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So, what’s happening in the film-making world? Well, you might be (un)surprised. The live-action version of ‘Aladdin’ has soared to about USD600 million globally since its release towards the end of last month, surpassing the animated film – it made around USD500 million in 1992, after taking everything into consideration. Aren’t you excited? Is this enough to make you want to watch it? If you’ve watched it, are you going to catch it again?

One of the reasons I wanted to watch it was because of the songs, part of the film’s original soundtrack (OST). I mean, who can forget the classic songs, especially if you’ve watched the 1992 original (several times)? There’s even a new song, which I initially didn’t give much thought about, but now, I can’t stop listening to it!

So far, I’ve only watched the English version. I don’t know if I can bring myself to watch the Malay version, a dubbed one for those interested in watching it in Malaysian cinemas.

Anyway, here goes:

Arabian Nights – Will Smith

Ironically, despite its Arabic sound, I found myself looking up this particular song the minute I returned home from watching the ‘Aladdin’ remake. Who knew that Will Smith would be tasked to sing such a central song that would help set the tone of the rest of the film? Some new lyrics were crafted in place of the original, based on what I’ve read online. Even then, the reworking did not disappoint me. Even while listening to the audio by itself, I can picture camels roaming in the desert. If you have the time, you should also read some of the comments on YouTube below the audio-only version of the full song.

Speechless – Naomi Scott

It’s hard not to feel the emotion that 26-year old Scott brings and puts into the song. Perhaps, this can be partly attributed to the fact that she started singing at her parents’ church in England, where she was born and raised. I also like the pianistic and orchestral elements that accompany the ballad because they add certain levels of intensity and subtlety to the song where appropriate.

A Whole New World – Mena Massoud and Naomi Scott

Gosh, I nearly typed Princess Jasmine as one of the singers of this song in place of Naomi Scott, who is of mixed English and Uganda-born Indian parentage. Like many others who enjoyed this song in the ’90s version, I was waiting for it to be performed in the latest release. No doubt, both did well in executing the song. By the way, Massoud is Canadian by nationality, born to an Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Christian couple. To me, Massoud’s voice is more suited for ‘One Jump Ahead’ – another song part of the OST. Haha.

Until next time, toodles!

SOURCE:

https://comicbook.com/movies/2019/06/10/disney-aladdin-box-office-outgrosses-1992-animated-original/