Il drago dei desideri

Aladdin has come to China, sort of.

Based on its own folk tale that is similar to Aladdin, a young man trying to reconnect with his childhood friend acquired a cup that spawned a dragon that could grant him 3 wishes.

Even though the premise sounded like an Aladdin copycat, the style and tone were completely different from the classic Arabian tale. The best aspect was the humor, which came mostly from the dragon, voiced by John Cho, experiencing the modern world. For the first half, I was laughing at the silly moments. The jokes weren't fancy or elaborated, but I'm a simple man, so goofy jokes were enough to get my facial muscles going.

The animation was pretty typical like the modern Disney animations. The dragon was fluffy and pink, which looked goofy.

The relationship between our main boy, Din, and the wish dragon was also another fun part. Again they were goofy and annoyed each other, which provided more funny jokes.

The weakest part was the story, which followed many tropes of a Disney-like animated movies. The theme follows a common yet valuable lesson that money can't buy happiness, and that people should cherish those around them. I did like the theme, but I didn't feel a lot of impact because of the predictable storyline and the theme itself, which was told a hundred of times before (but it's still important and relevant).

Overall, a simple, enjoyable, and funny story despite the predictable story and theme. 7/10.

The movie is as some reviews say a modern era Chinese Aladdin .. and there were actually a lot of similarities in the story of the Dragon/genie but still it felt so enjoyable and the story does feel promising and purposeful with an adequate amount of genuinity.

The animation is very well done ,, not like some of the last animations I've watched last year ,, it does look professional, glamorous and easy on the eye.

The plot is familiar but again entertaining and put in a modern way, the script is very quick, very connected and definitely very funny which what added that bit originality of movie.

The movie is very recommended.

Though I am not much for modern animation, my grandkids talked me into seeing this. It is a delightful romp as it takes a young guy who was in love as a child and connects him with a dragon/genie, who can grant three wishes. The girl in question moved away from humble roots and the young man began to search for her. The fun in the story is that the dragon has a great personality. Reviewers say it's not Aladdin but it really is. Obviously, there are other plot elements (it takes place in China), but there are way too many similarities. It's a cure movie that moves along and stays engaging.

The comparisons to Aladdin are apt. A funny genie, a lower-class guy and upper-class girl connecting on similar emotional state, inability to wish for love, wishes to be a prince(ling), the villain has been looking for genie for a long time, themes of trust and lies. It gets away with it, though, by recognizing the connection and finding ways to subvert it. Long the Dragon's arc is strong, there are several very funny moments (traffic scene is excellent), and the animation is beautiful.

First, this is not Aladin... this is based partly on chinese mythology and represents the gap between poor and rich in China pretty well and how people behave in China, comparing more like what people own and represent instead of their live experience and happiness. Life in China during these times is pretty hard if you are poor and have nothing to show and it's very rare that a couple coming from a poor and rich side, can come together and are "allowed" to fall in love. Some wealthy families will not allow here daughter / son to marry someone poor. That's a fact.

Back to the movie.... i was very pleasantly surprised of all the work which was put into this, story, characters and of course the special effects... this movie has more spirit (pun!) than most of the Disney stuff of today.

Heartful, enjoyable storyline which concentrates on the good in people. The Wish Dragon is not only for kids, every adult should watch it as well and let the spirit capture you. I loved the movie personally 10/10

btw. Long is so cute :) and so is Li Na.