Get ready to feel old: Disney’s Aladdin is 22 years old. Yeah, gross, right? One of the seminal animated films of my childhood has been around long enough to drive, vote, get drafted into the army, and drink a beer, though it still has to wait a bit before it can rent a car. You know, in a world where a movie has all the same rights and privileges as people.
Even though we probably all know every single cell of the hand-drawn masterpiece, there can still be some things we didn’t know about it, or more accurately, about how it might have ended up. One of the official Disney blogs, Oh My Disney, recently gave us all a glimpse of what Aladdin might have been like with 12 pieces of never-before-seen concept art from the planning stages.
From the art, we can see that there might have been a whole sequence where Aladdin was a lot younger than the late-teenager he is when we meet him in the movie, that Princess Jasmine might have worn pink and been a whole lot less friendly-looking than she became (and that Rajah might have been even meaner), and, perhaps most surprisingly of all, the magic lamp itself might almost have been a character, with a smiling face and everything. All of these are on display now for fans of all ages to see.
Even though these drawings are all lovely, I think we can all be pretty pleased with the way things actually ended up. Except, looking back, if they’d gotten rid of that “A Whole New World” song, I’d probably be a whole lot happier. Not a Peabo Bryson fan. (Editor’s Note: How dare you! *skips away singing “A Whole New World” for the umpteenth time*)
Agree with the “A Whole New World” sentiment. That is the only song that did not fit the theme of the music. (Although, my idea of “Magic Carpet Ride” is hardly any better in that regard!)