My Movie Review on WISH (2023) · 4:03pm Dec 20th, 2023
Greetings and salutations, my friends.
This is your top-of-the-line film, TV show, and episode reporter here with another review.
Today, for the 1st (and only) installment of this year's "Christmas Craze", I'm gonna give you guys my take of Disney's "WISH".
Here's the rundown of this tale:
17-year old Asha has long served as the enthusiastic tour guide for the Kingdom of Rosas, which was long ago founded by King Magnifico and Queen Amaya. Magnifico is famous for dabbling in sorcery in order to grant the wishes of his kingdom's people, and he always promises that the wish would come true.
However, during an interview with Magnifico, Asha discovers that Magnifico has secretly been keeping the vast majority of the people's wishes locked away from the world, and that he only grants the ones that he believes wouldn't pose a threat to his power. And the worst part...is that he doesn't give any of the wishes back to the people.
Her life suddenly changes, though, when she later makes a wish on a star one night. To her surprise, the star answers back by descending from the sky in order to help Asha return the ungranted wishes back to Rosas' people. Even if it means going up against Magnifico.
Can Asha truly make a positive difference for her kingdom? Or will Magnifico forever maintain his power over the people?
In all honesty, I wasn't originally going to review "WISH" while it was still in theaters, mainly because I normally analyze films by seeing them more than once through home video or streaming nowadays. But, after I learned of the surprisingly mixed-to-negative reception "WISH" received since its release, I was immediately inspired to see for myself what the film was like from my own personal viewpoint.
Coming from a guy who saw "WISH" for the first time in theaters over two weeks ago, I'm proud to say that the movie exceeded my expectations. In fact, I thought it was AWESOME!
For instance, the animation was an astonishing sight to behold.
In many ways, the film's visualization appeared to be inspired by "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse", in that it combines computer-animation with the look & style of a hand-drawn cartoon. Despite how common this technique has become over the years, and my skepticism over the decision, I thought that it worked incredibly well for "WISH". Not only did it provide a great compromise over whether to make the film purely hand-drawn or computer-animated, but it gave the animators and filmmakers the freedom to take advantage of the benefits each technique came with.
As I watched the movie, I noted that the settings and characters looked like they were part of a three-dimensional storybook, with the illustrations being based on early animated features produced by Walt Disney himself. It was like the animators and directors wanted to make the film's look & feel be genuinely the kind Walt Disney would want to use if he was alive during this time of technological advancement, and I believe they beautifully captured that.
In addition, the direction by Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn, the story by Buck, Veerasunthorn, Jennifer Lee, and Allison Moore, and the screenplay by Lee and Moore, were brilliantly well-done.
I don't know about you guys, but I thought the filmmakers did an amazing job providing "WISH" with a narrative that was creative, engaging, and intriguing. The plot kept itself together like a neatly-tied knot, and there certainly weren't any dull moments. I found my soul getting tugged at every dramatic, emotional, and heartfelt scene; all the jokes and comedy bits made me laugh, such as the ones revolving around Star & Valentino; and the film offered excitement & surprises every step of the way.
On the subject of the references to previous Disney films, particularly ones made during the lifetime of Walt Disney, I personally didn't have any problem with them. I'm well aware that they're a target for criticism, but I actually thought that they were fun to spot. The greatest thing about them was that they weren't distracting in the slightest, and the film team's usage and execution of them reflected the "tribute to Walt Disney" aspect splendidly. It was definitely done much better in "WISH" more than I can say about a certain non-Disney animated film I know of, and they weren't incorporated with the purpose of making this movie a sequel or prequel of sorts to other Disney movies either.
The themes and morals were terrific as well.
When I saw the first trailer for "WISH", a theory generated in my head as to what certain aspects of the film's concept were representing. And to my joy, I found that I was right.
Contrary to what many YouTube videos and internet publications have likely been saying about Magnifico's role as the villain and his style of ruling, I believe that these elements are a pure representation of Communism. And while I won't mention any names or parties, Magnifico himself was clearly inspired by the Marxist nutjobs constantly infesting the political offices.
Here's why:
At first glance, Magnifico seems like a benevolent ruler who cares about ensuring the well-being and safety of his subjects. Using his powers of sorcery, he'd offer to grant people their wishes if they simply hand them to him.
