History Headscratchers / Aladdin2019

[[folder: Jafar's final wish.]]

** Genie explains that his glamour magic is just "an Illusion" and will only allow people to see what they want to see. Genie's rules of not being able to make anyone fall in love with you can be extended to mean "I cannot change someone's free will", and that includes forcing someone to believe you are someone or something you're not. Genies transformation doesn't change what you actually look like, instead only giving you enough external accessories to pass when it comes to cursory inspection/being glanced at for a second or two by people that don't know who you are. Jafar can break this immediately because he is an accomplished sorcerer but most importantly knows what Alladin looks like. Jasmine took longer, but still got through because the Magic is paper thin, and all it took was a closer look at his face from up close and some trapped questions for her to recognise him. Someone that doesn't know Alladin at all would likely be totally unable to break the "Prince Ali" disguise because "Prince Ali" is all they have ever known.

* In this version, the rule for the Cave of Wonders has been changed from "touch nothing but the lamp", to "take nothing but the lamp". This might be because it's impossible to get to the lamp without treading through all the coins and jewels (Which Aladdin and Abu DO in fact), but it does raise a few extra questions. The cave collapse after Abu picks up a gem. Picking something up doesn't mean your actually "taking" it. Have you ever picked up a DVD or toy at a retail store only to look at it and put it back afterwards? If Abu intended to do the same (Kleptomaniac monkey, so not likely), would the cave have still collapsed? If so, the more strict "touch nothing but the lamp" rule from the animated version seems more legit.

** In an earlier scene, Al and the Genie do go into a bit more detail as to what he can and can’t do without making a wish; the implication I got is that he can’t do anything specifically to benefit his master without it falling under the context of a wish. For example, he’s able to distract Dalia to allow Aladdin into Jasmine’s room with no strings attached, but that only works because wooing Dalia is something he already wants to do, personally, for himself. The dance moves and editing the map fall under the “become a prince” wish, and sending the carpet to where Jafar banished Aladdin isn’t as direct as personally pulling him out of the sea. Odds are if Jafar hadn’t thrown Al into the sea to try and kill him and had instead gone with something where he could be saved by the carpet, the Genie could’ve summoned it to save him without using a wish. But the carpet presumably can’t function under the water, so the only way for Al to be saved is if the Genie directly and personally did something himself.

** Rewatching the film, it looks to me like some sort of ornate hand-crank-thingy. It's only shown in one shot, though, so it's hard to tell exactly.

** Also, Genie says he was only imprisoned in the lamp for 1,000 years before meeting Aladdin. He does mention being alive for 10,000 years, but presumably wasn't granting wishes for people the entire time. (And was likely exaggerating the number a bit anyway, for comedic effect.)

[[folder: Magic carpets are one thing, but magic lamps with genies inside are just ridiculous!]]
* Aladdin’s reaction to meeting Carpet is, as I recall, something along the lines of “Whoa, so these things DO exist,” hinting that it’s something he’s heard of through the myths and folklore of his culture. But when he meets the Genie, he’s not only shocked but seems to have no idea what a genie is — he thinks he’s a giant at first and has to be educated on the process of being given three wishes. Wouldn’t there to be similar stories about genies that he’d have heard at some point, so he’d at least understand the basic concept behind them?
** Apparently genies are not on the same level of cultural awareness as flying carpets in Aladdin's world.
*** It seems like magic is a known and recognized aspect in the world of Aladdin, so something like a flying carpet could easily exist courtesy of a decent sorcerer. A Genie, on the other hand, is probably much more "out there" in terms of what could be explained, as a supernatural entity.
*** Same case with the animated version. Aladdin catches on pretty fast on what a magic carpet is. But is still rather curious about a magic lamp ("looks like such a.. beat up, worthless, piece of junk..") and the Genie himself ("I must have hit my head harder than I thought!") Or perhaps magic carpets are just a LOT more common than Genies. Otherwise, Jafar could look elsewere other than the Cave of Wonders.

