You could even still find many stage depictions of Aladdin as culturally Chinese well into the 20th century, such as in this yellowface production of a British pantomime from But the Aladdin myth also was a cultural hodgepodge, with many depictions of the story freely mixing Chinese elements with European elements. In an musical burlesque version, Aladdin appeared to have been played by an actor in yellowface, with a contemporaneous setting that seems culturally European:.
This tendency to modernize Aladdin continued into the 20th century. As we can see from this archival photo from a stage production, the story was often presented as a hybrid tale of the exoticized Orient meeting modern English-language styles and fashions. Following the rise of Hollywood , however, European and American storytellers gradually began transforming Aladdin into a Middle Eastern tale.
Movie studios played up the exotic setting and emphasized cultural stereotypes. Perhaps in response to its alleged roots as a Syrian story, the animated film transplanted the fictional Chinese city of Agrabah to somewhere along the Jordan River. Meanwhile, her father, the sultan, is a babbling, easily manipulated man-child. The citizens of Agrabah are frequently depicted as barbarous sword-wielders and sexualized belly dancers.
Perhaps most crucially, the film renders its heroes, Aladdin and the Genie, as culturally American. This take on the story became the definitive one, so to release a new version of Aladdin in is to grapple with all of this baggage at a time when audiences are less likely to turn a blind eye toward it. Then came one casting controversy after another. An early report that Ritchie and Disney Studios were having trouble casting the lead role, in part because of alleged difficulties finding Arab and Asian actors who could sing, drew outrage from fans.
His role ultimately turned out to be a bit part added for comic contrast to Aladdin. Given all of this, skepticism over the film has run rampant. Still, there remains a lack of confidence in their final product.
At any other time, Aladdin might have been little more than a dose of multiculturalism, but it has emerged at a moment when global politics are deeply fraught, progressives have fought hard for ethnically diverse and authentic cinema, and extremists — everyone from actual radicals to media fans engaging in online review bombing — have demonized and attacked the very idea of multicultural representation. All of these factors have created a rocky path for the movie, and seem to have hindered its route to finding critical success; currently, reviews are decidedly mixed.
But Disney is a global powerhouse whose films can shape cultural perceptions for generations, and Aladdin will doubtless have plenty of pull at the box office. Around this time, Aladdin made his first friend in the form of Amal , a fellow urchin who also aspired for a better life, but unlike Aladdin, he did not let himself be hindered by a moral compass, often causing Aladdin and him to argue over the matter of how to seek out their goals, but one day Amal disappeared, much to Aladdin's horror and was never seen again, having been whisked away by unknown assailants, leaving Aladdin alone.
When he was sixteen, Aladdin fell in with a group of circus performers: Aziz, Fatima, Minos, and their pet, Abu the Monkey. Aladdin and Abu would form a brotherly relationship throughout this endeavor, and would eventually leave the circus, but remain together as life partners, giving Aladdin the destined friend he needed most.
Throughout his young teen life, Aladdin also tried pursuing many romantic relationships with the girls of Agrabah, claiming to have dated "tons", but none of them worked out or proved meaningful in the end. Aladdin was born the son of Cassim the king of thieves and an unnamed woman.
He was an orphan brought up on the streets of Agrabah and forced to live the lifestyle of a thief, also known as a "street rat". Aladdin became infamous for his petty crimes and became one of the most wanted criminals by the city guard, especially the captain Rasoul.
He has been caught in the act many times but has always managed to get away through skill, some quick thinking, and outright luck. Somewhere along the way Aladdin befriended a circus monkey named Abu.
It is unclear whether Aladdin or some other unknown character named him but nonetheless the two became partners in crime as well as best friends. Aladdin first appears in the film trying to get away from guards with a loaf of bread that he stole. He succeeds in getting away from the guards momentarily while dressed up as a woman.
The guards catch him, but Abu saves him just in time. Aladdin sings "One Jump Ahead" to the guards while he tries to get away from them, pulling many hilarious stunts and tricks to evade authorities. He and Abu are victorious yet again from getting away from the guards, and take a rest to eat the loaf of bread they stole. Before he can eat, though, Aladdin sees two starving kids digging in the trash for food, and out of the kindness of his heart, he gives his piece of bread to them.
