Aladdin is one of my favourite Disney animated films, though it is hard to watch and not still feel sad about the passing of Robin Williams. This film showcased his talent in a way that everyone, no matter their age, could really be captivated by his humor. Apparently, he was very hesitant about taking on an animated role and so Ron Clements and John Musker asked Eric Goldberg, the supervising animator of Genie, to animate scenes of Genie to recordings of Robin Williams’ stand-up comedy to convince him. And it worked, it resulted in a much loved Disney character who is treasured immensely.
Premiered on: November 8, 1992 at the El Capitan Theatre
Directed by:
Ron Clements
John Musker
Produced by:
Ron Clements
John Musker
Based on: Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp from One Thousand and One Nights
Sequels:
The Return of Jafar (1994)
Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996)
Cast:
Scott Weinger – Aladdin (speaking voice)
Brad Kane – Aladdin (singing voice)
Linda Larkin – Jasmine (speaking voice)
Lea Salonga – Jasmine (singing voice)
Robin Williams – Genie / Merchant (speaking voice)
Jonathan Freeman – Jafar
Gilbert Gottfried – Iago
Douglas Seale – Sultan
Frank Welker – Abu / Cave of Wonders / Rajah
Jim Cummings – Razoul / Farouk
Charles Adler – Gazeem
Corey Burton – Prince Achmed
Bruce Adler – Merchant (singing voice)
Supervising Animators:
Glen Keane
Eric Goldberg
Mark Henn
Andreas Deja
Will Finn
Duncan Marjoribanks
David Pruiksma
Randy Cartwright
Music by:
Howard Ashman
Alan Menken
Time Rice
Songs:
“Arabian Nights”
“One Jump Ahead”
“Friend Like Me”
“Prince Ali”
“A Whole New World”
Academy Awards:
Best Score
Best Song – “A Whole New World”
Best Song – “Friend Like Me” (nomination)
Best Sound Editing (nomination)
Best Sound (nomination)
The Story:
Aladdin opens with flames and smoke rising up to make the title card. The song “Arabian Nights” starts to play as the scene changes to a desert. The opening credits play as a man on a camel is crossing the desert during sunset.
The palace of Agrabah appears as it becomes night and the scene pans through the city and the marketplace.
The man on the camel is a merchant and he arrives in the marketplace as he camel collapses from exhaustion. The merchant jumps down and he breaks the fourth wall as he greets the audience. He welcomes everyone to the city of Agrabah and quickly sets up his little booth to try and sell random goods. The scene pans away as if the audience is uninterested with his goods; even his camel has an unimpressed look on his face. The merchant shouts not to go and comments that they audience must only be interested in the exceptionally rare. He pulls a lamp out of his sleeve. He says not to be fooled by its commonplace appearance because it is not what is on the outside but on the inside that counts. The scene starts to pan away again and the merchant shouts with panic that it is no ordinary lamp! It once changed the course of a young man’s life. The merchant begins the tale and says that it began on a dark night. He sprinkles magic out of the lamp and throws it towards the sky as it becomes the stars. The scene pans down to the desert where a dark man waits with a dark purpose.
The man is sitting on a horse and another man rides up to him. Jafar tells Gazeem that he is late but Gazeen says that he has it. He shows Jafar a half of a gold scarab and says that he had to slit a few throats to get it. Jafar goes to grab the scarab but Gazeem pulls it away and asks for the treasure first. But Iago, Jafar’s parrot, flies down from Jafar’s shoulder and grabs the scarab out of Gazeem’s hand. Jafar then pulls out the other half and the gold beetle comes alive and flies off. Jafar and Gazeem ride after it. The golden scarab leads them to the Cave of Wonders. This giant tiger’s head rises from the sand and is an opening to a cave that is said to contain treasure. Jafar tells Gazeem to go inside and bring him the lamp and the rest of the treasure will be his own.
