Where it’s flat and immense, and the heat is intense.
Arabian Nights, from Disney’s Aladdin
We are on day 190 of 15 days to slow the spread.
Those were the edited lines from the opening number of Disney’s Aladdin. When the film was first released the lyrics were:
“Oh, I come from a land from a faraway place Where the caravan camels roam. Where they cut off your ear If they don’t like your face It’s barbaric, but hey, it’s home.”
Don’t @ me. I’m just quoting.
The lyrics were criticized and changed for the video release.
My wife and I actually saw the original animated version of Aladdin before the theatrical release.
In another life when we lived in the D.C. area, I was a meetings and convention planner. As such, I was often courted by cities and properties seeking my business.
Trust me, I received far more invitations than I accepted.
One invitation for dinner came from the Disney properties. They invited about two dozen meeting planners for a spectacular dinner and a preview of Aladdin.
Seeing it for the first time was somewhat magical. And we all know that Disney does magic well.
Fast forward to our 47 years of house arrest and the challenge to find something else to watch. I just finished binge watching Dr. Who, so I’m caught up until the new episode airs this holiday season.
I’m not quite ready to commit to another series. Even with the pandemic, I have Halloween and Christmas performance evenings coming up.
So, I’ve switched to watching or re-watching movies.
I had not seen the remake of Aladdin. I’m not usually a fan of live-action remakes, preferring the noted above magic of the original animated version.
I will say that I liked the live action remake of Beauty and the Beast, as well The Jungle Book.
I have not watched the live action remake of Mulan, but then I’ve never seen the animated version.
Mulan is not without its own controversy because Disney filmed much of it in Xinjiang, China. That’s the
region where Uighur Muslims have been detained in mass internment camps.
That’s another post, by another blogger. But let’s just say that if we’re going to scream for justice, we should be consistent.
I digress.
Back to Agrabah.
I didn’t dislike the live-action remake. I was pleased to see Will Smith wisely not trying to be Robin Williams. No one can be Robin Williams.
But the movie didn’t hold the magic of the original. Had I seen it first and never seen the animated version, I’m sure I would have been charmed.
I will say that my favorite thing was the dance number when the credits rolled.
I’ve seen enough Marvel movies to know that you never, ever, leave before the credits are done.
Where am I going with this?
I’m all about second chances. Life is about second chances.
While I may never get to go back and take that left turn in Albuquerque, I’ve had plenty of times to do things over, to get things right.
I don’t think we should use up all our second chances when we got it right the first time.
I get that right now we can’t get new movies and television because of the pandemic.
I just hope that when new stuff comes back that it’s really new stuff.
Don’t get me wrong, I will watch and re-watch the old stuff multiple times.
I’d just like the chance to watch some new stuff multiple times.
Surely with 47 years of house arrest we can come out of this with some new stories.
What’s that?
No, my novel isn’t finished.
I’m still working to get it right the first time.
Photo by Louis Hansel @shotsoflouis on Unsplash