From: amberle@staff.tc.umn.edu (Amberle S Ferrian)
Subject: Re: Aladdin, WOW!!!
Organization: University of Minnesota
Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1992 03:13:26 GMT

(spoiler protection on)





In article <BxruEA.M4M@undergrad.math.waterloo.edu> kgscharf@napier.uwaterloo.ca (Kevin Scharf) writes:
>After seeing Aladdin last night I just have one thing to say: WOW!
>I never thought they could top Beauty and the Beast but Aladdin just blew it 
>out of the water.  I'm still humming the songs today. When does the soundtrack
>comoe out?

I'm afraid I don't agree.  Granted, the blending of computer- and hand-drawn
animation was nicer in Aladdin than in BatB, but it just didn't have that
"wow, this movie really touched me to the core!" feel that BatB had.  Of
course, like many people said, it's not fair to compare Aladdin with BatB or
TLM--the first is a comedy, the second a romance (ok, maybe I'm biased 'cause
I'm just a sucker for a good love story), and the third, well...

>Jafar has to be one of the scariest villains Disney has ever come up with.  
>Children were screaming and crying when he would come on the screen.  Princess
>Jasmine on the other hand is one of the most beautiful heroines they've ever 
>created.

Jasmine is attractive, yes, but she's got a real "recycled" look to her--she
looks like a brunette Princess Aurora (same angular face) with heavy Sherri
Stoner influences (petite and slim, long flowing hair, big cartoony eyes).
Yes, I know Sherri didn't do the live-action reference for this one, but you
gotta wonder if Disney is "stuck" in the Ariel/Belle/Jasmine mold.  While 
we're at it, Aladdin looks and sounds WAY too much like Eric from TLM.  And
I did notice the split voice casting for him, particularly at the beginning of
"One Jump Ahead" (which sounded too much like something from "Newsies"
--shiver!!!)

OTOH, Lea Salonga really does a marvelous job in "Brand New World", which I
can't seem to get out of my head, as if I want to. :-)  And the animation is
definitely not in the classic Disney style, which is wonderful, to be sure,
but it's nice to see that they aren't totally confined by it.  And the Genie--
awesome, 'nuff said.

>If Beauty and the Beast deserved to be nominated for an Oscar, Aladdin 
>deserves to win an Oscar!  The music was beautiful, the animation was smooth
>and clear, and all the characters were memorable.

Aladdin will be nominated for Oscars, to be sure.  It'll probably even win
some--it'll pick up a couple nods for Best Song, and they may as well just 
give Best Score to Menken now, and save themselves the trouble :-)  And it'd
be nice to see Williams get a supporting actor nomination.  Not only does he
deserve it, but it would help actors take animation more seriously, since one
of the strikes against BatB was that a lot of actors (who make up the biggest
section of the Academy) were probably too leery of supporting something in
which they don't appear, and having someone get a nomination for a voice role
might ease those fears ('course, they should recognize the animators too--
they're needed just as much to make the characters come to life).  But I'd be
really surprised if it was nominated for Best Picture, because IMHO it just
doesn't deserve it.
---
Amberle Ferrian		 |  Never *count* on miracles--RELY on them!
<amberle@epx.cis.umn.edu>|		Amberle's Corollary to Murphy's Law