Gazeem heads into the Cave and Iago asks Jafar where he dug up that bozo. Gazeem carefully takes a step in the Cave and the Cave of Wonders asks who is disturbing his slumber. The Cave warns Gazeem that only one many enter, the diamond in the rough. Gazeem is unsure if he should proceed but Jafar tells him to. Gazeem makes it down one step before the Cave roars and collapses. Gazeem is then trapped inside forever. The Cave gives one more warning to seek out the diamond in the rough as it sinks back into the sand and the two halves of the scarab fall. Iago collects them and complains that entire time that they are never going to get a hold of that stupid lamp! Jafar tells the parrot to have patience; they will find this diamond in the rough.
In the marketplace during the day, Aladdin is being chased by the royal guards for stealing a loaf of bread. His is running across the rooftops and then jumps off of a building and into a pile of laundry. The ladies around start laughing and teasing Aladdin for getting into trouble so early in the day. Aladdin says that he is only in trouble if he gets caught, right as Razoul the captain of the guards catches him. Abu the monkey jumps on Razoul’s head and allows Aladdin to escape. Aladdin and Abu take off and Aladdin starts to sing “One Jump Ahead” while the entire time outwitting and running from the royal guards. The guards and people of the marketplace sing along. There are many buskers and peddlers throughout the streets of Agrabah. Near the end of the song, Aladdin and Abu barely escape the guards by jumping out of a window using a carpet to float down. The guards fall down to the ground below and land in a pile of “Crazy Hakim’s Discount Fertilizer.”
Aladdin and Abu sit down to feast on their loaf of bread. They spy two children nearby digging through the garbage to find some food. Aladdin feels sorry for them but Abu just takes a big bite out of his half of the loaf. Aladdin goes over and gives his bread to the children and then Abu reluctantly gives up his bread as well.
There is some excitement in the street and they all go see what is going on. It is another suitor for the princess riding by, Prince Achmed. The children go running into the street and Prince Achmed draws his whip to hit them. Aladdin jumps in and saves them. He says that if he were as rich as the prince, he could afford some manners. Prince Achmed pushes him into a mud puddle and rides away. Everyone around Aladdin laughs. Aladdin makes a comment that the horse has two rear ends and the prince just heads into the palace grounds and the wall closes behind him as he calls Aladdin a worthless street rat. Aladdin and Abu sadly head home.
Aladdin sings a reprise of “One Jump Ahead” as they wander through the streets of Agrabah. Aladdin and Abu arrive at their little home that night which has a spectacular view of the palace. Aladdin tucks Abu into bed and then daydreams about how one day they will be rich and live in the palace. They will never have any problems.
The next day at the palace, Prince Achmed is furious and he storms past the Sultan. The Sultan tries to calm him down but Prince Achmed insists that the princess has insulted him. He leaves the castle and sarcastically tells the Sultan “Good luck marrying her off!” The Sultan notices that Prince Achmed has a large rip in his pants.
The Sultan goes outside to find his daughter Princess Jasmine. Jasmine is by a large fountain with her pet tiger Rajah. Rajah has a piece of Prince Achmed’s pants in his mouth. The Sultan assumes that is why the prince stormed out. Jasmine insists that Rajah was just playing. Jasmine and Rajah both laugh but the Sultan is not impressed. He reminds his daughter that the law says that she must marry a prince by her next birthday. Jasmine thinks that the law is wrong but the Sultan is worried because she only has three more days! Jasmine goes to a bird house and opens up the door. She cuddles a bird and tells her father that she just wants to be free to make her own choices and to marry for love. The Sultan then takes the bird and locks it back up. He speaks more gently to his daughter and explains that it is not only the law, he also wants to see Jasmine settled down and taken care of before he is gone. But Jasmine again argues that she wants to do something on her own. She has never even been outside of the palace walls. Jasmine thinks that she does not even want to be a princess anymore. This makes the Sultan very mad and he storms away before telling Rajah “Allah forbid that you have any daughters!” Jasmine then walks back over to the bird house and opens the door. She lets all of the birds fly free.
