LATEST `ALADDIN' SCORES WITH WILLIAMS FACTOR.

Byline: Caryn James The New York Times

The first law of sequels is: Always try to get the star back. But Disney so alienated Robin Williams after ``Aladdin,'' using his voice in the merchandising against his wishes, it couldn't pay him enough to come back as the shape-shifting, comically dazzling Genie in the made-for-video sequel, ``The Return of Jafar.'' That mediocre sequel was a gigantic best seller anyway, a triumph of marketing over creativity.

But a new regime at Disney has brought Williams back, and the second video sequel, ``Aladdin and the King of Thieves,'' which was available in stores Tuesday, doesn't lose a second in setting him loose.

At the start of the video, the Genie prepares for Aladdin and Princess Jasmine's wedding by singing a bouncy welcoming song, ``There's a Party Here in Agrabah.'' In a flash and for the next hour and 20 minutes, the Genie morphs into hilarious blue-faced versions of Sylvester Stallone, Walter Cronkite, Tinkerbell and Woody Allen.

Williams' very presence makes a promise that ``Aladdin and the King of Thieves'' lives up to. Everything about this sequel is far better than ``The Return of Jafar,'' from the adventure plot, which takes Aladdin into the legendary cave of the 40 Thieves, to the brighter, more sophisticated animation. ``Aladdin and the King of Thieves'' is not as conspicuously costly as the original, in which even the Magic Carpet shape-shifted brilliantly thanks to expensive computer animation. But this sequel is a lively, entertaining, first-rate successor to ``Aladdin.''

Williams' irresistible throwaway lines and barrage of pop-culture characters are the point, of course. The Genie welcomes visitors to the wedding with a quick, glitzy mock-television show, ``Lifestyles of the Rich and Magical.'' He turns into a familiar, meek-looking man sitting on a park bench holding a box of chocolates. ``Mama always said, `Magic is as magic does,' '' drawls this blue-faced version of Forrest Gump.

Yet the story behind the Genie is also enticing. Thieves invade the palace and interrupt the wedding, searching for a magical scepter in which an oracle lives. The oracle, who appears as a woman shimmering in light, tells the street-urchin Aladdin that his father is alive. ``Follow the trail of the 40 Thieves,'' she says, and soon we are in front of a cave whose facade splits apart at the words, ``Open sesame.''

Once Aladdin is inside, he discovers that his father, Cassim, is the King of Thieves himself. Aladdin tries to reform his dishonest dad. But first Aladdin and his sidekicks - Iago the money-grubbing parrot, Abu the loyal monkey, and the Carpet - are put to tests. Aladdin must save his own life by doing battle with Sa'luk, a villain who wears knife blades attached to his hand. There is more than a hint of ``Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade'' in this cavernous father-son adventure. There are some sappy moments and some surprises. Cassim isn't King of Thieves for nothing. John Rhys-Davies (who played Indiana Jones' sidekick, Sallah) gives Cassim the deep, entrancing voice of a man who could be either hero or villain.

The story is smart enough not to abandon the Genie for long. Back at the palace, he is consoling Jasmine by changing into Mrs. Doubtfire, and turning Jasmine herself into Cinderella and Snow White. ``It's synergy!'' the Genie yells about these overdone Disney references.

The music in ``Aladdin and the King of Thieves'' is not great, but neither was the overrated score for the original. The most memorable songs are the Genie's opening ``Party'' number, and ``Welcome to the 40 Thieves,'' in which the robbers form a chorus line, like Rockettes wielding swords.

The video has some weak spots. Sa'luk's character is not vivid enough to carry his own musical number. And toward the end, Cassim's search for a floating island with limitless treasure is visually murky and slow enough to make children restless. But these problems hardly matter when ``Aladdin and the King of Thieves'' is so brimming with comic invention and adventure.

THE FACTS

The film: ``Aladdin and the King of Thieves.''

The stars: The voices of Robin Williams (Genie), Scott Weinger (Aladdin), Linda Larkin (Jasmine), Gilbert Gottfried (Iago), John Rhys-Davies (Cassim), Jerry Orbach (Sa'luk), Brad Kane (Aladdin's singing voice), Liz Callaway (Jasmine's singing voice).

Behind the scenes: Produced and directed by Tad Stones. Screenplay by Mark McCorkle and Robert Schooley. Songs by David Friedman, Brandy Petersen and Kevin Quinn, and Alan Menken and Howard Ashman. Songs arranged and conducted by Bill Elliott. A production of Walt Disney Television Animation.

Cost: Released on video; suggested retail price $24.99.

Our rating: Four Stars.

CAPTION(S):

Photo

Photo: Aladdin, right, with Abu, and his father, Cassim, wi th Iago, sneak into Agrabah in the direct-to-video ``Aladdin and the King of Thieves.''