[[folder: Why does Jafar want war with Shirabad so badly?]]
* To my recollection, we’re never told anything about Shirabad except that it’s where Jasmine’s mother came from and that the Sultan still considers its people to be his friends and allies. And Jafar’s primary motivation appears to still be gaining power — even if a war is just for the sake of conquest, why is he pushing to gain international support through Jasmine’s marriage rather than waiting until he’s in charge?
** In his initial rant where he kills the first underling, he mentions he once spent five years in their prison. It isn't said whether he was guilty or not, or maybe he did the crime to survive, but has held a deep boiling grudge against the people and country since.
*** Oh...I see. Thanks for pointing that out. I swear, it was a detail that I seemed to remember subconsciously, but the way his imprisonment factored into his motivation didn't occur to me until you explained it.
** It seemed to me to be at first for conquest and then after his irritation with everyone it turns to spite. As a sorcerer he doesn't actually have to marry Jasmine for power, it's just another thing to be a dick about.
** I think a twisted sense of envy could be playing a factor, too. Jafar does mention to the sultan that Shirabad is currently undergoing notable expansion — he claims that war is necessary for defense, but in reality, he’s just bitter that he’s stuck as second-in-command to a sultan who’s more concerned with allies and sentiment than expansion and conquest.

[[folder: Diamond in the rough]]
* How did Jafar know who the diamond in the rough was in this version? I know “diamond in the rough” basically means “a person who is of more worth than their status and position make them appear to be”, but the cave specified in both versions that “only ONE may enter here”, and unless I missed a scene, Jafar never found out who this one person was via magic like he did in the original — we just see Iago spying on Aladdin before labeling him as the diamond in the rough for no reason.
** In both this and the animated film, Jafar has no qualms toward sacrificing theives in the off-chance of getting what he wants. (Or even after he DOES, hence getting rid of Aladdin in the cave after getting the lamp.) Iago was just saying (in parrot talk) "Thief in Palace! Let's take him to Cave of Wonders. If he's the 'Diamond in the Rough', the lamp is ours! If not, well, one less thief to rob the food stands!"
** I took Jafar's watching of Aladdin as a secret test of character. He wondered why this boy was in the palace, and then saw he was there to return Jasmine's heirloom. This shows a character within him unlike a common thief who would have kept it to sell for money or food. So the boy could be what he is looking for.
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[[folder: Jafar's lamp]]
* This applies to the animated film, too -- why do the heroes not destroy Jafar's lamp once he's trapped inside it, or at least keep it somewhere nearby and keep watch over it, or even somewhere that's uninhabited by people? Instead, the Genie sends it back into the Cave of Wonders, and the animated sequel shows that Jafar got out pretty easily, thanks to Iago, that he's still out for revenge on Aladdin, and that he's the epitome of a JackassGenie regardless. And in that film, it's the Genie who tells the others that you can destroy Jafar by destroying his lamp, so it can't be said that he didn't know.
** Genie DID send Jafars lamp back to the Cave of Wonders, where only a Diamond in the Rough could get it. Unfortunately, Iago burrowed out of the cave in the sequel. Maybe Iago's status as neither genie nor diamond in the rough made the cave reject Jafars lamp somehow, so the lamp just got stuck in the sand.
** There remains the issue of Jafar being a terrible genie to inflict upon anyone, though, even as a slave. Will-Smith-Genie knows the ins and outs of twisting wishes around already, even if Robin-Williams-Genie never really considered the concept -- between the two of them, at least one should've realized what a bad idea returning the lamp to the Cave of Wonders was.
*** Only a Diamond in the Rough can access the cave. Aladdin was too humble to consider persuing a wish-fufilling being, and only did so as a por-favor for a psychopath who KNEW about both the cave and the lamps existance. The cave seems to be only a few miles at most from the city, so its not likely another despicable government minister from a more distant kingdom would target the lamp in Agrabah's local "enchanted cavern".
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[[folder: Not the most efficient use of sorcery]]
* How come Jafar didn't just teleport the lamp back to himself when Jasmine stole it from him, instead of sending Iago after her and Aladdin? Jafar was able to teleport Aladdin and Abu to the ends of the world, so why didn't he use the same kind of sorcery on the lamp?
** With it being a magical genie’s lamp, maybe Jafar’s sorcery powers aren’t able to affect it. We also don’t see his powers affect things that aren’t right nearby — maybe he needs to know or be able to visualize where something is before he can affect it, and taking the time to do that for the lamp would give the heroes the chance they need to summon the Genie themselves. Whereas sending Iago after them creates too hectic a situation for them to focus on making a wish, so it’s a distraction as well as a means of bringing them back to him.
** Jafar is not exactly known for being practical with his sorcery. Also it may be a question of focus/range: he can summon a staff back to him since it's directly within his reach, while the lamp is gone who-knows-where so he needs to get a fixed focus on it.
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[[folder: Screwing over Jafar]]
