WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Disney's Aladdin, in theaters now.
Disney's live-action adaptation of Aladdin follows most of the story of the 1992 animated classic. However, director Guy Ritchie's retelling changes certain elements to create a more contemporary adventure for Aladdin as he courts Princess Jasmine.
In the process, a few plot holes pop up at key moments, making the street urchin's journey in Agrabah somewhat problematic, at least in retrospect.
ROYAL REBELLION
In the final act, Jafar steals the magic lamp, and wishes himself to be Sultan, in front of Aladdin, Jasmine, the Sultan and the Royal Guard. However, there's no mind-wipe or re-writing of laws; the only evident magic is an upgrade of Jafar's regal wear.
He then commands the guards to turn on Jasmine and the Sultan, and so they do, temporally. Jasmine then gets them to turn on Jafar in a topsy-turvy rebellion that makes no sense. The guards are cognizant of what's going on, and see Jafar using Genie to strip the Sultan of his title, so why would they align with him? Apparently, in Agrabah, all you need for a coup is some fancy threads.
JAFAR'S MYSTICAL ABILITIES
Jafar's second wish transforms him into a powerful sorcerer; he then holds the kingdom hostage, and forces Jasmine to agree to marry him. If she doesn't, Jafar will execute her father, followed by the citizens of Agrabah and the guards he banished to the cells. Jasmine is understandably reluctant, but she accedes to the Grand Vizier's demands.
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However, seeing as he's now the world's most powerful sorcerer, and his staff is able to control minds, why not simply hypnotize Jasmine? Jafar placed people in trances throughout the film, but he apparently forgot his abilities as a wizard and instead forced Jasmine to wed against her will for plot convenience and dramatic effect.
JASMINE'S LAMP HEIST
During the wedding ceremony, Jasmine steals the lamp from Jafar and is rescued by Aladdin and Carpet. That leads to an epic chase in which ... no one uses the lamp. Jasmine has enough time to rub the lamp and command Genie, but they speed through Agrabah.
Even Al gets his hands on the lamp during the chase, but he too passes up the chance to have Genie under his control. That would have been the easiest way to undo Jafar's treachery, but again, the movie opts for excitement and thrills over logic.
GENIE'S CONVENIENT POWERS
Throughout the film, Genie bends the rules to help Aladdin outside of the wishes, as seen when he sent Carpet to rescue him from a mountain. Even when Al is drowning, Genie manipulates things so he can save his boss underwater.
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Yet when the crew is in danger from Jafar during the failed wedding, Genie doesn't use his powers to help. He could have stepped in when Iago turned into a beast and hunted them through Agrabah, or when the heroes needed to keep the lamp secure. After all, he was able to turn Abu into an elephant, so why not make the monkey an equalizer? Genie simply turns his aid off and on to advance the plot, and instead focuses on flashy gimmicks as he courts Dalia and Al woos Jasmine.
Directed by Guy Ritchie, Aladdin stars Mena Massoud as Aladdin, Will Smith as Genie, Naomi Scott as Princess Jasmine, Marwan Kenzari as Jafar, Navid Negahban as the Sultan of Agrabah, Billy Magnussen as new character Prince Anders, and Frank Welker and Alan Tudyk as the voices of Abu and Iago, respectively.