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Aladdin. The name conjures up images of a quick thief in the streets, an Arabian city from centuries ago, an evil vizier, and a large terrifying blue genie. Some things just don't translate well from the cartoon version to a live film with actual people on the silver screen. It turns out that the genie from Aladdin is one of them. With comments on social media describing 'Will Smith as Genie is straight nightmare fuel' (sic) director Guy Ritchie may have to work some magic of his own to get this whole new world off the ground and into cinemas.
I would like to know if he is cosplaying as a smurf or something from Avatar.
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Will Smith as Genie is terrifying in the live Aladdin movie
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It's not reality that's important, but how you perceive things.
(Score: 4, Informative) by nobu_the_bard on Thursday February 14 2019, @10:30PM (4 children)
The original story was told by a Persian (her name was Scheherazade) to another Persian (her husband that would kill her if she stopped holding his interest). It was common in those days to treat China as some impossibly far away land where magic was real. It was a place they knew existed but had only a vague idea of what it was like. They just assumed magical creatures known to them would exist in China. So you have Persian magical creatures (djinni) and sorcerers hanging out with Chinese people who just treat it like normal.
I find it kind amusing that kind of projection was going on even back then.
(Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Thursday February 14 2019, @10:42PM (2 children)
The Europeans Had Prester John [wikipedia.org] a mighty Christian king ruling an Eastern land full of marvels.
He will save us from the Mongols.
(Score: 2) by aristarchus on Friday February 15 2019, @10:39PM (1 child)
I recommend Umberto Eco's novel, Baudolino . Even has the White Huns.
(Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Saturday February 16 2019, @12:06AM
Oh great! Another one on the list then.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 14 2019, @10:48PM
I am not certain, but Aladdin was not in the original Arabian Nights. It was added later by some French compiler.
And you are wrong about the Arabs and the Chinese.
Arabs knew of the Chinese in real life - it was the allied Arab-Turk force that put a stop to Tang Chinese incursion into Central Asia. Europeans saw China as some far-away fantasy land, but the Arabs had no such illusion because they faced them in real life in the battlefield.