Abu, though hesitant and rather stingy, gives his piece of bread to the kids as well. Seconds later, Aladdin sees a prince on a horse heading to the palace, who happens to be Prince Achmed.
The homeless children from before run up to Prince Achmed in awe, but he is quickly angered by them and nearly whips them.
Luckily, Aladdin saves them right before the act could be committed, and tells Achmed that he should have some manners. The prince throws him into the mud, earning many laughs from the crowd around them.
Before Prince Achmed could finally make his way in the palace, Aladdin insults him, saying that "it's not everyday you see a horse with two rear ends". This causes Achmed to stop momentarily, the insult obviously getting to him as well as his horse.
Prince Achmed insults him back by telling Aladdin that he is nothing more but a street rat and he will die as one, and that the only people who will mourn his death will be his supposed fleas. This response angers Aladdin very much, and before he could get his hands on the prince, the palace gates close. Aladdin tells Abu that he isn't worthless, and that he doesn't have fleas, but when he realizes that there's nothing he can do about it, he finally calms down to a rather depressed mood, and the two begin their way home.
It is in this scene where the "One Jump Ahead" reprise begins, Aladdin prominently upset with the fact that his social status clouds his value in society. Once home a shabby place with broken planks and torn up curtains , he looks at the view of the palace, a yearning gleam in his eyes. Aladdin tells a sleeping Abu that someday they'll be rich, and live in the palace with no more problems. The next day Aladdin and Abu pull off a scam to get a watermelon for breakfast.
Aladdin is surprised while eating half a watermelon when he sees a beautiful girl walking in the market Princess Jasmine. She had handed a child an apple without paying and the cart owner was about to cut off her hand when he springs into action. After a clever ruse of making the shop owner think she was his crazy sister they run away to safety. Later that night at his home, Aladdin and Jasmine shared their common goal for freedom, each in their own way.
It was then that the city guard appeared and, despite their attempts at escaping, they were captured. Jasmine revealed herself as the princess in order to save Aladdin but Rasoul claimed he had higher orders and told her to take it up with Jafar. Aladdin was taken to the dungeon where he awaited execution, but is later removed from his chains by a grumpy Abu. He then meets an old man Jafar in disguise who claimed he could set him free in exchange for a favor. All he would have to do is retrieve a lamp from the Cave of Wonders, a cavern supposedly filled with the greatest treasure in the world.
In reality, Jafar needed him to retrieve the magic lamp for him because only a "diamond in the rough" could enter the cave. He reveals a secret exit, and Aladdin escapes with him and follows him in to the desert.
There, the Cave of Wonders commands him to only retrieve the lamp and not to touch anything else, or else consequences will be made.
He enters the Cave of Wonders, where he meets a sentient magic carpet who agrees to help him find the lamp. He eventually retrieves the lamp, but Abu accidentally touches a ruby, causing a chain reaction of disastrous events that nearly kill Aladdin and Abu. They nearly escape the cave, but once it is revealed that the old man's reward to Aladdin was death, Abu swoops in to save his best friend from a morbid fate.
Unfortunately, the two are thrown down into the abyss of the now deteriorating Cave of Wonders, and are trapped there with no way of escaping. Aladdin, unconscious for a few seconds, awakens to discover this, and feels enraged that he had been tricked. He then sighs as he realizes that the old man got what he wanted, but Abu surprises him with the lamp behind his back. Aladdin praises Abu for his thieving skills, and takes the lamp to inspect it and its worth.
Discovering some text hidden by dust, he rubs the lamp, causing a giant, blue Genie appears. After a few comedic stunts and impressions, the Genie tells Aladdin he will fulfill three wishes as well as telling him the wishes he is not allowed to make.
Aladdin, who doesn't want to waste a wish, cleverly convinces Genie to get them out of the cave without actually wishing for it. After their escape, Aladdin gets to know Genie more and after asking what he would wish for, he learns of Genie's desire for freedom. He is essentially a slave and Aladdin promises to free him with his third wish.
