Well maybe it’s more of a tepid take.

Starting with Aladdin. This trailer is  really underwhelming. There is no vitality in this movie. Not going to be too harsh since it’s a minute trailer but there isn’t anything blood-pumping, nothing exciting, nothing to get one hyped for a fun adventure. It’s more dream-like, like a soft lullaby maybe that is what they were going for, more mystery. I guess that could be a bold choice with an Aladdin remake.   

Then there is Will Smith’s Genie. First, it’s a no win scenario. People didn’t like him not blue when the first set of pictures were released and they don’t like blue. But more than that it’s nearly impossible to adapt the Genie from Aladdin since so much of the character was Robin Williams.

Either the film needed to just find someone to outright copy Williams’ performance (like they did in the Aladdin cartoon) or they needed to make a whole new characterization. Instead they went for the middle. Again no win.  Personally, I would have gone for a whole new thing for Genie.

Then there is  the Frozen 2 trailer. This is a teaser trailer so there isn’t much of context for what is happening but it is definitely the opposite of the Aladdin trailer, it’s all hype.

Frozen has gone into the realm of serious action movie.  There is training montage, Anna has a weapon, Kristof is riding Sven maybe into battle, who knows yet? Has Frozen gone Skyrim? Maybe. I personally do not know how to feel about this one. More confused than anything.

Also it’s important to keep in mind that trailers are super misleading so this could all be just weird marketing.   

Edit from 2021 – It’s been over a year since these films were released. I still have yet to see the Aladdin remake but with regards to Frozen II when the trailer dropped the film wasn’t even done so in hindsight there was no real context to what was showcased in the trailer, it was all cool hyped. Which was and is fine.

I could sit here and bemoan the fact the Disney doesn’t have more of a vision of how the plot is going to unfold before going into the actual film making process BUT I also have a limited amount of knowledge of film production, so moot point. I do recommend watching the docu-series of the making of Frozen II on Disney plus.


5 Thoughts on “Hot Take on Aladdin Trailer and Frozen 2 Teaser

  1. Elinor + Drew on 05/09/2019 at 2:27 am said:

    Hey Jess! We we’re working on a stage adaptation of Hunchback right now and your blog has been a great friend to us. Let’s talk! We love what you do.

    • jess on 05/11/2019 at 4:55 pm said:

      I’m glad my blog has been a friend to you. I think it’s so awesome that you’re working on a new stage version and I would love to hear more about it. ^^

  2. Fabiana Morais on 03/13/2019 at 12:27 am said:

    Honestly, I don’t care for Frozen. Aladdin doesn’t look so bad to me, it’s just too colorful, I hoped it would be adapted to be a little more historically accurate in the clothing department but it looks very indian, very bollywood. It doesn’t look arabic to me.

    Well, now, about your blog, found now and been loving it! I got a Notre Dame de Paris book from my french teacher and I have to say it is amazing so far (didn’t finish yet, but I know the story), I’ve been obssessing over it. That’s how I found your blog, and I gotta say I am incredible thankful for your work, I don’t find much HOND quality content on the internet and here in Brazil (I am brazilian) Victor Hugo isn’t very popular, unless with the literature students. Unfortunately reading isn’t big in my country. I got to say I noticed you used to do hypotetical castings and I am not suggesting you make one, because this actressess are brazilian, but I gotta tell you about two brazilian girls that are Disney Esmeralda lookalikes in their own ways:
    One is Débora Nascimento, she is really beautiful.
    The other is Paloma Bernardi, she is also beautiful and a fanart of her as Esmeralda was also made: https://www.instagram.com/p/8lQoG5mCPp/?utm_source=ig_embed
    The artist who made Esmeralda’s fanart also did other disney princesses if that is interesting to you.
    So, just so share something from my country, to congratulate your blog and to say keep up the good work!

  3. Nat on 02/22/2019 at 11:19 pm said:

    I totally agree with you. I’m trying not to judge too harshly, because it’s a short trailer (as you said) and I’m sure a ton of work went into making the movie. But even the .01 second we see of the city/kingdom/whatever just looks like generic, overly bright CGI. And I know that no one was expecting this Genie to be anything like Robin Williams, so I’m willing to give Will Smith a chance, but it is a WEIRD choice. Other than that, Aladdin’s actor is really attractive and Jasmine is gorgeous, so that’s good…but then Jafar is also really f*****g attractive and I don’t know what to do with that. Like. Why. Why are they making me thirsty for Jafar I am already buried so deep in the sin bin!!!

    I don’t know if it is because I loved all the Princesses’ costumes so much as a child but every Princess-y costume from the live action films I’ve seen (Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast) has been so boring. Then again, I haven’t actually seen either movie in full so maybe they look better in the actual movie? I feel a little bad saying this – I know the costume designer probably spent ages on the design, but I can’t help but feel Jasmine’s outfits could have been so much better.

    I don’t even know what to think about the Frozen trailer…I didn’t even know they were making another one.

  4. Esmee on 02/20/2019 at 7:44 pm said:

    So glad I’m not the only one feeling underwhelmed, by the Aladdin trailer. The original animated version was so grand and vibrant! The remake looks small and kind of depressing…but I was a kid when I first saw the original, so some of the grand scale could have been from the perspective of a 7-year-old. And no, I’m sorry, no one else can be Genie. The Genie was Robin Williams improvising and being himself; Will Smith as Genie is just Will Smith trying to impersonate Robin Williams and doesn’t do anywhere near a decent job. The Frozen 2 teaser is pretty much all hype to get audiences asking questions…it makes me curious as to what story Disney will tell-are we going to see the rock troll origins? Will we find out what happened to Anna and Elsa’s parents? Is this new land where Elsa’s powers are from? Is it an exploration mission to find Elsa a husband…or wife (although that might be a little farfetched in a movie marketed to young kids)? I’m mildly interested in Frozen…Aladdin seems to suffer a lot of the same issues the remake of Beauty And The Beast had.

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