Aladdin Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.5

Aladdin Blu-ray Movie Review

"Phenomenal cosmic powers! Itty bitty living space!"

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown October 3, 2015

No mere diamond in the rough, Aladdin is a dazzling gem gleaming with adventure, humor, heart, song and spectacle. From the opening number to the climactic showdown between a Genie-less Aladdin and a snapping, slithering Jafar, Walt Disney's 31st animated feature is one of its best, and certainly one of the hallmarks of the Disney Renaissance era. The animation is slick, the characters and voice performances spot on, the music delightfully entertaining, and the comedy full of laughs, even twenty-three years after its release. (Children needn't catch all of the late Robin Williams' pop culture references; they'll have a blast with his face-swapping antics and dizzying personalities regardless.) More crucially, Aladdin defies its age, grabbing hold of the imagination with a story that plays to the young and the young at heart. It's a Disney classic in every sense, and will continue to win over new generations of kids for decades to come.

In his review of the 2013 UK Blu-ray release of Aladdin, reviewer Jeff Kauffman wrote "Whatever mojo may have been lost in the decades between the 1940s and the 1990s was obviously back in full swing by the time Aladdin came along in 1992. The film was once again a gigantic hit for Disney, becoming the highest grossing movie of the year, and ultimately garnering several Oscar nominations as well as two statuettes for its score and its biggest hit song “A Whole New World”. The film is a raucous entertainment, slyly subversive and self-referential due to voice actor Robin Williams’ often manic contributions, but it also is a near perfect adventure and romance, one that appeals just about equally to males and females, the sort of broad demographic allure that Disney would sometimes struggle with in later animated offerings that seemed to be geared either mostly toward boys or girls.

While Beauty and the Beast may have been the critical darling of this particular era of Disney animated fare, Aladdin is quite appropriately more like the scrappy little brother who may have hyperactivity problems, not to mention attention deficit disorder, but who is undeniably lovable despite—or perhaps even because of—those “problems”. Once the perhaps risky decision to cast Robin Williams as the Genie (as well as the Narrator) was made, the handwriting was on the wall for the film’s ultimate tenor, for Williams’ anarchistic approach to free association as he did his voice work created both opportunities and issues for the animators. As the commentary included on this Blu-ray makes clear, Williams was given free rein at many moments throughout his days in the recording studio, and the result is ungainly, undisciplined—and just flat out hilarious. There has probably never been another Disney film with this air of the unexpected, and it infuses all of Aladdin with a very contemporary breath of fresh air, something that had been missing for years (some might argue decades) from Disney animated fare and which even Beauty and the Beast never really had, either, despite its many pleasures.

Aladdin cribs elements from many different versions of the age old stories, including a dash of A Thousand and One Nights and the many versions of The Thief of Bagdad. Aladdin is a street kid who pals around with his pet monkey Abu, a simian who aids Aladdin in his small scale crime spree of stealing food. Meanwhile, Princess Jasmine, who has spent her entire life tucked behind the imposing palace walls, wants to see what the real world is like, and escapes the protective glare of her father, the Sultan, venturing out into the tumultuous marketplace only to instantly get in trouble. Aladdin rescues her, of course, and true love would seem to be preordained, except that Jasmine is required to marry a Prince, and the Sultan has already picked out a suitable husband for her, with a marriage planned for a mere 72 hours in the future. Playing out against this star-crossed love scenario are the machinations of Jafar, the Sultan’s Grand Vizier who is trying to get his hands on a magic lamp with contains a Genie. Jafar has his own animal sidekick, an imperious little parrot named Iago. Through a little bit of magic, Jafar discovers that only Aladdin has the goods to be able to enter the Cave of Wonders where the lamp is stored, and a plot is hatched.

Considering how many writers contributed to this troubled project (lyricist Howard Ashman died just as the film was getting off the ground, just one of many stumbling blocks that were encountered) and how many differed story elements are woven together in the film (as briefly outlined above), Aladdin remains one of the most effortlessly entertaining and surprisingly cohesive entries in the Disney animated canon. Bolstered by incredible voice work, not just from Williams but the likes of Jonathan Freeman (Jafar) and even Gilbert Gottfried (Iago), the film is easily one of the funniest entries in Disney’s long and storied history. The film is also graced with a wonderfully integrated song score (Tim Rice picked up the pieces from the deceased Ashman and contributed some incredibly effective pieces, including the Oscar winning “A Whole New World”). Composer Alan Menken continued the winning ways he had already established with Beauty and the Beast, contributing a wonderfully melodic and evocative score that easily bridged pop, theater and Middle Eastern styles. Aladdin also is one of Disney’s most impressive feats of animation from this era, with skillful (if relatively minimal) use of the then nascent CGI technology nicely melded with a traditional 2D hand drawn approach. Character designs are gorgeous, and the backgrounds are simply lustrous, with one of the most distinctive palettes from this era of Disney film."