Inside, the Sultan is pacing back and forth and wondering what to do with Jasmine. He starts to play with a model of the city of Agrabah. Suddenly Jafar appears and the Sultan calls Jafar his most trusted advisor and says that he is in need of his wisdom. The Sultan explains the situation with Jasmine and the suitors as he stuffs a cracker down Iago’s throat, must to the bird’s dislike. Jafar says that he might be able to help, but he will need the power of the mystic blue diamond that is on the Sultan’s ring. The Sultan is hesitant, but then Jafar hypnotizes him with a cobra staff and the Sultan hands over the ring. Jafar leaves with it.
Jafar and Iago round the corner and Iago spits out the cracker. He complains about the Sultan always stuffing crackers down his throat. Jafar tells the parrot that soon he will be sultan and then Iago says that he will be the one to stuff crackers down the old sultan’s throat! The pair go into their secret lair inside of the palace.
At night, Jasmine is sneaking through the courtyard dressed in a simple robe. She starts to climb over a wall but then Rajah pulls at her robe and Jasmine climbs down. She apologizes to the tiger but says that she cannot stay in the palace forever. She does not want her life to be lived for her. Jasmine hugs Rajah goodbye and then he helps give her a boost over the wall.
The next day in the marketplace, Aladdin and Abu are on top of a fruit stand making a plan to steal some food. Abu swings down and distracts the fruit stand owner while Aladdin grabs a melon. They then split the melon and start to eat.
Jasmine is wandering through the market nearby. Many merchants are trying to sell her something. Aladdin spies the girl and is smitten with her at once. Jasmine sees a little boy trying to grab an apple from another fruit stand and she hands it to him and then starts to walk away. The owner, Farouk, says that she better pay for that apple but Jasmine has no idea what he is talking about. He threatens to chop off her arm as that is the penalty for stealing. She insists that she can get money from the Sultan, but Farouk does not listen. Aladdin appears just in time to save Jasmine. He makes up a story about how Jasmine is his sister and that she is a little crazy; she thinks that the monkey is the Sultan. Jasmine plays along. Their little show has gathered a crowd and they are trying to leave when Abu accidently drops all of the jewels and money he has pickpocketed from the crowd. They narrowly escape.
At Jafar’s lair, the villain and Iago are conducting a spell that will let them know who the diamond in the rough is. The spell has created a storm and in an hour glass, the sands of time reveal that it is Aladdin who is the diamond in the rough. Jafar suggests that the guards invite him to the palace.
Aladdin is leading Jasmine to his hideout. They are climbing and jumping over roofs. Aladdin assumes that it is her first time in the marketplace and he mentions that she stands out. Jasmine is not disheartened because she thinks that she is a fast learner. She loves Aladdin’s little hideout and that Aladdin and Abu can come and go as they please. But she is not at all impressed at the palace view. Aladdin wonders how wonderful life would be like in the palace but Jasmine does not think it would be wonderful. Both of them feel trapped in their own lives. Jasmine starts to explain that she ran away because her father is forcing her to get married. Aladdin feels badly for her and they lean in to kiss when the royal guards suddenly burst in. Both Aladdin and Jasmine think that the guards are there for themselves. Aladdin then asks Jasmine if she trusts him and she says yes so he tells her to jump with him and they both jump down to the ground below. But the guards have beaten them there and they arrest Aladdin. Jasmine commands that they release him by order of the princess and she reveals who she actually is. The guards say that their orders come from Jafar and so she must take it up with him. They leave with Aladdin as Jasmine assures them that she will confront Jafar.
In the palace, Jafar is sneaking out of his lair when Jasmine appears. She yells at him about the prisoner that he had arrested. Jafar tells Jasmine that the prisoner’s crime was kidnapping the princess and Jasmine insists that she ran away. Jafar apologizes and tells the princess that the sentence was already carried out; the prisoner was beheaded. Jasmine is distraught and runs away crying.
Jasmine is out in the courtyard by the fountain and is crying. Rajah tries to comfort her.
