Award®-winning composer Alan Menken (“Beauty and the Beast,” “The Little Mermaid”) provides the score, which includes new recordings of the original songs written by Menken and Oscar®-winning lyricists Howard Ashman (“Little Shop of Horrors”) and Tim Rice (“The Lion King”) as well as two new songs written by  Menken and Oscar® and Tony Award®-winning songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (“La La Land,” “Dear Evan Hansen”). 

About Walt Disney Studios:

For over 90 years, The Walt Disney Studios has been the foundation on which The Walt Disney Company was built. Today, the Studio brings quality movies, music and stage plays to consumers throughout the world. Feature films are released under the following banners: Disney, including Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios; Disneynature; Marvel Studios; and Lucasfilm. The Disney Music Group encompasses the Walt Disney Records and Hollywood Records labels, as well as Disney Music Publishing. The Disney Theatrical Group produces and licenses live events, including Disney on Broadway, Disney On Ice and Disney Live!.

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