Sean Marshall I’m not going to lie, horror movies aren’t really my thing, I’m really picky about them and I always have high expectations. So, let’s just say my expectations for Wish Upon were not met. I mean don’t get me wrong, the writers had the right idea but I don’t believe it was properly executed.
Clare Shannon (Joey King) gets an early birthday gift from her dumpster diving dad Jonathan (Ryan Phillippe) which turns out to be some strange Chinese music box that will grant seven of her wishes. And of course, she just so happens to be taking a class where she’s learning Chinese, with that she’s able to decipher some of the writing on this magical box and tests out these supposed “wishes”.
As soon as she realizes this magical box is legit she goes a on a bit of a wishing spree and doesn’t notice that while all these things that she’s wishing for are coming true, people around her are dying, turns out the box contains magic because of an ancient demon. Even when she puts two and two together and discovers this she still goes on to make wishes because at this point the magical box has a hold of her.
This movie had its cringe worthy moments, even though the dude next to me in the theatre would literally burst out laughing every time something freaky would happen I still enjoyed some of those. But, it had many flaws and left a lot of details out that would have helped the audience establish more of a connection with the characters. Clare’s best friends Meredith and June (Shannon Purser & Sydney Park) had a lot to offer but hardly had enough screen time to really enjoy them, especially Meredith, I thought her character was funny and had a lot of personality.
I feel like wish upon lacked a solid story line, I personally think that the story is what makes a scary movie, scary. There was no build up to the events that were meant to freak me out or at least leave me scared by the thought of finding a magical box that grants wishes. I can’t complain about the acting, I really like Joey King as an actress and I was impressed with her role in The Conjuring. But this role for her seems like a step down from it. As for Ryan Phillippe, he should probably steer clear of the horror genre for a while longer, it might have worked out well for him when he was in I know what you did last summer, hopefully this isn’t considered a major comeback in the movie scene.
The plot felt rushed, had they taken their time to get a few details in there and put a little more into characterization and establishing a better story instead of focusing on trying to scare people it might have turned out to be an ok movie. Unfortunately, this is your typical horror movie, with a lot of clichés and after a certain point feels predictable.
Pros
- Good acting
- Cringe worthy scenes
Cons
- Alot of events felt rushed
- Many cliches
- Lacks certain details
- Film leaves you with unanswered questions
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