In the dungeon, Aladdin still cannot believe that the girl he met was the princess! He is struggling to get out of his shackles. Abu appear and undoes the shackles for him, but not before giving Aladdin a hard time about falling head over heels for the girl. Suddenly they hear another voice in the dungeon. There is an old man nearby who claims to be a lowly prisoner like Aladdin, but suggests that together they could be more! He goes on to explain that there is a Cave of Wonders that is filled with treasures. Iago appears out from under the old man’s cloak and so the audience knows that it is Jafar in disguise but Aladdin does not see the parrot. The old man says that he just needs a strong young man to go after the treasure. He then reveals a hidden staircase as a means of escape.
They cross the desert through a storm and awaken the Cave. The Cave asks who is disturbing his slumber and Aladdin says his name. The Cave lets him in with the warning to touch nothing but the lamp. Jafar tells Aladdin that he must first fetch him the lamp and then he will have his reward.
Then they cross the desert in a storm and awaken the cave. The cave asks who is disturbing his slumber and Aladdin says that it is him. So the cave lets him in and warns him to touch nothing but the lamp. Jafar tells Aladdin to first fetch him the lamp and then he will have his reward.
Aladdin and Abu venture into the cave. They walk into a room filled with gold and jewels. Abu makes a run straight for a chest filled with treasure but Aladdin stops him in time to remind the monkey to touch nothing. They awaken a Magic Carpet. The Magic Carpet is shy at first but warms up to them. The Carpet loves to tease Abu and it shows them the way to the lamp.
As they go deeper and deeper in the Cave, they find the lamp on top of a large rock formation. Aladdin goes to climb up to grab the lamp and he tells Abu and the Carpet to wait there. Abu spies a large ruby and he cannot resist! The Carpet pulls his tail to try and stop Abu. Aladdin grabs the lamp and cannot believe that such a simple looking thing is what they came all the way to find. He starts to head down just in time to see Abu grab the ruby! The Cave starts to shake and he says that they have touched the forbidden treasure and they will never see the light of day again! The Cave starts to collapse and Aladdin falls but the Carpet catches him. Abu almost falls into the lava but the Carpet saves him as well. They are flying towards the entrance as quickly as possible! They almost make it out but then a rock falls on the Carpet and it crashes to the ground. Aladdin is hanging onto a rock near the entrance but he cannot make it. The old man tells him to pass him the lamp and he will pull Aladdin up! Aladdin does but then the old man pulls out a dagger and is about to stab Aladdin. Abu appears and bites his arm and he drops Aladdin into the Cave below. Jafar throws Abu down after him and the Cave closes up. The Carpet gets out from under the rock just in time to fly up and catch them both.
Back on the surface, Jafar is completely giddy that the lamp is finally his! But he cannot find it and realizes that it must have fallen back into the cave.
At the palace, the Sultan enters Jasmine’s room. She explains that Jafar has done something awful and he comforts his daughter.
Back in the cave, Aladdin is knocked out but Abu and the Carpet wake him up. Aladdin is mad at the old man for tricking him and thinks that he must be long gone with the lamp. But Abu presents him the lamp that he stole back from the old man. Aladdin is still in disbelief that the lamp is so worthless looking and he risked his life for it. He thinks that there is something written on it and starts to rub the side. This awakens the Genie! He shoots out of the lamp with smoke and fireworks.
Genie says that he has been in the lamp for 10 000 years! He asks Aladdin what his name is and then suggests calling him Al or Din or Laddy instead. Aladdin thinks that he must have hit his head harder than he thought. Genie recognizes the Carpet and asks for some tassel. Genie then comments that Aladdin is a lot smaller than his last master and Aladdin is very confused about being a master. Genie extravagantly introduces himself as Genie of the lamp! He explains that Aladdin now has three wishes but cannot wish for more wishes. Aladdin is still skeptical and so Genie starts to sing “Friend Like Me” to explain and show off his powers.
After the song, Genie explains his restrictions for the wishes. The first is that he cannot kill anyone. The second is that he cannot make anyone fall in love and the third is that he cannot bring anyone back from the dead. Aladdin and Abu look at each other and get an idea. Aladdin starts to doubt Genie because his powers have restrictions and then suggests that Genie cannot even get them out of the cave. Abu plays along with this trick. Genie is not impressed with this and is determined to prove them wrong. Everyone grabs a seat on the Magic Carpet and then Genie breaks them out of the Cave.
