Conquer Club

I'm so looking forward to this, but I just saw the teaser of Prince Ali - which is one of the BEST songs in the whole show - and I was slightly unimpressed.

It's decent but, (a) Will Smith's voice isn't quite as booming and lyrical as I'd like, (b) the set seems a little small scale. To the last point, this scene has to be utterly massive with the appearance of thousands of people in a huge city but it just seems a little basic / budget. Also, the costuming should have been a little more historically accurate. I know this is supposed to be a Disney film but the impact could have been more POW with the dichotomy of this wonderful Menken & Ashman score against a Caesarian entrance. The principal characters (Aladdin, Jasmine, Jafar, Genie, the Sultan) should have extravagant, colorful costumes to set them apart and make them stand-out from an historically correct backdrop.

Also, the line "WHEN IT COMES TO EXOTIC TYPE MAMMALS" should not be a rush of ostriches, that's not MASSIVE. In the original they had a parade balloon. I wouldn't have done that but I would have had a gigantic towering Sphinx walking along with numerous caretakers holding it on chains. The Sphinx would be ferocious and fearsome but would only be seen for those seven words.



But I'll wait to see the whole number before I cast judgment as to whether it can compare to the original.

Will Smith singing again for a movie is just tons of fun. Wild Wild West and Men in Black were both better movies for it. Horribly dated now- Wild Wild West's music video is tough to separate from the Michael Jackson vids that it's paying homage to now, but it's still fun to listen to.

Anyway you play it- Will Smith plus back up dancers is great.

You can't argue that movies like "I, Robot" or "I Am Legend", wouldn't have been improved with a Will Smith video....

Hell, even Ali...



Terrible film, but you gotta love the song.

NE-YO actually did a great cover of Friend Like Me a couple years ago. I dare say it was better than the original, maybe! Hope Will Smith can match this!

saxitoxin wrote:NE-YO actually did a great cover of Friend Like Me a couple years ago. I dare say it was better than the original, maybe! Hope Will Smith can match this!

We'll have to disagree on that- Robin Williams was the master of that song. Great cover though, agreed. I think it needs a genuine comic to be sung right. A professional singer can hit the notes, but not the jokes, or hit the animated cues designed for it.

Honestly, from what I've seen of Smith's performance, I thought this guy sang it more like I'd want it ...



Also, how great is it that Jafar is now a sex symbol instead of an old weirdo with a talking parrot?

OK I've watched the Will Smith clip 14 more times and it's starting to grow on me. I just need to hear the whole song now!!!

EIGHT MORE DAYS!!!!!!!!!!!

EDIT: I JUST noticed that Will Smith replaced "brush up your Sunday salaams" with "brush up your Friday salaams"!!! So I guess they are improving the historic accuracy of the plot line!

I'm a bystander while my family is watching this on the Disney streaming thing. It's ok. I like the song and took a bit to figure out this was where I had heard it.

Way to go Saxi. uncharacteristically good thread.*









*until mr.swdk made it a GOP thread.

Jafar is a piece of trash. The princess is totally banging. I understand why people were complaining about the way she looks.

2dimes wrote:The princess is totally banging. I understand why people were complaining about the way she looks.

If she’s ‘banging’ why do you understand their complaints?

Also... except for skin tone she’s a near doppelgänger for Buffy / Sarah Michelle Gellar....

You seem to agree.

https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2017/07/1 ... _23034316/

If Disney went out of business today, I would not be sorry, nor would I care. They are abhorrent.

Jdsizzleslice wrote:If Disney went out of business today, I would not be sorry, nor would I care. They are abhorrent.

Interesting. I don't like them much either, but I suspect my reasons are not your reasons. Why don't you like them?

why abhorrent?

I think it’s dumb that every cutie HAS to be the EXACTLY CORRECT race/ethnicity... especially dumb for a fictional city.

It’s like now they feel they HAVE to make the director be a woman for a movie like Wonder Woman... or a black man for a movie like Black Panther.

Don’t misunderstand me... I’m fine with them choosing the people they chose for those movies... but now there’s some thought that the MUST hire the “correct” gender/race for writer, director, etc. By this logic you COULDN’T hire a black guy to direct Captain America. It’s dumb.

I prefer the best person for the job. Especially off camera.

In the case of casting someone to play Princess Jasmine. I figure it might have been possible to find a pretty Arab lady but, maybe it was not.

2dimes wrote:In the case of casting someone to play Princess Jasmine. I figure it might have been possible to find a pretty Arab lady but, maybe it was not.

Man, there was this hottie I had in Montpellier, a little Arab fox. Her parents were loyalists who elected to come to France when Algeria broke away. She was so beautiful. I was only 14 and she was only 15, she was still in that "I'm not ready to go all the way" phase, but we did some mutual tickling and had a great time. I still remember her wading into the Mediterranean, silhouetted against the setting sun. A photographer would have cut off his right arm for shot like that. Just a goddess come to earth.

I'm sure the line didn't go extinct after '77. Go to Montpellier and I wager you'll find some Arab hotties that will take your breath away.

2dimes wrote:I prefer the best person for the job. Especially off camera.

In the case of casting someone to play Princess Jasmine. I figure it might have been possible to find a pretty Arab lady but, maybe it was not.

who’s also a good actress
who also wants the job
who’s also in LA or has an agent is applying for the job

You win?