Arabian Nights and Disney Days

Did you know that one of Disney’s most well-known films was based on another film? Aladdin is a popular Disney movie that came out in 1992 and was based on The Thief of Bagdad. This movie follows the life of a poor street rat named Aladdin, who lives in the made-up city of Agrabah. Throughout the movie, Aladdin is trying to reconnect with the Princess while trying to avoid Jafar. The Thief of Bagdad, a movie released in 1940, is a bunch of stories within a story. The movie’s main plot is that a man named Amed is looking for the Princess he once met. Similar to Aladdin while Amed is doing this, an evil man named Jafar is trying to stop him. In both of these films, there are negative stereotypes describing people from the Middle East and Asia, known as Orientalism. As with most stereotypes, people often see the bad before the good. In Aladdin, the characters are portrayed as barbaric and mystical, emphasizing these oriental stereotypes. Between The Thief of Bagdad and Aladdin, there were many changes to make the movie more geared toward an American audience which proves that it is difficult to make stories like these accessible to English-Speaking audiences without succumbing to Orientalism because people are unwilling to change their mindset and expectations. 

One of the most significant changes between the two films is that  The Thief of Bagdad is set in an actual location while Aladdin is set in a made-up one. Why is this the case? It could be because the producers of Aladdin feared that people would be uncomfortable with the idea that the Middle East is a real place with a different culture. By making up a place like Agrabah, people would be more likely to watch the movie because it was all made up. In addition to the emphasis on a made-up location, the producers emphasize the Genie’s magical abilities, once again convincing the viewer that the story is not real, perpetrating the orientalist stereotype. While some people may call Aladdin a work of Disney’s magic, others can see past the facade. Yet another way that the producers emphasize the made-up location is by making the Palace look like the Taj Mahal, a building in India. It is clear that the film is set in a Middle Eastern setting, and instead of sticking with one culture, the producers mix two completely different cultures showing that they did not put thought into the design. If producers and viewers were okay with acknowledging that different cultures are part of what makes up society, then maybe Aladdin could have been made as a live-action movie. But instead, the producers did what they thought would get them more views, and by doing so, succumbed to Orientalism.

A second big difference between The Thief of Bagdad and Aladdin is the main character’s name. In The Thief of Bagdad, the main character’s name is Amed, while in, Aladdin the main character is named Aladdin. In The Thief of Bagdad, there were characters named Abu, Genie, and Jafar. These names also appear in Aladdin, so why does the name Amed not appear? One reason may be that Amed is a common name for people of the Middle East, while Aladdin is not. By changing the main character’s name, the producers are once again trying to make the movie more appealing to an American audience. To a native English speaker, Aladdin is easier to pronounce and remember. Of course, the producers would want an easy name to remember so that people could easily talk about the film. It is also interesting because, at this time, it was unusual for Disney to name the movie after the main character, let alone not after the Princess of the movie. Why did the producers not feel they could name the movie after an Arab princess? This may be because they are once again caught up in Orientalism and stereotypes about Arab women. 

In The Thief of Bagdad, most of the characters had accents that made it hard to understand when they spoke. To help understand the movie better subtitles were turned on. In order to avoid the need for subtitles, the producers of Aladdin succumbed to Orientalism by making the movie’s main characters not have an accent. If there had been a need for subtitles, it would have meant that the movie would not be as easily accessible to children. Disney chose to find actors without accents to make the movie more accessible, but by doing so, they lost a crucial piece of culture. Another noticeable change in the dialogue is the pronunciation of Jafar. In The Thief of Bagdad, Jafar is pronounced Jaaf Far, while in Aladdin, the name is pronounced Jafar. This subtle but apparent change is yet another way that Disney is trying to Americanize The Thief of Bagdad. Had the producers of Aladdin used actors with accents the movie would have felt less Americanized. While this may have made it easier for the viewer to understand, it took away a lot of the authenticity and depth. 

The changes that Disney makes are very surprising. Usually, when comparing an old movie and a new movie, you notice a positive change. However, this is not the case when looking at the changes between The Thief of Bagdad and Aladdin. In fact, in many ways, it is the complete opposite. It is clear that Disney cared more about making money and a movie that would become well known rather than embracing and sharing a new culture. We have no idea how people would have reacted had Aladin not strayed as far from The Thief of Bagdad. Of course, we would like to think that people would have enjoyed the movie just as much but this is something we will never really know. It has now been 30 years since Aladdin was released. So do you think that people are now ready to have a movie where the actors have foreign accents and the movie is not set in a made-up place? 

Disney’s Aladdin came out in 1992 and soon became a well-known movie. When people hear the name Aladdin they often think of the scene where Jasmine and Aladdin are riding on the magic carpet singing a Whole New World. But have they ever thought about the first time that they meet? After being chased through the marketplace, Jasmine and Aladdin end up at Aladdin’s home. There is a lot of detail in this image that shows the differences in Jasmine and Aladdin’s lives. It is clear from this image that Jasmine and Aladdin connect and create trust between them without having their status involved.   

