When we're in the car, and Veronica gets fussy, we put on movies. Listening to these (mostly Disney) films gives me kind of a unique perspective: without the amazing animation to dazzle me, the holes in the story and possibilities outside the constraints of each film seem to be more evident. So while Veronica was watching Aladdin, I started wondering...
Genie is all-powerful; not only is he powerful enough to alter time and space, but he is powerful enough to create a being who is just as powerful as himself. He's more powerful than God, if you believe in certain cosmological arguments.
Genie is restricted by his office. As a slave to the lamp, he can only grant wishes to those who control the lamp. So what happens after Aladdin frees him? Does he retain all of his amazing power? Is he still incapable of granting wishes for himself? Could he possibly just go juggle the cosmos for fun?
At the end of the film, Jafar has been granted all the powers of a genie. If Jafar can convince some sucker to wish him free, will he finally have all the power he's ever wanted, without all the restrictions? For that matter, short of the Aladdin TV series, and Aladdin direct-to-video sequels, how do we know that Genie isn't evil, and just a wonderful actor? Has Aladdin been the unwilling pawn of a Jafar-like being, who's had 10,000 years to craft this goofy, friendly personality that he used to essentially control the boy's mind?
Nick | June 9, 2007 1:30 AM
Surprised you didn't have an Othello moment given the parrot Iago. Site looks good by the way, just testing out the comments here.