In the throne room in the palace, the Sultan is giving Jafar a lecture about killing the prisoner and he seems to think that this will resolve everything for Jasmine. Jasmine says that the only good of her being forced to marry will be that when she is queen, she will have the power to get rid of Jafar. Jasmine walks off and the Sultan follows to get back to the suitor business. Once gone, Iago mocks Jasmine. Jafar is still furious that he did not get the lamp and they are worried that once Jasmine does marry, she will either banish of behead them. Then Iago gets an idea that Jafar should marry Jasmine and become the Sultan! Afterwards, they will kill off Jasmine and her father. They sit on the throne and laugh wickedly.
In the desert, the Carpet lands in a small oasis. Genie is very proud of himself that he showed Aladdin what his powers can do. Aladdin then casually wonders what he should do with his three wishes and Genie reminds him that he has just used up one wish. Aladdin corrects Genie because he never actually wished to get out of the Cave. Genie has no response at being tricked and they agree that there will be no more freebie wishes.
Aladdin then asks Genie what he would wish for if he could have anything. Genie responses that no one has ever asked him that before and Genie admits that he would wish for freedom and to be his own master. But the only way for that to come true is if one of his master’s wishes for it. Aladdin makes Genie a deal that he will be the one to wish him free. He will use up his first two wishes and then use his third wish to set Genie free. Genie agrees and is very excited about the prospect of being set free. He then asks Aladdin what he wants most and Aladdin starts out with “there’s this girl…” Genie quickly reminds Aladdin that he is unable to make anyone fall in love. Aladdin then gets the idea to wish to be turned into a prince so that he can make Jasmine fall in love and marry him. Genie gets started right away. First he gives Aladdin a whole new royal outfit and then he needs to give Aladdin a new mode of transportation. He changes Abu in to a camel, but that is not royal enough so then he changes Abu into many things to find the ride fit. Abu is a horse, an ostrich, a car, and finally an elephant! Poor Abu is scared of his own reflection. But Genie is not done yet. The scene zooms out of the oasis as lots of magic is happening to create Aladdin into a prince.
At the palace, the Sultan is stacking up his animal toys. Jafar bursts into the throne room and the toy tower is destroyed. Jafar tells the Sultan that he has found a solution to his problem. He reads from a scroll and says that if a princess has not chosen a husband by the appointed time, then the Sultan must chose for her. The Sultan does not like this idea because so far, Jasmine has hated all of the suitors. But Jafar continues. He reads that if a suitable suitor is not found, than the princess will marry the royal vizier, which is Jafar. The Sultan does not like this idea either; Jafar is too old. Jafar then hypnotizes the Sultan into agreeing to order Jasmine to marry Jafar.
A trumpet sounds in the streets and the Sultan comes out of his hypnotic state. He races to the balcony to see what is going on. There is a parade starting through the streets of Agrabah. It is Aladdin’s entourage and he is disguised as Prince Ali. Genie and the parade performers sing “Prince Ali.” The song is about how great Prince Ali is and everyone is very impressed, even Iago is dancing until he gets the evil eye from Jafar. Jasmine sees the parade from the palace as well but she is just annoyed at the thought of another suitor. The parade bursts into the palace and the Sultan is delighted. Jafar tries to get rid of everyone and is able to do so except for Prince Ali and the elephant. Prince Ali comes flying down on the Magic Carpet from atop the elephant and the Sultan asks if he can ride on the Carpet. He has a lot of fun zipping around the room and even chases Iago. Once he lands, he whispers to Jafar that he will no longer have to marry Jasmine and brags about being an excellent judge of character. Prince Ali, the Sultan, and Jafar argue about whether or not Jasmine will like Prince Ali and then she comes into the room and overhears. Jasmine is not impressed that they are all standing there discussing her future. She insists that she is not a prize to be won and she walks out of the room. The Sultan assures Prince Ali that she will just need some time and they leave as well. Jafar tells Iago that it is time for them to get rid of Prince Abubu.
