|
“Aladdin”
|
 |
Reviewed
by: |
Wayne A. Klein |
| Genre: |
Animated
Comedy |
| Video: |
1.78:1 Full
screen |
| Audio: |
Dolby Digital
Surround 5.1, Disney Enhanced 5.1 |
| Languages |
English |
| Subtitles |
English |
| Length |
90 minutes
|
| Rating |
G |
| Release Date |
10/5/04 |
| Studio |
Disney DVD
|
| Commentary:
|
Two audio
commentary tracks one with the directors and producer and the
other with character animators |
| Documentaries:
|
“A Diamond
in The Rough” |
| Featurettes:
|
“Inside the Genie’s Lamp”,
“The Genie World Tour” |
| Filmography/Biography:
|
None |
|
Interviews: |
None |
| Trailers/TV
Spots: |
None |
| Alternate/Deleted
Scenes: |
Deleted scenes,
alternate scenes |
| Music
Video: |
Clay Aiken singing “Proud
of Your Boy”, “Nick Lachey & Jessica Simpson perform “A Whole
New World” |
| Other:
|
“Aladdin’s
Magic Carpet Ride Adventure in 3-D”, 3 Wishes Game”, deleted
song, pop-up fun facts |
| Cast
and Crew: |
Robin Williams,
Scott Weinger, Linda Larkin, Jonathan Freeman, Frank Welker
|
| Written
By: |
Roger Allers,
Ron Clements, Ted Elliott |
| Produced
By: |
Ron Clements
and John Musker |
| Directed
By: |
Ron Clements
and John Musker |
| Music:
|
Alan Menken
|
| The
Review: |
Having a Genie in a bottle sure
spices up the life of a street rat named Aladdin. When Aladdin
is duped into retrieving the legendary magic lamp (it can
only be taken by a “diamond in the rough”, i.e. someone who
has the potential to be noble and good) for Jafar the right
hand man of the king, Aladdin believes he will spend eternity
trapped in the cave of wonders. Luckily, a wisecracking Genie
who sounds suspiciously like Robin Williams awakens to save
Aladdin from certain death. In the process the two become
fast friends. Aladdin decides to woo the daughter of the king
but runs afoul of Jafar and his mouthy parrot Iago (Gilbert
Godfried). Unknown to Aladdin, Jafar has plans for retrieving
the lamp and ruling the world. ---
"Aladdin" continued Disney's hot
streak of family friendly but witty animated classics that
broke box office records. Unfortunately, the magic was to
last for only one more motion picture ("The Lion King") but
the trio of films produced during this time (and some that
followed)broke new ground for Disney. No small part of the
success of "Aladddin" can be attributed to the songwriting
team of Alan Menken and Howard Ashman. Menken and Ashman (who
also wrote the winning songs for "Beauty and The Beast" and
"Little Shop of Horrors"). ***
|
| Image
and Sound: |
"Aladdin"
looks great on DVD with sharp, clear images and bright, vivid
colors. I didn't detect any analog or digital blemishes worth
noting. The Disc looks even better than the laserdisc version
issued nearly a decade ago. The "Disney Enhanced" 5.1 soundtrack
actually improves the dialogue and songs giving them better
clarity and added presence. |
| The
Extras: |
The extras
are a mixed bag but most of them are well worth having. There's
deleted scenes presented in rough pencil animation, deleted
songs highlighted by the terrific "Proud of Your Boy" (although
I could have done without Clay Aiken's music video it's here
as well). We also get "A Whole New World" performed by the
dipsy duo of Nick Lachey and Jessica Simpson. The two hour
"A Diamond in the Rough" is a fascinating glimpse behind-the-scenes
of this marvelous movie. We also get to see scenes from the
deleted storyline for the film. Pop-up trivia facts can also
be programmed to play on the DVD player as well. *** Of the
games included "Aladdin's Magic Carpet Ride" is the best of
the bunch. It's actually not a game per se but a magic carpet
ride that's best experienced on as big a TV as possible with
the lights out. It's as close to a thrill ride ever presented
on home video. "Inside the Genie's Lamb" is a mildy interesting
and entertaining glimpse into the Genie's habitat. "3 Wishes
Game" might keep little ones entertained once or twice. You
can also select your favorite "Aladdin" songs with onscreen
lyrics to help you sing along (God save your neighbors if
you're a bad singer). ---
|
| Commentary:
|
The two audio
commentary tracks feature the directors and producer of the
film while the second has some very funny commentary from the
various character animators involved in the film. Both provide
a great deal of background on the film, its various working
incarnations and details that dropped from the script along
the way. --- |
| Final
Words: |
All in all
a terrific package well worth picking up. "Aladdin" is a funny,
charming and entertaining movie with the Disney team at their
peak. I had some reservations about the DVD release as I was
afraid they might screw it up but they didn't. The only thing
missing is a discussion about the original song lyrics that
were changed for home video release due to concerns about their
anti-Arab sentiments. Also, we don't get any new footage of
Robin Williams but we do see some vintage stuff from his very
funny recording sessions. |