* We all know that this Genie is a lot more savvy than the one in the animated film — he knows what it means to be able to misinterpret wishes and twist them around and such, but I’m wondering why it took him until Jafar’s third wish to capitalize on this. His first wish was reworded to become “I wish to become the sultan of Agrabah,” but the Genie could have designated some tiny island (or another planet) to be named Agrabah and made Jafar sultan of that place. And/or more of the same for his second wish — take away the powers of every other sorcerer that exists, then give Jafar the power to pull a bunny out of his hat and it’ll still fit the terms of the wish.
** (Regarding the second wish) Well that wouldn't exactly be fair to all the other sorcerers forced to give up their powers all of a sudden without even knowing how/why, now would it.
*** Actually the way Jafar words it in this version is "I wish to be the most powerfull sorceror there EVER IS." That actually opens more grey area than in the animated version. If Genie narrowed down the "There ever is" criteria further on his own interpetation, he could make Jafar the most powerful sorceror in Agrabah, the palace, or even that very room at the moment. If Genie just slightly upgraded (or if he wanted to be even more tricky, downgraded) Jafar's pre-existing sorcery, it would still fit Jafar's Exact Words.
*** There is no way to interpret "most powerful ... there ever is" as meaning, "in this room." That's not an interpretation or a grey area, it's flat out changing the wish entirely.
*** He doesn't say "ever", anyway. The exact words of his second wish are "I wish to become the most powerful sorcerer there is."
** Because there's a vast gulf between, "pull off a trick in the grey area a wish's wording allows" and the kind of huge departure from the wish's stated intent that is being proposed here.
** Jafar is still a powerful sorcerer and would likely catch on to the Genie's attempts to twist his wishes if done that blatant. Then he'll just simply word his wishes exactly how he wants them to be, no possible loopholes to be used. The reason why the Genie decides to screw over Jafar for the final wish is that A) Genies are indeed the most powerful beings in the universe according to his chart and B) Jafar would be too powerless to punish the Genie.
** I've also considered that Genie was not particularly generous in granting Jafar's wishes anyway, particularly the second one. The effects of the first are roughly the same as in the animated film, in that all it really gives him is a change of clothes -- it's the decision of the guards that determines whether his claim to the throne actually has any merit. And his powers of sorcery are heavily scaled back from the near-RealityWarper they made him in the animated film, as he only uses them for AgonyBeam, banishing Aladdin, increasing Iago's size, and summoning a sandstorm. The Genie's aim might've been to grant him enough power that he wouldn't want to ask for more, but not enough that he'd too powerful for the heroes to defeat.
*** The only evidence of Jafar's more limited sorcery is that he's more sublet in this version. Just because he's holding back more with his magic-wielding doesn't mean the greater possibilities are not there.
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[[folder: Jafar, you’re not going to give him a minute?]]
* Jafar tries to drown Aladdin to verify who he is and whether he has the lamp on him, yet he only gives a passing glance down at the water after pushing him in. Even if Aladdin had had the lamp on his person, it would’ve taken some time and effort to summon the genie when his hands and feet are both bound. Wouldn’t Jafar want to give him a little more time before leaving him for dead? If he had, he would’ve seen Abu and Carpet dropping the lamp down into the water.
** He may have searched Aladdin to see if he had the lamp on him, and because he didn't he could have just gone to Ali's quarters in the castle and looked for the lamp. Also his concern was getting Ali out of the way.
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[[folder: Jasmine’s thievery]]
* The updates to Jasmine’s character are nice, but they make it seem unlikely that she wouldn’t know what money is or think to bring some with her when she went into the marketplace. Even if she didn’t, wouldn’t Dalia have thought to give her some, or at least explain the concept so she knew?
** It looks like traditional Disney princess naivete and impulsiveness, and it may have been her first time in Agrabah's bazaars.
** She's smart and politically active, but she's still been [[GildedCage sheltered in the palace for years,]] where all her needs and wants are taken care of. [[TruthInTelevision Wealthy people FREQUENTLY forget about basic things that regular people know by heart.]]
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[[folder: Why would Jasmine prefer Aladdin?]]
