Much of the advance focus was on Will Smith and the blue-ness of it all, but his Genie manages to straddle a line between Robin Williams’ irrepressible animated antics and the theatrical Broadway version. It’s hardly a whole new world, but in this suddenly well-populated land of live-action reboots, makes the most out of its familiar one.
Chalk it up to modest expectations – starting with early previews that rubbed people the wrong way – but “Aladdin” is a great deal of fun, with charming leads and elaborately mounted songs.
