Wish

I’ve seen a surprising number of films from the modern Disney Animation Studios. Looks like I have a large gap between Frozen and Encanto, but most of those are at least reasonably well regarded. And the ones I’ve seen are all at least pretty okay. But thinking back on them, it’s clear just how much Wish stands out. Whereas many of their projects in this era of 3D animation are layered or telling stories in which non-white people and cultures are centered (and sometimes both at once, like the excellent Encanto), Wish feels like a classic Disney premise. It’s a fairy tale setting, replete with magic and a Big Bad™ and talking animals and a bad ass main character who’s got to rally people to her cause to defeat him. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that, it’s just a shift that left me fairly uninterested as I entered the theater. Which is fine: this was never meant to be a movie for me. Still, I can’t help but think about the myriad of movies already out there which told this type of story, and how kids deserve variety, too. But then, I guess that’s what Pixar is for.

Wish tells the story of the kingdom of Rosas, an island established by the sorcerer Magnifico (Chris Pine) and his wife Amaya (Angelique Cabral). They welcomed any and all, on the condition that they entrust him with their deepest and most powerful wish, which they promptly would forget after telling him. The residents were happy to oblige, because it also came with the promise that he would periodically use his magic to grant these wishes, and keep the rest safe in the meantime.

Asha (Ariana DeBose) wants to be his apprentice, until she meets him and learns the real reason so few wishes get granted: Magnifico refuses to grant any he thinks could possibly be dangerous. Her hundred-year-old grandfather Sabino (Victor Garber) just wants to inspire people, but Magnifico is worried that could turn to calls for revolution. And he’s grown quite comfortable with the throne and the adoration of the masses. In despair, Asha wishes upon a star, and ends up with far more than she bargained for.

Clearly, there’s a bunch of setup there. That’s despite leaving out some details and simplifying others, in order to make clear to you what the call to action actually is without going on forever. Yet, they do a decent job of moving that along. You certainly feel lost for a bit before they finally make clear how Magnifico is going to play his villainy and the shape of the adventure to come, but it’s not so dragged out as to be irredeemable.

That said, it never does much to make up for it. For one, the comedy is primarily lowest common denominator eye-rolls, even by kids’ movie standards. There are a few lines that got me, as did the reveal of the chickens dancing, but it’s almost all from irreverence rather than their many swings at plot or character based humor. Additionally, the story is fairly cookie cutter, the character dynamics are pretty bland such that none of the supporting cast makes much of an impression, and the central idea of a wish miser never quite works. Sure, the general premise is fine, but has no one objected to the idea that they forget their wish when they give it to him? No one’s clocked he barely grants any wishes each year? He does it in a huge ceremony, so it’s not like it’s a secret. Even Asha isn’t opposed in theory. It’s not until he refuses to release the wishes he’ll never grant that she objects.

I don’t want to harp too much on the logic of this film, because getting upset about plot holes is silly. But it’s worth pointing out, since the entire film hinges on everyone just accepting this without asking any of the myriad questions it raises.

In any case, it feels very much like a classic Disney film as promised, but far less epic. You’ve got the comedic relief side-kick in Valentino the goat (Alan Tudyk), and the more helpful side-kick who can’t speak in Star (who I must admit is adorable). The tale follows the stndard structure of gathering some friends to help, a first confrontation of the villain which really only serves to let him know there’s a threat, him building his power, then a final more epic and existential confrontation. You’ve seen this before, but done better.

As if to remind you of all those better movies, this is leaning hard into the Disney one-hundredth anniversary piece. So we’ve got references to Bambi, the mouse ears logo being drawn on two separate occasions, incorporation of “When You Wish Upon A Star”, Magnifico saying “Mirror mirror on the wall”, and more. The end credits feature star drawings of a bunch of characters from Disney history. And there are character design things, like the way Asha’s hair blows in the wind almost exactly like Pocahontas’. I get this is partially meant to celebrate that anniversary, and thus their history, but that doesn’t make it any less annoying. I wish they’d focus more on this movie, rather than constantly reminding us of better ones.

Especially because there’s a read of this movie in which the Disney corporation is Magnifico.

I won’t go deep, because spoilers. But Magnifico’s castle is like the Disney Vault: full of the visions of others which they refuse to release to the public despite not doing anything with them. They’re jealously guarded, to the detriment of everyone. And the analog gets even more unsettling when Magnifico starts destroying movies - excuse me, wishes, for power, especially since Disney ripped Crater off Disney+ earlier this year after just six weeks.

Moving on.

If we’re to compare this to the classics, there are two key questions left to tackle: music, and animation.

Let’s start with animation. It’s mixed. I think the character animation is poor at best. Ironically, it seems like they took a comparable approach to Nimona, where they’re kinda cheap looking figures which feel similar to a cell-shaded video game. The motion feels too smooth and clean, all of which highlights just how much it falls into the uncanny valley. They’ve taken the big eyes of anime and slapped them onto something between 3D and 2D, and it’s not great.

Conversely, however, the backgrounds are gorgeous. They went with a fuzzy watercolor look, one where you can almost feel the texture of the underlying paper. This also means that the diffuse, translucent nature of much of the magical elements looks great, too. During “At All Costs”, when the wishes are swirling and flying around the castle, it looks magnificent. This style shines especially bright in the many outdoor settings, where it highlights the depth of the scene.

As for the music, it’s pretty good! Not amazing, no, but fairly enjoyable. Most songs are fine, with only one true stinker in the bunch: the absolute mess that is “I'm a Star”. All the others have lyrics which perfectly serve their purpose and place in the plot, which makes it disappointing that musically they’re middling.

With one major exception: I loved “Knowing What I Know Now”. I’ve listened to it at least half a dozen times since seeing the movie a few days ago. The drums, the minor key, the layered rhythms, the abnormal structure, the beat changes, the chanting, everything about it. It’s so different from what I’m used to from musicals, and from the rest of the songs in the movie. It’s an absolute banger, and would be my choice to submit to the Oscars for Original Song from this movie, hands down, no question.

This is not the next Encanto or Frozen. People will not be singing the songs from it for months and months, it will not become a cultural force, nor will anyone mistake it for a Pixar film. I doubt this will gain many adult fans, but there are worse ways for your kids to spend their time. There are also far, far better ways, including films released this year, such as the aforementioned Nimona or TMNT: Mutant Mayhem. Ultimately, this didn’t do a ton for me, but it was also far from my biggest waste of time at the theater this year.