That evening, Jasmine is looking out over her balcony. Down below, Aladdin is stressing about how to win her over. Abu is trying, and failing, to peel a banana as an elephant and Genie and the Carpet are playing chess. Genie gives Aladdin the advice that he needs to tell Jasmine the truth but Aladdin does not agree. He does not want to get laughed at for being a street rat. Genie then tries to convince Aladdin to at least be himself but Aladdin just wants to be a prince. He then flies up to Jasmine’s balcony on the Carpet. He surprises the princess and Rajah growls at him. Jasmine thinks that she recognizes him and that he reminds her of someone whom she met in the marketplace. Aladdin denies this and says that he has servants who have servants who go to the market for him. Genie has turned himself into a bee and is flying around while trying to get Aladdin to give Jasmine a compliment. This results in Aladdin telling Jasmine that she is very punctual. He quickly corrects himself and calls her beautiful. Jasmine than plays him by getting Aladdin to agree that she is very rich and so she thinks that is the only reason why he is pursuing her. Jasmine tells Aladdin to just jump off the balcony. Genie asks if Aladdin wants him to sting her to stop her from leaving but Aladdin tells the Genie to buzz off. He does, but before flying back into the lamp, Genie reminds Aladdin to “bee himself.” Aladdin then jumps off of the balcony. Jasmine panics but he is perfectly fine because he landed on the Magic Carpet. Aladdin asks if she would like to go on a ride and asks if she trusts him. This really catches Jasmine’s attention because that is exactly what the boy in the marketplace said to her. She says yes and off they go soaring around the world while singing a duet, “A Whole New World.” They go to places like Egypt and Greece before ending their journey in China. They sit on top of a building and watch a celebration with fireworks and a dragon dance.
Jasmine mentions that it is a shame that Abu had to miss out. Aladdin says that Abu doesn’t really like flying or fireworks. The Carpet realizes the mistake and tries to get Aladdin to stop talking but it is too late. Aladdin tries to tell another lie to get out of it, but Jasmine has figured it out. She demands that he tell her the truth and so he says that he sometimes likes to dress as a commoner and explore the marketplace to escape palace life. Since Jasmine can relate, she forgives him.
Aladdin drops Jasmine off at her balcony. They shyly lean in for a kiss and the Carpet nudges Aladdin so he does kiss her. Aladdin is in love and after Jasmine leaves, he floats back down on the Carpet in a happy bliss. He says that for the first time in his life, things are starting to go right. But when he reaches the ground, the royal guards grab him. They chain him up and gag him. He sees that Abu is in a net trap and the guards tie up the Carpet. Jafar is there and tells Aladdin that he has worn out his welcome. He then tells the guards to make sure he is never found. Razoul knocks Aladdin out and then the guards toss Aladdin over a cliff and into the sea below. Aladdin wakes up underwater and is struggling. The lamp also sinks down near him and he tries to reach it. Aladdin is able to rub it just in time before he passes out. Genie appears and sees Aladdin in trouble but he cannot rescue him unless Aladdin wishes it. So since Aladdin cannot speak, Genie asks if Aladdin wishes to be save and declares the Aladdin’s slight nod is a yes. So Genie rescues Aladdin and brings him up to the shore. Aladdin is fine and thanks Genie. They then fly back to the palace.
Jasmine is in her room and humming to herself “A Whole New World.” The Sultan appears, in a trance, and Jasmine is excited to tell him about her evening with Prince Ali. But before she can, the Sultan orders her to marry Jafar. Jafar appears in the doorway as well and Jasmine refuses him, saying that she has chosen Prince Ali. Jafar says that Prince Ali has left but then Aladdin appears from the balcony. He says that Jafar tried to have him killed but of course Jafar denies this. Aladdin figures out how Jafar is controlling the Sultan and he grabs the cobra staff and smashes it. The Sultan comes out of his trance and calls for the guards. The guards come and try to arrest Jafar but Jafar uses his own magic to disappear after he spies the hidden lamp on Aladdin. The Sultan is very angry that Jafar has been plotting against him but he quickly forgets about the problem when he realizes that Jasmine and Prince Ali are in love. He is thrilled that his daughter has finally chosen a suitor. The Sultan praises Aladdin for having such a great moral characters and thinks that the young prince will make a great sultan. This comment makes Aladdin start to feel guilty.
