Wish
Wish doesn’t originate from an interesting character or a fresh story. It originates from a desire to self-congratulate. The movie is about the Disney star – the one Jiminy Cricket sang about wishing upon and the one featured in the studio’s logo. It imagines something like the Marvel Cinematic Universe, where all the Disney animated characters exist in the same world. References to them are everywhere, from the beginning all the way through to the post-credits scene. Ironically, in its desire to celebrate Disney magic, Wish fails to generate any magic of its own.
Asha (Ariana DeBose) lives in the kingdom of Rosas. She dreams of working alongside King Magnifico (Chris Pine), who has collected the wishes of his people, ostensibly to keep them protected in bubbles. Occasionally, he will select one to come true. Asha learns that he’s not nearly as benevolent as he seems and is, in fact, hording wishes to prevent them from coming true. Frustrated by this, she wishes on a star for a way to stop him. That star comes down from the sky, giving her pet goat the ability to talk and…well, this is a weird movie.
On its own, Wish is mediocre yet harmless. The animation is pretty, if not innovative. The songs are catchy, although there’s nothing on par with Frozen’s “Let It Go” or even Encanto’s “We Don’t Talk About Bruno.” The plot aims for a sweet theme about the importance of having a wish in life. That’s nice, but not necessarily treated with the depth that emotions were in Inside Out or love was in Beauty & the Beast. Overall, the movie is lower-tier Disney.
That’s because the story is working too hard to be a tribute. Not every reference is blatant. Some certainly are, as when Peter Pan wanders into a scene. Others are more subtle. You can’t help noticing them, though, and they're distracting. Ariana DeBose is wonderful as Asha. Nevertheless, the character’s journey is flat, given that she doesn’t have an actual arc for herself. Her arc is intended to serve Disney. Similarly, King Magnifico isn’t a particularly fearsome villain since his motivation is driven by a need to infer his connection to other Disney figures.
Maybe the worst sin of all is that the star itself is kind of boring. Thanks to an inability to speak, it isn’t able to develop a personality. Considering the star is the single object the entire movie revolves around, that’s a massive flaw. Wish obviously aspires to be another Disney classic. It should have aspired to develop a tale worth telling.
out of four
Wish is rated PG for thematic elements and mild action. The running time is 1 hour and 35 minutes.