* During their conversation, Dalia comments that Jasmine would prefer to marry "that boy from the marketplace" over Prince Anders. But as far as Jasmine knows at this point, Aladdin stole her bracelet from her -- why would Dalia think she'd want to marry him after that?
** Because "stole her bracelet" was not the entirety of their interaction, and clearly Jasmine has told Dalia other things about their meeting.
** ...And you’re saying the rest of their interaction was enough to offset the fact that he (supposedly) took advantage of her naïveté by stealing a priceless royal heirloom?
** Simply because he's a native to Agrabah and at that point more preferable to Jasmine than some exotic foreigner that wants only her title and position. And Aladdin was able to prove himself the diamond in the rough over time, starting with returning the bracelet.
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[[folder: Guards helping Jafar]]
* If the guards are supposed to be loyal to the sultan, and are even given a subplot about being loyal to the sultan, why did they help Jafar with his plan up until he was arrested? Policing the city is one thing, but then he has them going on trips to a cave in the desert when they don't know what he's trying to get from inside, and even makes them complicit in his attempt to kill off Prince Ali. Does Hakim not know about all of this? If he does, why hasn't he reported it to the sultan?
** They helped Jafar as long as he was loyal to the Sultan, their personal moral quandary didn't come until Jafar had usurped the title.
** And Jafar's snake staff seems to have stronger hypnotic effects than in the animated version. (It can hypnotize from several feet away instead of right in front of the Sultans face) Jafar might be able to brainwash the guards (or at least Hakkim) into following his orders as long as their pre-existing loyalty is intact.
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[[folder: Treasure, treasure, everywhere...]]
* In this version, even after the Cave of Wonders collapses, all the treasure inside stays put. Why didn’t Aladdin think to take some of it before he “wished” himself out? I get that he had the genie, but those are piles and piles of free treasure, and he’s already seen the worst of what happens when he tries. Even if the cave were to do something worse to him the second time, he could probably make his wish before it had a chance to.
** Aladdin was too intrigued by the genie to consider that. Even Abu was apparently too traumatized by the caves collapse to consider that.
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[[folder: What did he need the Genie for?]]
* If Aladdin was able to reach Jasmine’s room from outside via the carpet, what did he need the Genie’s help with, exactly? The guards would not seem to be a problem for either of them, meaning all the Genie did was remove Dalia from the picture. Was her being in the room with Jasmine that big of a deal?
** He wants to '''court and marry''' Jasmine, not just pop into her room for a bootycall.
*** What does that have to do with anything? Whatever Aladdin's goal was, why couldn't he just attempt it with Dalia in the room, or just ask her to leave for a moment? If Jasmine were to refuse to be in the room alone with him, that would pose a problem whether Genie distracted Dalia or not since she could just summon a guard to be there instead.
** Ah, I misunderstood what you were asking. Basically, he wants privacy with Jasmine, like anyone else who's trying to court and woo a girl would, and having Genie distract Dalia is the best way he sees to do that. Plus, Genie likes Dalia, so he's doing him a favor, too.
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[[folder:New rule to the Cave]]
* In this version, the rule for the Cave of Wonders has been changed from "touch nothing but the lamp", to "take nothing but the lamp". This might be because it's impossible to get to the lamp without treading through all the coins and jewels (Which Aladdin and Abu DO in fact), but it does raise a few extra questions. The cave collapse after Abu picks up a gem. Picking something up doesn't mean your actually "taking" it. Have you ever picked up a DVD or toy at a retail store only to look at it and put it back afterwards? If Abu intended to do the same (Kleptomaniac monkey, so not likely), would the cave have still collapsed? If so, the more strict "touch nothing but the lamp" rule from the animated version seems more legit.
** If you pick something up at a retail store, it usually means there's something about it that interests you and that you're at least partially considering buying it. Same logic applies here.
*** Another principle however is that 20 years ago, I visited Yosemite National Park California. We saw these huge Sequoia pine cones . We were allowed to pick up and hold these pine cones as long as we put them back afterwards. Other than that being a more difficult rule to explain, I don't see why the cave wouldn't allow THAT.
** It shouldn’t be a surprise that the cave is being somewhat arbitrary and isn’t prone to given anyone the benefit of the doubt, considering the kind of ultimate treasure it’s protecting. And let’s be fair: it waited for several seconds while Abu sat there gawking at the jewel before concluding that he probably wasn’t going to put it back when he was done. It’s not as if it started to collapse the instant he touched it.
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[[folder: Inspiration for Shirabad]]
