You better rub me the right way.

Rating: 7/10 (3 June 2019)

This really felt like a hiding to nothing. A largely unnecessary remake of a classic animated feature, full of classic songs and featuring a paramount performance from Robin Williams. Add to this that Guy Ritchie's recent run of films has not been good, and the shaky images of Will Smith as the Genie that were released a few months bank and it felt like a recipe for disaster. But ... I'm happy report that though not without flaws, I enjoyed "Aladdin" a lot.
Aladdin (Mena Massaud) is a thief surviving on the streets of Agrabah with just his wits. The Sultan's advisor Jafar (Marwen Kenzari) sends Aladdin to the cave of wonders, to retrieve for him a magic lamp. However, Aladdin becomes trapped and once accidentally rubbing the lamp himself frees a magical Genie (Will Smith) who grants Aladdin three wishes.
There is lots to love about "Aladdin". The production is great, with Agrabah feeling like a real city. The effects are actually pretty good too, the single still of the Genie didn't do it any favours but as in the animated film, he's constantly changing size and shape, particularly during the musical numbers, and for much of the film he pretends to be a regular human too, so loses the blue altogether. The cast area really good, and there's a nice chemistry between Massaud and Naomi Scott, who plays Princess Jasmine. Though rewriting the Genie's style of humour helps a lot, Smith doesn't really come close to catching Robin Williams version of the character, and the songs style don't suit him either. (I winced a little at the start of a couple of the genies numbers).
If, for whatever reason, you're only allowed to see one version of "Aladdin", the animated version is still the way to go, however, as a companion piece or curiosity, there is much to admire in this version.