After the deal is made, Aladdin expresses his wish to make Jasmine fall in love with him. Genie is unable to do that and asks why he can't do it by being himself. Aladdin tells him she's a princess and that he would need to be a prince. Aladdin, struck with inspiration, makes his first wish; to become a prince.
Genie works his magic and Aladdin becomes Prince Ali. Meanwhile Jafar decides to trick the Sultan into arranging a marriage between himself and Jasmine, and then kill both the princess and her father. His plans are interrupted when Aladdin parades into the Sultan 's palace as "Prince Ali".
Jasmine rejects Ali, considering him a buffoon like all the other suitors before him, but Aladdin is determined to get Jasmine's attention. That night, Aladdin meets Jasmine on her balcony, and takes her around the world on a magic carpet ride. It is until the end of their romantic journey does she realize that he is the boy from the marketplace, and she begins to question why he had lied to her. In an attempt to keep his true self hidden, Aladdin fabricates a story that he sometimes dresses as a commoner to escape palace life, which Jasmine understands and forgives him.
Aladdin returns her home and they share a loving kiss. After delivering Jasmine, Aladdin is captured by Jafar and thrown into the ocean, but the Genie rescues Aladdin as his second wish.
Aladdin returns to the palace, revealing Jafar's plot to Jasmine and the Sultan. Jafar, however, notices the lamp in Aladdin's possession, realizes Aladdin's identity, and escapes from the Sultan's bodyguards.
Impressed by Aladdin's bravery, the Sultan decides Aladdin should be his successor. Aladdin faces a moral dilemma and decides he has to wait before wishing Genie free, driving a wedge between the two. Iago , on Jafar's orders, steals Genie's lamp and brings it to Jafar, who becomes Genie's new master and uses his first wish to become sultan. When Jasmine and the Sultan refuse to bow to him, Jafar uses his second wish to become the most powerful sorcerer in the world, using his new powers to send Aladdin to "the ends of the earth".
Aladdin uses the magic carpet to return to Agrabah, where Jafar has imprisoned both Jasmine and the Sultan as his slaves. Jasmine distracts Jafar as Aladdin attempts to steal back the lamp, but the Jafar notices and attacks him. Jafar turns into a cobra and begins squeezing the life out of Aladdin, boasting that he is "the most powerful being on Earth".
This phrase strikes a clever plan in Aladdin, and he daringly tells Jafar that the only being more powerful than him is Genie. Faced with this realization, Jafar uses his final wish to become an 'all-powerful genie,' but is then surprised when Aladdin reminds him that genies are not free entities as he is sucked into his new black lamp, dragging Iago with him.
Genie flicks the lamp to the Cave of Wonders, never to be seen again. When faced with remaining a prince and his promise to Genie, Aladdin decides that while he does love Jasmine, he doesn't feel he can be someone he isn't any longer, and instead wishes for Genie's freedom, much to Genie's surprise and happiness. Since Jasmine loves Aladdin, the Sultan changes the law so they can marry.
The series is meant to take place between Return of Jafar and King of Thieves , with the latter being the conclusion to the series.
The stories all tied together with the first film tying directly in the sequel, which perfectly formed the series, which eventually ended within the final film. There wasn't much left for the company to do with a fourth film. Both Return of Jafar and King of Thieves went straight to video and both were incredibly successful for their distribution.
Of course, the animation quality of both films were severally lacking compared to the original, which made the movies seem more like the animated series than a feature film. Both films also got pretty mixed to negative reviews, but regardless of that, both sold a large number of copies and are loved by fans. Return of Jafar is listed as one of the best selling films on home video. Because of the success of the first two, a fourth would have likely also been successful as a home video.
While the series ended with King of Thieves, there were two more short installments into the Aladdin story that took place after the third film. The other was actually a cross-over episode from the Hercules animated series called "Hercules and the Arabian Night" in which Jafar and Hades teamed up to try to take their rivals down since they both had failed a number of times in the past.
Because Hades and Jafar teamed up, Hercules and Aladdin did as well. She is a writer and podcaster and has been published in the Spring and Summer editions of the Sartorial Geek Quarterly Magazine.
By Juliana Failde Published Sep 27, Share Share Tweet Email 0.
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