But, this would turn out to be part of a surprisingly sinister motive. Despite actually granting wishes here and there, the majority of the wishes he's given are ones he doesn't grant at all. He believed that the things many people were wishing for would threaten his rule, and the only reasons he granted some of them were to make himself look good & if he didn't think they'd cause a problem for him. Not to mention he'd make promises without ever following up on them, and it's shown clear as day that the more wishes were entrusted to him, the more power he had over his people. He'd also offer the promise to protect his subjects if they give his wishes to him, but this would secretly be a way for him to further dominate everyone. It's a Communist-based move if I ever saw one, because it took away everyone's rights to freely pursue their dreams by themselves, and the wishes are basically a representation of a people's rights, properties, and freedoms.
Asha's role, meanwhile, is the complete opposite of Magnifico's.
At the beginning, she started off as a person who admired Magnifico just like everyone else did, and she even hoped to become his apprentice. But, after she learns of Magnifico's style of ruling and wish granting, she transforms into someone who strives to help others achieve the things they wish to do in life; as well as help the villagers regain and maintain their individual rights & freedoms. To me, this makes Asha the Disney-equivalent of a Human Rights activist, and her beliefs that everyone is special & should be given a chance to make a difference in life shows that she's a person with noble goals.
Furthermore, I really don't get why people are calling this movie a "morally bankrupt" feature. Its story depicts a genuine battle of good vs. evil, and I thought that its lessons were meaningful & carried great relevance.
These are what I thought the film was teaching:
As illustrated by the villagers handing their wishes to Magnifico, we as the people should never entrust governments with anything or let our very lives be controlled by them. A government's real job is to serve as the guardians and protectors of a nation's people, and it's perfectly okay to rely on them in that regard. Nevertheless, when it comes to things like everyday choices, lifestyles, and career paths, only the individual making the decision should be in control of that; and the only ones the decision-maker should confide in for help & advice on these matters if needed are the people that the decision-maker shares a loving bond with, like friends or family members.
Other than that, I believe that "WISH" is another rare film that was teaching the importance of genuine community. Community of the people. And, if a government is doing something that's wrong or threatening one's rights, it's okay to take a stand against them.
Along with this, the voice acting, characters, and character development were fantastic.
I personally don't think there was anything even remotely wrong with the characters. They were all deeply engaging & fun to watch in their own way, they had personalities and qualities that made them instantly memorable & distinct, and neither one was without development & depth. Plus, the cast members sounded like they were having the time of their lives being a part of the venture, and they were clearly giving their very best in the process. And boy, could they sing or what?!
Without a doubt, the most compelling and well-developed of the characters were Asha, Magnifico, and Queen Amaya.
From what I've gathered before making this review, people have been criticizing Asha for her defiance against Magnifico, even going so far as to say that she was the real villain and Magnifico was actually a good king. These prospects are ones that I really don't get, to be honest. In contrast to these claims, Asha was really a purehearted go-getter who only wanted to help others in any way she could, and it was easy to see that all she ever wanted was for Rosas to be free of Magnifico's selfish tyranny. To boot, she was lovable, sympathetic, relatable, and well-developed beyond anything. I thought that the filmmakers did a brilliant job portraying Asha as all that I described her, and Ariana DeBose gave a smashing performance as the character.
Likewise, Queen Amaya was someone I couldn't help but instantly love. Her kindhearted personality made her an excellent contrast to Magnifico, and her depiction as a leader who's a voice of reason, wisdom, and guidance was a wonderful thing to see. Just like Asha, Amaya wasn't without powerful development either, and the performance of Angelique Cabral was outstanding.
Lastly, Magnifico was quite honestly Disney's best animated villain since King Candy from "Wreck-It-Ralph". And with good reason too!
Whereas the villains in nearly every animated Disney film after "Wreck-It-Ralph" were characters who often turned out to be evil near the end, Magnifico is only portrayed as a seemingly good person at the beginning. Once his dark side makes itself known around the time he's interviewing Asha, Magnifico transforms into an openly complex individual who's basically a representation of corrupt political leaders and government officials. Afterwards, he practically bubbles with character development, especially on the grounds that his insecurities, ego, and arrogance drove him into dabbling in darker powers and becoming an all-out tyrannical dictator. Chris Pine was clearly having a blast portraying the character, I'll tell you that. It particularly sounded like Pine was inspired to incorporate a projection and theatricality reminiscent of performances by Tim Curry, all the while combining it with a humorous and emotionally-invested approach similar to characters played by James Woods, and the results were remarkably astounding.
