Character Development Study: Aladdin

So it's a rainy day at camp and we can't go in the pool, so you know what that means...movie day! Our movie of choice: Aladdin.

While I was watching the begining when their singing the song "Street Rat" and the one line in particular about Aladdin having no parents, I suddenly for the first time in my life desperately wanted to know who his parents were and what in fact had happened to them. I mean seriously, we never know Aladdin's back story. Were his parents street rats? Did he once have a home? Was he always on the street? Was he abandoned? Did his parents die? Were they murdered? Did they know him? Who raised him? For someone who lives life by lying and stealing, how did he develop his morals and ethics? These are the things I think about while at pre-school.

So this calls into mind the sort of questions you have to ask yourself when you are creating characters for your story. If they do have a specific trait, why do they? If the story of Aladdin and Jasmine were a YA romance right now, we'd probably expect answers to these questions at some point.

Imagine that Jasmine is narrating the story. During one of their bonding moments, Aladdin would probably reveal the truth about his parents, how he feels about being a street rat and also why he chose to live his life the way he did.

One thing that Disney did get right is the development of their relationship. They both live lives where they feel trapped and no one knows who they are or sees them for themselves. This allows for a deep connection.

So maybe this is a totally random blog, but for once Disney had me really thinking.

Any additional thoughts on character development or Disney or how Aladdin's face was modeled after Tom Cruise? Yep, true story.