In Jafar’s lair, Iago is panicking about being caught. He starts to pack so they can flee the palace, but Jafar just laughs and laughs. Iago tells Jafar to get a grip and Jafar grabs Iago. He says that Prince Ali is that street rat and he now has the lamp. Jafar and Iago plot on getting it back.
In the courtyard of the palace, Aladdin is worrying about becoming the sultan. Genie comes out of the lamp and congratulates Aladdin. But Aladdin is bummed out about it and heads inside. Genie then brings up the topic of Aladdin’s third wish of freeing him. But Aladdin says no, he thinks he will now need that third wish to keep up the charade. Genie is not happy and sarcastically says that he was starting to feel left out because Aladdin has already lied to everyone else. He shrinks back into his lamp. Aladdin realizes his mistake and is determined to tell Jasmine the truth.
Aladdin hears Jasmine calling for him and he goes to find her. He walks right past Iago who is dressed as a flamingo in the pond outside and was actually the one called Aladdin mimicking Jasmine. With Aladdin gone, Iago goes inside and grabs the lamp. He praises himself for such great work and is looking forward to the praise he is sure to receive from Jafar.
The Sultan has gathered the people of Agrabah to make an announcement. His daughter has finally chosen a suitor! Aladdin appears and is going to tell Jasmine the truth but she cuts him off and drags him out to the public to be introduced.
Jafar looks on from above and then rubs the lamp. Genie is very surprised to find Jafar as his new master. Jafar uses his first wish. He wishes to be the sultan. A storm starts to brew and the Sultan’s clothes then appear on Jafar and the Sultan is in his underwear. Aladdin looks for the lamp and realizes that it is gone. Jafar tells him “finder’s keepers.” Genie appears and has grown very large. He picks up the entire palace and moves it on top of a nearby mountain. Aladdin flies up on the Carpet to try and convince Genie to stop, but Genie cannot disobey is new master.
Jafar is commanding Jasmine and the Sultan to bow before him but they will not. So Jafar wishes his second wish which is to be a sorcerer. He then is able to force them to bow with magic and he turns Rajah back into a kitten. Jafar also changes Aladdin back from Prince Ali into a street rat with a reprise of “Prince Ali.” Abu is turned back from an elephant to a monkey. Jafar then traps Aladdin and Abu in a palace turret and sends them flying off to the ends of the earth. The Magic Carpet manages to reach the turret before it is gone.
It is very snowy at the ends of the earth. The palace turret is rolling towards a cliff. Aladdin finds Abu in the snow and tries to keep the monkey warm. The Carpet is trapped underneath the turret and Aladdin and Abu start to dig it out. But then the tower starts to roll again and Aladdin and Abu duck under a window to protect themselves. They are fine as the turret rolls off of the cliff. The Carpet is also free and they fly back to Agrabah.
In the palace, Iago is forcing crackers down the Sultan’s throat as he is dancing like a puppet. Jasmine is in shackles and is forced to serve Jafar fruit. Jafar offers Jasmine marriage and the chance to become queen. She refuses and so Jafar then wants to make that his third wish, that she desperately fall in love with him. But Genie reminds Jafar that he can’t make Jasmine fall in love. Jafar is very angry that Genie cannot and starts to talk back to him. Jasmine then sees Aladdin sneak into the palace and pretends to be in love with Jafar to give Aladdin a chance to rescue them. Genie is very confused how he made Jasmine fall in love with Jafar but then he spies Aladdin and is very excited that he is there to save them. But before Aladdin is able to steal the lamp, he is spied by Jafar in Jasmine’s crown. He zaps Aladdin away and traps Jasmine in a giant hourglass. He also turns Abu into a windup toy monkey, the Carpet into tread, and prevents Aladdin from getting the lamp with a wall of swords and flames. Jafar turns himself into a giant cobra and attacks Aladdin. Aladdin then gets an idea to trick Jafar into becoming a genie by saying that a genie will have more power than he will ever have. So Jafar wishes to become a genie but then becomes trapped in a lamp as that is the fate of a genie. Iago gets trapped with him. Aladdin saves Jasmine as everything that Jafar changed changes back, including the palace returning to the city.