Aladdin Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Referring to Disney's North American Blu-ray release of Aladdin as "highly anticipated" or "long awaited" would be a gross understatement. Fans have been clamoring to see Disney's 31st animated feature in high definition since the studio began issuing titles on Blu-ray, bumping this release into "it's about time" territory. But the wait was worth it, it seems. Aladdin arrives in princely style, with a gorgeous, oft-times stunning 1080p/AVC-encoded video presentation that will not disappoint. There are hints of banding and macroblocking here and there, yes. Faint aliasing also haunts some of the CG-animated elements in the film. Most, though, if not all of these instances trace back to the source, and none of them prove distracting. (At least for those of you who don't scour every wall and sky searching for the slightest pixel blips.) Colors are rich and vibrant. Primaries erupt then explode. Black levels are deep and inky. Contrast is vivid and consistent throughout the movie. And detail is terrific, from the crisp line art to every last tiny texture or touch in the background, the patterns on the flying carpet, the riches of the Cave of Wonders, or the splendor of the palace. Aladdin looks every bit as good as you've spent years hoping it would. I can't imagine anyone will be anything but ecstatic with the results.

Aladdin Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

While the 2013 UK release of Aladdin offered a strong DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix, the North American Diamond Edition BD delivers an outstanding DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround track. Dialogue is clean, intelligible and smartly prioritized. Dynamics are excellent. LFE output is thunderous, leaning into every burst of magic, Genie-fied razzle dazzle, musical number, Cave of Wonders roar, lava spurt, street chase, giant serpent, and climactic clash. And rear speaker activity is immersive and engaging, with playful directionality, silky smooth cross-channel pans, and an enveloping soundfield that makes the most of each palace interior, desert environment or back alley haunt. The songs are particularly thrilling in 7.1 lossless surround, filling the room with the joy and levity of the adventure springing up on screen. Classic Disney doesn't sound much better than this.

Aladdin Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentaries: Two audio commentaries are available (under "Bonus Features," in the "Classic Bonus" submenu), the first with producers/directors John Musker and Ron Clements & co-producer Amy Pell, the second with supervising animators Andreas Deja, Will Finn, Eric Goldberg and Glen Keane.
• The Genie Outtakes (HD, 9 minutes): Musker, Clements and Goldberg introduce a (kid-friendly) selection of Robin Williams recording session outtakes. There isn't any footage of Williams behind the mic, though. Instead, storyboards envision what each extended and alternate bit or take might have looked like had any of it made it into the final cut of the film. The outtakes are capped off with a heartfelt tribute to the late comedian.
• Aladdin: Creating Broadway Magic (HD, 19 minutes): In this lengthy featurette, host and actor Darren Criss takes viewers behind the scenes of the Broadway adaptation and production of Aladdin, touching on the many challenges it faced on its way to the stage (chief among them bringing Genie and the flying carpet to life without the luxury or freedom of animation).
• Unboxing Aladdin (HD, 5 minutes): Disney Channel's Joey Bragg reveals easter eggs sprinkled throughout Aladdin. Kids may laugh. I couldn't wait for it to end. Five minutes too long.
• Genie 101 (HD, 4 minutes): Voice actor Scott Weinger (Aladdin) explains some of Genie's early historical, early cinema, and '90s pop culture references to kids born in the 21st century. It's a clever addition, and it's far more tolerable than "Unboxing Aladdin."
• Ron & Jon: You Ain't Never Had a Friend Like Me (HD, 6 minutes): Musker and Clements reminisce about Walt Disney Studios in the early '90s, the first time they met, their early collaborations, and the reasons their partnership has been so productive and that they work together so well.
• Classic Bonus Features: Disney has included most, if not all, of the special features from the film's previous DVD-era releases. Extras, including the seventy-minute "A Diamond in the Rough" production documentary, are primarily presented in standard definition and break down as follows:
  
  
  • A Diamond in the Rough: The Making of Aladdin (SD, 70:52)
  • Alan Menken: Musical Renaissance Man (SD, 19:55)
  • The Art of Aladdin: Art Review with Filmmakers' Commentary (SD, 8:45)
  • Deleted Song: Proud of Your Boy, Original Demo (SD, 3:58)
  • Deleted Song: You Can Count on Me (SD, 2:22)
  • Deleted Song: Humiliate the Boy (SD, 3:54)
  • Deleted Song: Why Me (SD, 3:42)
  • Deleted/Alternate Scene: Aladdin & Jasmine's First Meeting (SD, 2:51)
  • Deleted/Alternate Scene: Aladdin in the Lap of Luxury (SD, 2:52)
  • Music Video: "Proud of Your Boy" with Clay Aiken (SD, 2:20)
  • Proud of Your Boy Original Story Reel (SD, 2:18)
  • Behind the Scenes of "Proud of Your Boy" (SD, 3:20)
  • Music Video: "A Whole New World" with Jessica Simpson & Nick Lachey (SD, 4:14)
  • Behind the Scenes of "A Whole New World" (SD, 3:46)
  • Music Video: "A Whole New World" with Regina Belle & Peabo Bryson (SD, 4:07)
  • Disney Song Selection with Optional On-Screen Lyrics (HD, 11:28)
  • Inside the Genie's Lamp: Guided Tour (SD, 6:13)
  • The Genie World Tour (SD, 3:14)
  • Publicity: Trailers (SD)

Aladdin Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Fan-favorite Disney classic Aladdin finally arrives on Blu-ray, and what a Blu-ray release it is. The film's video presentation is wonderful. Its DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround track as powerful and immersive as classic 2D animation gets. And its supplemental package is brimming with material, old and new. Without hesitation, the Diamond Edition release of Aladdin comes highly, highly recommended.