I'm one of the approximately ten people who saw a trailer for the latest Disney movie Wish. Of those ten people, I'm the single person who saw it and had an immediate and visceral "I have to see this movie when it comes out" reaction. When I went to see it today (well, yesterday as of the publication time), I was the only person who bought a ticket. I'd heard the rumors, I knew what I was in for, but I left the movie with the biggest grin on my face. I'm genuinely convinced that we'll have time travel in the future, because the only reason this film could have been made is if I financed it and wrote the script myself. It doesn't feel like a movie made for mass consumption, it feels like a movie made by me, for me, and I almost want to apologize for anyone else who went to see it because it's a little alarming to learn that I'm going to fall that far in the future.
I'm tempted to defend this movie, but as someone who watched some reviews of the movie after I left the theater that pointed out how bad it really is, with a bunch of points that I can't really argue against, that feels like the wrong call. Because yes, even I think that the goat is stupid and the supporting cast doesn't get enough characterization. Truth be told, this is a case where I love the premise for this film so much that it allows me to overlook any flaws in the execution. A young woman who finds out that her perfect world is actually deeply corrupt, seeks the power that will help, is branded a traitor, is almost destroyed by a bad guy much stronger than she is only to defeat him by harnessing her inner strength? Right up my alley. The one thing I would have changed would be to make the final fight between Asha and Magnifico be a bit more even, with a line or two from Asha telling Magnifico to eat dirt. Also, I feel like having Asha become the new wish granter of Rosas misses the point I feel this story should have, the point that a system can change and that power shouldn't be condensed into the hands of an individual. But I suppose it's asking too much of a greedy conglomerate to suggest that power ought to be shared with the masses.
To me, the thing that made this movie so powerful was its finale, where Magnifico has everyone pinned down and has captured Star. The moment when Asha remembers the song "I'm A Star" and has everyone start singing together and making wishes to take power back from Magnifico? That was incredible to me. I realize that particular beat has been done a hundred times in a hundred places, probably a lot better than this one, but in a world run by two-dimensional cartoon villains with no coherent motivations, it's nice to fantasize about a world where people aren't afraid to take power for themselves. I could be alone in thinking this, but I feel like the movie's overall theme is about power, about what it means to have power and about learning not to be afraid to take it for yourself. You'll notice that Asha goes from being a full supporter of the status quo, to someone who just wants more power for herself and those she trusts, to someone who fights on behalf of everyone in Rosas. I also really like how the Queen was able to see what an asshole her husband was and decide for herself that what he wanted wasn't okay, and decided to stand up on behalf of her own people. Mostly because, even now, I want to believe that our leaders are capable of seeing when they've made mistakes and growing as people.
My impression of this film when I first saw the trailer was that it was an incredible story trapped in a film made by Disney executives, and that's exactly what I got. Enough people have talked shit about this film that I do wonder if I'm crazy, but I'll stand by my belief that if you're able to look past this films problems (and to be fair, there are a lot of them), you'll find something special. Some people have called this film a children's film, implying that it's just a film for little kids, but I don't feel like that's an accurate descriptor of this film. It feels more like a film made by a kid. It feels like a story written by a novice writer with a strong vision of a story without the skills to quite flesh it out, someone who doesn't have enough skills to write within a template, and enough knowledge to know when to go outside it. I don't regret going to see it in the theater, but I wish that Disney had just cut it's losses and put it on streaming, because this isn't a film for film buffs. This is a film for those who like stupid stories told poorly with just enough heart that you love them regardless.
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