We all know Disney’s upcoming live-action ‘Aladdin‘ film has caused a lot of chatter online, even before the release of the first trailer. People have criticized Will Smith’s portrayal of Genie. If you missed the drama, you can click on this link.
The film is just two days away from being released and the reviews from critics are starting to trickle in.
‘Aladdin’ currently has a 60% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 55 score on Metacritic, which means the reactions have been mixed. In fact, according to Metacritic, there have been 15 mixed reviews, 15 positive reviews and 2 negative reviews.
So, to be fair, we’ll show you one positive review and one negative review.
The first (positive) review comes from Mick LaSalle via the San Francisco Chronicle…
Aladdin, the live-action remake of the 1992 Disney animation, is more than a pleasant surprise. It’s a complete delight that stands up its own and is, in many ways, an improvement on the original. Today, ‘Aladdin’ is a Disney movie, or a Guy Ritchie movie. But I wouldn’t be surprised if, in five years, ‘Aladdin’ is thought of as the film where Naomi Scott broke through.
As for Will Smith, legs or not, he makes for a sly, sensitive genie. Some will compare him to Robin Williams’ earlier genie, but there’s really no comparing them, because they were playing different roles.
Now let’s share the other side. Slant Magazine’s Jake Cole writes…
Guy Ritchie’s Aladdin is a remake in the most literal sense. Much of the film’s first act traces the narrative beats of the 1992 animated feature, and in shot-for-shot fashion.
Certainly there was a lot of room to bring a contemporary perspective to this material—to counter the original’s problematic representation of its Middle-Eastern milieu and deepen its characters. Instead, the film settles for telling you a joke you’ve already heard and botching the delivery.
Who to believe? *shrug* you’ll probably just have to watch the film for yourself. It hits theaters this weekend.
