With overly familiar music and blocky pacing, Disney’s new film, “Wish,” began showing in theaters in late Nov, but not with the excitement expected from the 100-year anniversary movie. The trailer received much backlash on social media platforms, with people calling it “incomplete” or considering it the same old story as many newer films. Additionally, Disney has many so-called anniversary movies, so it loses the special one-of-a-kind idea.
The main protagonist of “Wish” is Asha, a 17-year-old girl living in the kingdom of Rosas, which is set somewhere deep in the Mediterranean. Asha is preparing for an interview to work as King Magnifico’s magical apprentice and although Asha is preparing for one of the biggest roles in the kingdom, she’s rightfully nervous but also seems very unprepared. The premise of the movie is that the people of Rosas send their wishes to King Magnifico on their 18th birthday, thinking he will grant the wishes with his ability. However, the king only grants wishes he thinks will be helpful to the Kingdom. Once they are given away, the people of Rosas forget what they had wished for.
Asha is surprised and angry when Magnifico tells her this, upset that her 100-year-old grandfather’s wish would never be granted. Asha, like every other Disney protagonist, runs to the woods alone to think. She wishes on a star, who falls to join her and grants her pet goat, Valentino, the ability to talk. The variety in the Disney film was nonexistent. Later in the film, Magnifico is possessed by an evil force that causes him to break his wishes, leaving him the main antagonist of the story. While Asha and her friends eventually overcome him and trap him in his magic staff through song, in doing so they also free the wishes of all the people of Rosas. So through the power of friendship and extreme luck, Magnifico is set to live life trapped behind the small window in the staff and locked in the dungeon.
The goal of this movie was to use combinations of other Disney movies, including a poison apple from “Snow White” and the rowboat shore of “Rapunzel,” trying to make the film nostalgic while also looking into the future. However, the plot of the movie was lost in doing so. While these parts of the movie reminded me of the other films, they felt rushed and random, serving as a reminder of how much more enjoyable older Disney movies were. The animation style is in between a 2d and 3d style, leaving watchers confused or unsure of the quality.
“The animation was really weird and I couldn’t get into it, it just felt low quality,” said Niko Spitznagel, a Summit sophomore.
Along with occasional cuts from different Disney films, like the “Rapunzel” and “Snow White” additions, and also confusing animation, “Wish” also follows the same plot as many newer movies. Asha is the same clumsy, clueless, attempted “relatable” character as many newer Disney protagonists are. The movie also has the same premise of a girl who has a problem, finds magic and defeats the villain of the story. While it may be unfair for King Magnifico to find Asha’s wish on a star a threat, it’s still reasonable for him to not grant the wishes of every adult in the city.
“The main villain is a recycling of all other villains, but with an ‘is he wrong’ twist,” said Summit sophomore Jordyn Berry.
Many older villains, like Scar in “The Lion King” or Ursula in “The Little Mermaid,” have clear evil plans and carry them out, giving the protagonist the conflict of giving up or continuing. While “Wish” seemed to have these qualities to a degree, King Magnifico wasn’t evil until possessed and never carried out any evil plans apart from leaving a few people’s wishes broken. Scar and Ursula are also very evil characters, yet are also liked by fans, and Magnifico doesn’t seem to share these qualities as much. Disney has had incredible villain songs, but this one is not included in that list. “This Is The Thanks I Get?!” follows the same tone as every other song in the movie, which doesn’t follow the general feeling a villain should give.
So has Disney lost its magic? Recent Disney movies include “Encanto,” “Turning Red,” “Onward” and multiple live-action versions of iconic films. While many of the live actions have gotten hate, the other recent movies have been appreciated for their added culture, varying characters and relatability, which “Wish” seemed to lack. The other movies may be appreciated, but the old movies still stand on their own. Some of the effort in creating complex characters and interesting magical features is lost in some recent movies.
Essentially, the movie “Wish” did not fulfill the wish of an incredible anniversary movie.
