Speaking of Oscars, long before studios mounted campaigns in an attempt to score nominations for Andy Serkis’ voice work in The Lord of the Rings and the Planet of the Apes films, Disney had tried likewise for Williams’ vocal gymnastics in this picture. Alan Menken’s original score nabbed an Oscar, as did “A Whole New World” (Menken and Tim Rice) for Best Original Song. The duplicitous parrot Iago, the mischievous monkey Abu and, of course, Robin Williams’ motormouth Genie provide the rich humor, while the sinister vizier Jafar oozes the right measure of villainy.

The leads - spunky street urchin Aladdin and liberated Princess Jasmine - are adequate, meaning it’s the supporting roster that makes the movie. One of the early entries in the late-20th-century resurgence of the Disney animated feature (following 1989’s The Little Mermaid and 1991’s Beauty and the Beast), Aladdin represents one of Disney’s finest hours from a visual standpoint, with meticulously drawn characters and backdrops as well as a color palette that explodes off the screen. Ratings are on a four-star scale.) Aladdin (Photo: Disney)ĪLADDIN (1992).

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