* What is the source for all of these claims that Shirabad is "India-inspired"?
** Her actress is Indian rather than a "Middle Eastern" ethnicity. Since there are numerous non Indian groups to choose from, people are got upset that one of the most recognizable Middle Eastern character in the English market was being played by an actress of one of those non Indian Middle East groups. But since she is connected to this Shirabad, which didn't exist in the animated version, clearly Shirabad is India, explaining Jasmine's "change" in ethnicity. Genetically Indians are closely related to Afghans and practically identical to Persians and Iranians, all of whom are "Middle East". Not to mention adoption and miscegenation are as old as territory and tribalism, but cultural perception always trumps fact when dealing with social concepts like exactly what part of magnetic western Asia is geopolitically southeast Asia and which part is Middle East. These designations have been established over hundreds to thousands of years of strife and reconciliation. They are important to people. Or to summarize, fan theories not yet falsified.
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[[folder: Why would the Sultan want Jasmine to marry somebody so stupid and clueless?]]
* Just why would the Sultan actually do that? Does he care about his daughter or even her reputation? I mean, Anders has absolutely zero intelligence and Jasmine is intelligent. Wouldn't her rep be ruined after everyone found out her husband was loco?
** The sultan does admit that they're "running out of kingdoms," so it's easy to infer that Anders was far from his first choice. And I think people tend to give Anders himself a bit too much flak -- the guy is definitely slow on the uptake, but he's not completely brainless or incompetent, or that bad of a person. As Dalia says, you could find a great number of princes worse than him to marry Jasmine off to.
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[[folder: Make a wish]]
* Why didn't Aladdin and Jasmine use the time they had after she stole the lamp from Jafar during the climax to fix everything? They had at least a good several seconds before juiced-up Iago came after them, but they don't even seem to try ''anything'' in the precious time they've been given.
** Because they were still trying to get away. Yes, they had "several seconds." Remember these are not people watching from the sidelines with a year's worth of hindsight -- people just plain do not have the ability to plan and execute what you're suggesting in the "several seconds" they had, especially since they didn't know Iago was going to come after them.
** But what are they trying to get away from? They know Jafar can teleport people without even needing to look at or see them -- what difference would it make how far away they'd gotten before they did anything? And this wasn't something they would have needed to think very hard about -- whilst steering the carpet, Aladdin could've told Jasmine, "Rub the lamp and then say, 'I wish Jafar wasn't a sorcerer anymore,'" and that would've eliminated the danger of Jafar being able to catch them. Then Jasmine could potentially use another wish to repair whatever damage Jafar might've done and/or strip him of his minimal authority as sultan, before letting Aladdin use his last wish to free the Genie like he promised to. This is not something they needed to sit on the sidelines and think about; it's the most obvious course of action.
** Do they know that? If Jafar can just teleport them back, why does he send the bird out to chase them instead? Once again: They do not have the benefit of having watched the movie, then having all the time in the world to figure out their most optimal course of action. You're expecting them to act like the players in a [=DnD=] game, where a six-second turn translates into them re-checking the rulebook for half an hour to figure out every possible thing they can do at any given time. Instead, they're acting like people would if they were forced to improvise. It's a fantasy adventure film, not a study in rules-lawyering.
*** They do know Jafar has the power because he demonstrated it before banishing Aladdin. When Aladdin sneaks back into the palace to steal the lamp back, Jafar teleports him without even looking at him.
*** Again: If he could just do that, why does he feel it's necessary to send Iago instead?
** I’m sorry, but I don’t accept that as a reasonable answer. It’s illogical to suggest that someone would overlook a solution this obvious just because they were in a hectic situation, especially seeing as Aladdin could’ve used the time it took to fly back to Agrabah to work out a plan for if he got his hands on the lamp — a plan better than “Try and get far away from Jafar before I sit down and use the Genie to fix everything.” If you find it acceptable that people would become that incompetent during a chaotic scenario, that’s fine, but I prefer to wait for a more logically sound explanation.
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** Too bad. That's how human beings work. It's not that they would "become that incompetent." It's that adrenaline and emotion have real effects on a human's ability to think and plan and act. That's a simple fact, and no amount of Monday-morning quarterbacking six months after the movie came out is going to change that.