New twists give Guy Ritchie's wavering remake of 'Aladdin' its own identity

“Aladdin” - ★ ★ ½

It takes 45 minutes for this turgid, unflatteringly lighted, majorly miscast, hit-and-misdirected, live-action remake of the beloved 1992 Walt Disney animated musical “Aladdin” to finally knock our socks off.

This happens when Will Smith's Genie, who brings new meaning to the term “working blue,” shoots out of his magic lantern and hits young Aladdin (Mena Massoud) with a spectacular hip-hop-inspired rendition of “Friend Like Me.”

This eye-popping sequence becomes the centerpiece of Guy Ritchie's boldly re-imagined remake, for it nearly approaches the cleverness, inventiveness and frantic fun of the original movie, powered by Robin Williams' comic genius as the Genie.

Plus, modern computerized animation can now replicate the insanely imaginative imagery of the original Disney animators, challenged to keep up with the pace of Williams' machine-gun improvisations.

Does Ritchie's version match the original? No way.

But it finds new twists and fresh situations to give this retelling its own identity.

Still, much of the original “Aladdin” survives in Ritchie's redo. The plot. Characters. The songs. And the score by Alan Menken, who supplies additional music here, with new songs written by “La La Land” lyricists Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. (Original lyricist Howard Ashman died before the first movie's release, and the legendary Tim Rice completed the songs.)

What doesn't survive: the perfect 1992 casting.

Neither Naomi Scott as Jasmine nor Massoud commands the big screen the way successful movie stars do. Lead characters in a standard-issue, made-for-the-Disney-Channel musical? Maybe.

But a huge, bigger-than-life musical fantasy? No way.

Massoud might be affable, but he lacks the winning charm and convincing cunning of Scott Weinger's confident performance in 1992.

Likewise, Scott's performance feels tentative and slightly ill-at-ease, although she later leaps to life in an explosive song declaring she will not be silenced by the men surrounding her.

During “A Whole New World,” Aladdin and Jasmine sing to each other as if by themselves on a sound stage. They don't react to the wondrous sights and heights that supposedly inspire them on a magic carpet ride. Blame this one on the director.

Marwan Kenzari's power-hungry Jafar also disappoints by delivering evil dialogue with woefully insufficient Disney-level villainy. His restrained line-readings might be OK for a henchman, but not for an over-the-top Disney megalomaniac with plans to conquer the world.

Outside of visual effects, this “Aladdin” becomes a poorly lighted snore with shadowless, evenly illuminated scenes that give the production a flat TV-sitcom veneer.

Kids will not care about these elements, of course, and the Bollywood-inspired production numbers (especially Prince Ali's arrival at Jasmine's kingdom) compensate nicely for the shortcomings of Ritchie's lengthy remake. (It's 38 minutes longer than the 90-minute original.)

Yet, I do sorely miss Gilbert Gottfried's glass-etching vocals as Jafar's feathered spy, Iago. His bird flipped with finesse and fun.

<b>Starring:</b> Mena Massoud, Will Smith, Naomi Scott, Nasim Pedrad

<b>Directed by:</b> Guy Ritchie

<b>Other:</b> A Walt Disney Pictures release. Rated PG. 128 minutes