Genie throws the lamp with Jafar in it into the Cave of Wonders to chill out for 10 000 years. Aladdin apologizes to Jasmine for lying and not being a prince. She understands. He says that this is goodbye and Genie overhears and reminds Aladdin that he has a third wish and can become a prince again. But Aladdin thinks it is time he starts keeping his promises and he wishes for Genie’s freedom as his third wish. Genie is extremely happy! The Sultan changes the law so that Jasmine can chose whomever she wishes as her husband. Jasmine choses Aladdin and then Genie gives everyone a big group hug! Genie then takes off to see the world.
Fireworks shoot off. Aladdin and Jasmine are flying on the Magic Carpet and singing a reprise of “A Whole New World.” They fly off into the starry night and kiss. Genie is a face in the moon and he then pushes the scene aside a yells “made you look!”
The end credits play to the score of “Friend Like Me” and then a pop version of “A Whole New World” plays.
Trivia:
- The Magic Carpet was the first CGI character, minus the tassels which were hand drawn. Elements of the story are woven in the Magic Carpet’s pattern such as the lamp and the Cave of Wonders.
- The Beast and Sebastian make cameo appearances. The Beast is one of the Sultan’s toys in his toy animal tower and Sebastian comes out of a book Genie reads to figure out how to make Aladdin a prince.
- There are caricature characters of Ron Clements and John Musker in the film. They are part of the crowd watching Prince Achmed arrive.
- Some of Genie’s celebrity impressions include: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ed Sullivan, Groucho Marx, Peter Lorre, Robert De Niro, Rodney Dangerfield, Arsenio Hall, and Jack Nicholson.
- The end credits pop version of “A Whole New World” is sung by Regina Belle and Peabo Bryson.
- Aladdin’s looks were based on Tom Cruise.
- 24 pages of animation were needed for every second.
- Originally, the Magic Carpet was going to act like a dog.
- Mark Henn, supervising animator of Jasmine, based the princess off of his sister.
- The curvy look of the film with its thick and thin lines of animation was heavily influenced by caricaturist Al Hirschfeld. This was chosen by Eric Goldberg, who is a huge admirer of Al’s work, because he was the first animator to begin work on Aladdin.
- Jonathon Freeman also plays Jafar in the Broadway musical. I have seen it, it is fantastic!
- “Proud of Your Boy” was a deleted song written by Howard Ashman that was later added to the Broadway musical.
Representation in the Disney Parks:
There is a Magic Carpet attraction in Magic Kingdom (The Magic Carpets of Aladdin), at Walt Disney Studios Park (Les Tapis Volants – Flying Carpets Over Agrabah), and at Tokyo DisneySea (Jasmine’s Flying Carpets).
The Jasmine’s Flying Carpets at Tokyo DisneySea are part of an entire Aladdin themed land called Arabian Coast. This land also includes the Caravan Carousel, The Magic Lamp Theater, Sultan’s Oasis, Abu’s Bazaar, and the Agrabah Marketplace.
There is an Agrabah Bazaar in the Magic Kingdom. Restaurant Agrabah Café is in Disneyland Paris as well as the walkthrough attraction Le Passage Enchanté d’Aladdin.
The Storybook Land Canal Boats have a few scenes from Aladdin. There is the Cave of Wonders, the city and palace of Agrabah, and the rose-covered archways where Aladdin and Jasmine sang “A Whole New World.” The Paris version of the attraction Le Pays des Contes de Fées also has a Cave of Wonders (and a much better version than the Storybook Land Canal Boats one because it has the actual tiger head entrance).
Aladdin, Jasmine, and Genie are also popular meet and greet characters. Characters are also part of Fantasmic! in Disneyland.
Check out the other films of Disney’s Renaissance:
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