Robin Williams steals the show - Aladdin

6/12/13 Aladdin - Best Music, Original Score, Best Music, Original Song, 1992

When Aladdin was released, I'm fairly certain I was not the target demographic, being old and crotchety even at 25, but I know I saw it somewhere at some point but the only memory I have is of the Genie (Robin Williams), so I decided I should watch it again. After watching it only 3 days ago, my main memory is still of Robin Williams. I don't think that's a bad thing, just that he is such a big personality that he's impossible to ignore. Aladdin is a young thief in Agrabah who falls in love with Princess Jasmine. Princess Jasmine's father, the Sultan has an adviser, Jafar, who has nefarious intentions for the sultanate and Princess Jasmine. Jafar also has an unhealthy desire to obtain a magic lamp, but needs Aladdin's help. Because Aladdin frees the genie from the lamp, the genie owes him three wishes. Of course, Jafar is not going to let Aladdin walk away (or fly away on the magic carpet) and he plots to trick the Sultan into allowing him to marry Jasmine. Jasmine is a very strong-willed and independent thinking girl and is less than thrilled with that proposition. The movie has many of the themes found in Disney films: talking animals (Jafar's parrot voiced by Gilbert Gottfried) or animals who are almost human in their empathy; an item that is usually 'static' that is animated and has a personality (the magic rug); a younger hero and/or heroine who succeed in spite of the adults around them; and wonderful music. I liked Aladdin; I didn't love it, and unlike other other movies, I don't need to watch it over again. But, again, I'm probably not the target demographic and I'm waaaay older than I was in 1992. Younger kids would probably enjoy it, and Princess Jasmine seems to have become somewhat of a favorite with young girls, and I love seeing strong role models for girls, so thumbs up there. The song that won the Oscar was "A Whole New World" is a good song, and represents the feeling of the movie and the characters. I get this one, whereas I did not understand "The Windmills of My Mind" from The Thomas Crowne Affair at all.The movie was made in 1992 almost 20 years before 9/11, and before we became much more aware of the cultures of the Middle East, so watching it now, and hearing the characters invoke 'Allah' as frequently as they do seemed disrespectful, whereas in 1992, there probably wasn't a second thought about it. Disney has often gotten criticism for cultural stereotypes in their movies, or a lack of cultural sensitivity. Being the optimist I am, I would like to think that the movie can be viewed as entertainment, but also perhaps used to further explore the culture it is supposed to be representing. I don't know if that's realistic, and I'm sure there are people who are like, it's just a fricking cartoon, dude. I don't expect a lot of realism in my animation, I mean, there's a flying carpet and a big blue genie, and I know that's not real, but I don't think it would hurt to try and be more aware of the stereotyping that's out there.