Animation Celebration Double Feature - Return of Jafar & Aladdin and the King of Thieves

The animated Aladdin was such a smash hit in the early 90's, they opted to release what became the first in the series of direct-to-home-media sequels of the late 90's and early 2000's. Nowadays, those films are notorious for being fun but bland at best, absolutely dreadful at worst. Where do these two fall on that scale? To answer that question, we'll return to the desert to follow a group of bandits as they seek their treasure and find out...

Return of Jafar
Disney, 1994
Voices of Dan Castanella, Scott Weinger, Gilbert Gottfried, and Johnathan Freeman
Directed by Tad Stones and Alan Zaslove
Music and Lyrics by various

The Story: Iago (Gottfried) manages to dig his and Jafar's (Freeman) way out of the Cave of Wonders about a year after the previous film ends. He wants to set out on his own and refuses to free Jafar, but a thief named Abis Mal (Jason Alexander) who also has beef with Aladdin does bring him out. Meanwhile, Aladdin (Weinger) is happily giving money to the peasants, but he's not as certain about the Sultan (Val Bettin) wanting him to be the next vizier or his relationship with Jasmine (Linda Larkin). Iago decides he wants to live in luxury, befriends Aladdin, and ingrates himself into palace life. The Genie (Castanella) has also tired of his around-the-world trip and is back as well. Jafar finds out about Iago and opts to use him to get in the castle...and get his revenge on Aladdin and all those who stole his power.

The Animation: A major downgrade. While there are occasionally some funny or well-done expressions and everything is very colorful and energetic, it lacks the flow, vitality, and care put into the original. It's pretty obvious this was something dashed off quickly for the video market. Even the Aladdin animated series looked better and more consistently animated with fewer glitches and continuity gaffes.

The Song and Dance: Castanella isn't as bad as you might think as the Genie, and not nearly as horrible as people made him out to be at the time. His gags are among the few bright spots. Freeman still plays Jafar to the hilt, even when the script is less than wonderful, and Alexander plays pretty well alongside him.

Favorite Number: Freeman does put over a slightly amusing "You're Only Second Rate," his "I'm better than you are now" number to the Genie, with utter relish.

What I Don't Like: First and foremost, apparently, it was director Tad Stones who thought it was a great idea to base an hour-long movie mainly around Iago. I have no idea what lead him to believe that. Iago is unlikable, annoying, and listening to Gottfried's screechy voice for a full hour is not exactly great entertainment. Castanella is good, but he's not going to make anyone forget Robin Williams. The animation is terrible, the story is dull and derivative, the music is bland and forgettable, and Aladdin and Jasmine pine over each other for no reason and are foolish to believe anything Iago says.

The Big Finale: I suspect the only reason this sold as many videos as it did was the sheer novelty of Disney continuing one of its recent movies. Frankly, it's boring and annoying, and though a few people who grew up in the mid-90's do have some fond memories, I really don't recommend it for anyone but the most ardent Disney or Aladdin fans.

Home Media: Out of print and expensive on DVD. Your best bet is streaming; it's free on Disney Plus if you have a subscription.

DVD
Amazon Prime (Buy Only)

Aladdin and the King of Thieves
Disney, 1996
Voices of Robin Williams, Scott Weinger, John Rhys-Davies, and Linda Larkin
Directed by Tad Stones
Music and Lyrics by various

The Story: Aladdin (Weinger) and Jasmine (Larkin) are finally getting married, but their wedding is disrupted by the arrival of the Forty Thieves and their leader, the King of Thieves. The King, Cassim (Rhys-Davies), is searching for the Oracle, a powerful stone on a scepter that can reveal the hiding place of a great treasure. The Oracle (C.C.H Pounder) reveals that Aladdin's father is "trapped in their world, sending Aladdin, Iago, and Abu out to rescue him. When Aladdin does find them, he has to take a test to convince them to let him join their band, knocking their largest and most aggressive member, Sal'luk (Jerry Orbach), off a cliff.

He does convince his father to return to Agrabah, but it's hard for Cassim to stop stealing. There may be even bigger problems. One of Cassim's men is determined to get to the treasure first, and has no trouble selling out his leader or fellow thieves to get it. But the bonds of father and son may be stronger than anyone knows, even the Genie, and it'll take a family effort to find out what the real treasure is.

The Animation: Slightly better than Return to Jafar, and certainly more consistent. Just the fact that the animators were able to keep up with Williams' constant stream of topical gags makes this a cut above the first sequel. There's also some nice work in the finale when they find the big "treasure" too, with the floating island.

The Song and Dance: Yeah, this is more like it. Bringing Williams back and adding Rhys-Davies as Aladdin's charming father definitely elevates this one. The story is far more interesting, and even surprisingly thoughtful, with its ruminations on father and son relationships and what makes us family. The action is a delight, especially early-on when they're with the thieves, and Williams is just as "on" here as in the original. I really laughed at some of his crazy antics (the "Steamboat Willie" reference towards the end was especially cute).

Favorite Number: The epic opening "A Party In Agrabah" is by far the most memorable song here, with Williams riffing on every bridal cliche while Aladdin and Jasmine discuss their hopes and doubts. I also like "Welcome to the Forty Thieves" when Aladdin is being inducted into their group.

What I Don't Like: Though Iago's role is reduced somewhat, there's still too much of him - and Gottfried's screechy voice - here. Jasmine, on the other hand, doesn't have nearly enough to do besides worry about her fiancee. The animation is better, but not theatrical-quality. The story works better when it focuses on the parent-child bonding, not on the rather weak plot about the Oracle and what it leads to, and while the songs are slightly better, they're still not terribly memorable.

The Big Finale:  If you or your kids are huge fans of the original Aladdin and must have more, come here (or to the fun TV series) first. The cast, decent animation, and mostly enjoyable story makes this one of the better Disney direct-to-video sequels.

Home Media: Same deal here. This is also out of print on disc; you're better off streaming.

DVD
Amazon Prime (Buy Only)