Mena Massoud was in the news recently, talking about how being the star of a
billion-dollar live-action Disney remake hasn’t translated into increased
opportunities for him in his career, and while 1) it made me sigh and shake my
fist yet again at Hollywood, it also 2) reminded me how much I enjoyed him in Aladdin. As I said in my review of the
remake, he and Naomi Scott as Aladdin and Jasmine are the best reasons for the
movie’s existence. Anyway, all this got me thinking about Aladdin, Jasmine, and
Aladdin/Jasmine again, and I decided to write about them (note: I’ll be drawing
from both the original animated film and the live-action version for this
post.)
That
marketplace meetcute tells us so much about both Aladdin and Jasmine as
characters. It showcases Aladdin’s penchant for risking his own neck for the
sake of helping out this young woman in trouble, and he uses his fast-talking
street smarts to get her out of a jam. Meanwhile, although Jasmine is naïve
about how the world operates outside the palace, she’s a quick study and
immediately plays along with the ruse Aladdin concocts to extricate her from
the situation. It doesn’t wind up working (not their fault, though – Abu,) and they have to run for their
lives, where again we see both Aladdin’s care of Jasmine and her ability to
keep up with him. I know I’ve mentioned it before, but I love the scene where
Aladdin pole-vaults from one rooftop to another and then, while he’s laying
down a board for Jasmine to walk across, she makes the jump herself.
From
there, we move to Aladdin’s pad, where he and Jasmine bond over how immutable
they feel their lives are. I really like this, that even though they move in
entirely different circles, they have the same feeling of being trapped in
their circumstances. They don’t quite realize they’re on the same wavelength,
because Jasmine is pretending to be an urchin at the time, and while she chafes
under palace life, Aladdin fantasizes about how great it must be. And yet, both
of them feel stuck. Jasmine is royal and privileged, yes, but she also feels
like her whole life is mapped out for her and struggles with the parade of
suitors her father keeps bringing to her, insistent on her getting married.
Before sneaking out, she’s never even been outside the palace walls. In
contrast, just everyday survival is a grind for Aladdin, between stealing
enough to eat and evading the palace guards. In the remake, he talks about how
his place in society feels fixed, that, no matter what he does, there’s no way
for him to advance and improve his lot.
That
first meeting puts together all the ingredients for Jasmine and Aladdin’s love
story, so the movie needs to set up road blocks to keep them from hitting their
happily-ever-after too soon. Externally, there’s of course the whole “the
princess must marry a prince” thing, which Aladdin tries to get around by
having the Genie turn him into Prince Ali. But even more than the law, what
keeps them apart so long is Aladdin’s insecurities. When he thinks Jasmine is
poor like him, he has no problem being charming, caring, and open with her, and
the sparks fly like crazy. But as soon as he steps foot inside the palace and
starts pretending to be a prince, he tries to put on this persona of what he
thinks a prince is. He tries to play the sultan’s game, to “win” Jasmine by
virtue of being wealthy and royal, which is of course everything Jasmine hates.
“I am not a prize to be won,” anyone?
Anybody
can see that the way to Jasmine’s heart isn’t by, first, pretending to be
someone he’s not, and second, lying to her, but Aladdin can’t let himself do
that. It’s not out of any attempt to trick her, though. It’s because, despite
the easy confidence with which he carries himself through the marketplace,
Aladdin doesn’t think he’s good enough when stacked up next to her, and he very
nearly loses her because of it. Even when she figures out that he’s the young
man she met in the market (‘cause she’s a smart cookie,) Aladdin still can’t
bring himself to be honest with her. It’s not until everything is finally out
in the open that the path is cleared for them.
Also,
it’s a little thing, but when Aladdin is first telling the Genie about Jasmine,
I love he doesn’t mention her beauty until the Genie prompts him, instead
talking about how smart and fun she is. Good boy, Aladdin!
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