Twenty-seven years ago Disney enchanted millions of young and older viewers alike with the release of its animated feature Aladdin. Perhaps the most memorable part of the enterprise was the genius voice casting of Robin Williams as the Genie. It was a chance for the late comic legend to give full rein to his manic, zany, comedic sensibilities.
Once-interesting, these days just about adequate director Guy Ritchie has stepped up to the plate. Together with Will Smith in blueface - and in keeping with Disney's recent penchant for deciding that, rather than create new animated content for a new generation, it's better to recreate its archive through live action - Ritchie and Disney successfully ruin the childhood of those who experienced the animated version at the time and try to get a new generation on board through CGI and lazy tweaks.
While there are plenty of begrudgingly acceptable live-action recreations of the original's animated extravaganzas and the expected singing of favourites such as A Whole New World, there's a certain inexplicable "whateverness" that fails to match the original material...