Finally, the music by Dave Metzger, and the songs by Julia Michaels and Benjamin Rice, were magnificent.
Working as a co-composer for some of Disney's direct-to-video and television projects, and providing additional work for past Disney films, obviously paid off for Metzger. His score may not have the star-studded quality that made the works of others like Alan Menken and Mark Mancina significant, but considering the fact that this was Metzger's debut as a solo feature film composer...his music was still amazing in its own way. It captured the setting and tone flawlessly, and the melodies beautifully reflected the personalities and emotions of the characters too.
To boot, Julia Michaels and Benjamin Rice's musical numbers were marvelous. Granted, I will admit that the songs were a little tricky to take in while I was in the theater, but hey...that's where listening to the songs on YouTube came in handy. Watching "WISH" on the big screen, I loved how naturally placed-in and executed the songs were, and the greatest thing about them was that they helped the story move forward. And having frequently listened to the songs on YouTube, I noted that the lyrics blended together like peas in a pod, even if the rhyme-choices were unexpected in some ways.
In conclusion, "WISH" is quite honestly one of the most underrated animated films I've recently seen. The characters and voice acting were top-notch, the story was splendid, everything!
So, I rate "WISH" a solid five out of five stars.
Call me a biased Disney-sucker all you want, but I believe that "WISH" is truly a masterpiece. I really don't get why it has such a mixed-to-negative reception to begin with, nor will I ever understand why people are being so harsh on this movie. But, I hope people can respect my opinion and understand where I'm coming from regardless, and that this review could possibly convince others to give the movie a chance before making a judgment.
I think you might be reading a bit too much into Magnifico. His behaviour is pretty par for the course of dictators of all political pursuasions, and Communist dictators do not have a monopoly on promising people stuff and then manipulating them for personal gain. A good example is Ferdinand Marcos, who used similar behaviour to enrich himself and his family. As such, I feel this film has more of a standard anti-authoritarian message.
Apart from that, agreed; this movie is seriously underrated.
a cool fact i recently learned is that Asha was meant to be the daughter of the king and queen, who were both meant to be an evil pair originally, it is such a shame when a concept of a game or movie sounds far better then what we got, this one you described sounds far better then what we got, props to you for this!
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Except for one thing:
More dictatorships have often originated from Communism than any other political persuasion around, and the mantras of dictatorship are mostly very Communist-based.
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Are you saying that you agree with my review? Or that you disagree with it?
Excellent! Your positive review of this film will give me strong encouragement when eventually watch it on Disney+!
Any chance that you'll review Elemental?
Oh, you have no idea how happy I am to see this positive review of Wish from you. I personally feel vindicated, knowing that I’m not the only one who saw the brilliance when watching. Aside from that subtle dig at [you know what] in one of the paragraphs, this review was completely spot on and exactly what I saw in it too. It’s refreshing to see you give this movie a perfect score when it so desperately needs it. I encourage you to spread this post as far and wide as you can as more people need to be incentivized to see it. I don’t know whether it’s too late to save its box office chances this late in the game, but more people do need to be informed about this and I hope your review encourages others to see it as well.
Honestly, this film deserves so much better than the negative reception it got. You can hate Disney all you want, people, but why take it out on this movie? Splendiferous job here. You really made my day.
i do agree with you, i do think it's a good movie, i just feel like it could've had been even better if it wasn't so safe compared to the other movies post Ralph breaks the Internet
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I appreciate your feedback on this review. It’s something that I worked really hard on, and I wanted to ensure that it was perfect, so your comment truly made my day in return.
I agree. At this point, it feels like the only reason “WISH” has been receiving more criticism than praise is because people are wanting to take advantage of Disney’s lack of success over the past couple years, as well as their numerous controversies. No film company is perfect, but I believe it’s okay to enjoy things that they provide regardless.
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It true communism has resulted in a fair few totalitarian states. But the virtues of political systems is hardly the topic of this review.
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Good point.
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Highly recommend Elemental. It's great fun, tells an endearing story populated with memorable characters, and has an excellent soundtrack.
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I’ll definitely check it out in the near future.
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If only more people held this viewpoint.
As the first non woke Disney movie since before turning red, this was a HUGE sigh of relief
Glad to know you enjoyed it. ^^
This movie doesn’t deserve the hate it get. People need to to dial the hate and just enjoy the movie
That got me think a speech by Tom cruise back at the 2002 academy award at the beginning of the show
I saw that movie with my family and I thought it was a great movie!