Jim on Film
Page 3 of 9

With the casting of Robin Williams and Gilbert Gottfried, Aladdin would deliver the first film of the new generation to have a strong emphasis on voice talent to help define characters and provide humor. The Genie is defined by Williams’ improvisational ability, but as dependant as the character is on his verbal talents, his manic pace is rivaled by very visual interpretations as supervised by Eric Goldberg. Iago, on the other hand, is defined by the presence of Gottfried and utilizes a strong verbal humor with great improvisational one-liners. Following Aladdin, with Nathan Lane, James Woods, Eddie Murphy, and other talented actors, some Disney characters would be heavily defined by their voice talents while in the hands of some very talented animators.

There are several key ways in which Aladdin, like the films before it, is stretching for something different and new. It’s different, not only in tone but in art direction, using a style that is very different from what the studio had done to that time. And this is interesting considering the successes the studio had had in the recent past with more realistic films, such as Oliver & Company and particularly The Little Mermaid, which would have been a very strong influence at the time Aladdin was in production. As a result of this, there are many beautiful scenes and great details, such as the reflections of the characters on the palace floor, but there are fewer of the grand multiplane effects that reached their short climax in The Rescuers Down Under.

Besides humor and beautiful art direction, Aladdin, as in the best Disney features, tells a great story. Despite all the fun and imaginative animation with the Genie, the heart of the film is in the characters of Aladdin and Jasmine, and the filmmakers find the perfect balance between the comedy and the heart. The leads are both quite young, and their animation reflects that, resulting in what could be the first truly romantic moments in the canon since Sleeping Beauty. Because of this, even though the film is filled with fun and manic moments, Aladdin and Jasmine still remain the highlight of the movie.

Because of the manic nature of the Genie, Aladdin has a return to the psychedelic visuals of the studio’s earlier films, most recently seen in Heffalumps and Woozles in The Many Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh. As a result, Friend Like Me is a proud follow-up to the clever title song from The Three Caballeros.

If the earlier Disney films displayed the studio’s affection for cupids, the new generation seems to have an affection for red-spotted boxers and variations on the theme as they appear liberally in Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Mulan, and others. In Aladdin, both the Sultan and Prince Achmed wear such undergarments.

With Aladdin, there is the first incident where the computer animation doesn’t mesh well with the hand-drawn animation. The trained eye can usually detect most of what is computer animation, but this is not much different than some of the tricks from the earlier Disney films, such as when a new cel would be used to animate a moving head while a different cel would be used for the unmoving body. The key in evaluating the use of CGI is in how apparent it is through movement and composition. When it is something like a boat in Pocahontas, which appears computer-generated only in a light gloss, the effect is nearly seamless. When the image looks digital (or computer-textured), such as the waving flags in Mulan, the effect is lost. But the Cave of Wonders, as well as some of the CGI elements inside the cave, not only have the computer-generated texture but it moves and feels like it came from a different film.

When looking back at the mega-success of The Lion King, Michael Eisner apparently has credited that to its beautifully animated animal characters. After having not seen this in quite some time, with this viewing, I came to see that there was something else special at work in The Lion King. It does have beautifully animated animal characters, but it is also a film that delves into some strong universal themes and ideas that most films do not have to their advantage.

First of all, the crux of the film is the relationship between a father and his son. In an era when fathers were increasingly absent from the lives of their children, The Lion King presented a father who loves his son with everything in him, to the point he knowingly risks his life to save him. The scene with Mufasa and Simba wrestling in the moonlight is so touching because of the relationship established between the two. It also offers a contrast when, at a later scene, Simba tries to connect with his father’s lifeless body.

Secondly, the film tackles the very serious issue of dealing with and facing one’s past. Simba’s struggles are deep and troubling, and in his decision to face his past instead of trying to forget it, he is responding to something to which many people in the audience probably could relate.

In addition to its emotional complexity, The Lion King is a very funny film. Because it’s a story about animals living in a realistic world, the humor is largely verbal, with one-liners and snappy interactions providing most of the laughs. The characters don’t quite have props or opposable thumbs to their advantage, and they are generally bound to the laws of nature. Partially because of this, the film, as whole, feels very talky in comparison to the films around it, which is very apparent in the second scene in the movie, where Mufasa confronts Scar.