After Aladdin, a street rat sees Jasmine, a princess, for the first time in the marketplace, it is clear that he has feelings for her. At this time, Jasmine is wearing a disguise, so Aladdin does not know she is a princess. Despite this, the minute she is in trouble, he jumps in and saves her from getting her hand cut off by making up that she is his crazy sister. Jasmine plays along, and the two of them start walking off. Just as they are about to be out of trouble, Abu drops items he has stolen, and the owners start chasing them. This image is from the scene right after Aladdin and Jasmine run out of the marketplace. Aladdin leads Jasmine to the place that he calls home. This image shows the first time that Aladdin and Jasmine are alone. The scene continues with Jasmine and Aladdin having a conversation about their different lives.

In this one image, both Aladdin’s and Jasmine’s homes are visible. They are in Aladdin’s home while in the distance, The Palace, which is Jasmine’s home, can be seen. But neither of them are happy with their homes; they both long to live different lives. This can be seen in both body language and facial expressions. Aladdin is looking out towards The Palace while Jasmine is looking in towards Aladdin’s home. They each want to change where they live in hopes that their life can change. Despite wanting different ways of living, they both feel similar. In the dialogue, Aladdin says, “Sometimes you feel so” (min 21:52), followed by Jasmine saying, “You’re just” (min 21:51), and then together they say “trapped” (min 21:53). This is very apparent in the image. They each feel that their lives are not what they want them to be. They both feel trapped, but they also have different emotions regarding this. Aladdin has a look of hope on his face, while Jasmine looks sad and hopeless. They both believe that if they live in an “easier” place, their lives will be simpler. This shows that living in a palace does not mean having a good life. In fact, it can even be the opposite which is the case for Jasmine. 

If the image is split vertically, the viewer can see once again see the difference between Jasmine and Aladdin’s life. The left side shows Aladdin’s shows life. He is not wearing shoes, broken pots are lying on the ground, some wooden planks are blocking an opening, and the background is just the sky. Now, look at Jasmine’s side of the picture. Jasmine is wearing shoes and jewelry. Additionally, she is seated on a carpet with pillows next to her. The city of Agrabah and The Palace can be seen in the background. Once again, they both believe that they would be happy if they lived a different life. Despite living different lifestyles, they connect over the fact that they are unhappy with how they are currently living. The difference between Jasmine and Aladdin’s sides shows the simplicity and complexities of their different lives. Aladdin lives a simple life, but he is not satisfied, while Jasmine feels she lives a complex life and is not satisfied. Both approaches give the viewer insight into Jasmine and Aladdin’s life. 

Status is once again brought up in how Aladdin and Jasmine are dressed. For example, Aladdin is wearing a purple vest. While this may not seem like a big detail, there is much to unpack. Purple is known as the color of royalty. Interestingly, he is always longing to live in the palace. Is the color of his vest foreshadowing his destiny? Aladdin’s vest could have been any color, yet it is purple. This small but important detail that he wants to live in The Palace and is wearing the color of royalty makes viewers think about what might happen. On the other hand, Jasmine is wearing a brown robe with a hood. She is trying to dress in a way that makes her seem like a normal person. By looking at this image in detail, the viewer sees that Aladdin has a more complex costume while Jasmine has a simple one. This is opposite to how they live their lives. Both of them are dressed in a way that they believe is how they are supposed to dress if they are to fit into the class that they long to be in. 

One final way of looking at the image is through color. If you take a step back and look at the image and forget about the details of the image, your eyes are drawn toward color. The entire film of Aladdin is full of vibrant colors, and with the help of the scenery, Aladdin and Jasmine are often placed in such a way that your eye is drawn toward them. The color allows the viewer to focus on what the director is trying to share. Aladdin and Jasmine are in the part of the image with blue and purple colors. This makes it seem like a more intimate space showing the connection they form in this image. The bright background of Arabah exemplifies this. Imagine that Aladdin and Jasmine were placed in front of a plain background, wearing the same clothes. Then the viewer would not have been able to see Jasmine and Aladdin’s different lives. If this were the case, the image would not have been nearly as significant for the film’s plot. The detail and color allow viewers to feel the connection between Jasmine and Aladdin, regardless of their difference in status. 

If Jasmine had not left The Palace and helped a little girl get an apple, she would have never ended up in Aladdin’s home. The fact that she made those choices led her to the place where she was able to make a real connection. While she may have taken the first step, Aladdin was right there behind her. Jasmine and Aladdin each did what they could to help someone in need. These steps lead them to meet each other and be able to create a connection between them. While they may not realize it, it is clear that their relationship was built on helping strangers and not status. So maybe they are not that different after all.