The last time I discussed this movie, I mentioned the following:
“I’m worried because Wish’s reception validates a prediction I made when Elemental was in theatres: experimental animation’s the new frontier, but how long will it take before it’s a disappointment? The answer’s ‘not long’. It troubles me because the style’s relatively-new, and because it shows that something can’t be exciting based on its art-style alone. And while the latter should’ve been obvious, there’s a real fear Disney might learn the wrong lessons.”
Having watched the movie, my concerns are validated, yet also intertwined with some concerns. There are minor complaints I can make-it’s rushed, Asha has too many friends, the credits skip key movies when recapping Disney’s filmography-but none compare to two major ones and a concern I have with Disney overall. So let’s discuss them. Ready? Here goes.The first problem is glaring: the writing sucks. Specifically, the songs suck. Wish desperately wants to coast on the success of Lin-Manuel Miranda, whose work with Disney has earned several Oscar nominations via Moana and Encanto. The movie wants to match his rapping and long-winded verses, but because he’s not the lyricist…it fails spectacularly. There’ve also been suggestions this movie was written by AI, something I try not ascribing to, but might be possible given what Marvel did with Secret Invasion. Considering the redundancy of many verses, as well as the timing of the release, it’s not unreasonable.
Still, while the songs themselves aren’t impressive, the compositions are. Even the villain song, “This is the Thanks I Get?!”, is fun, if not unconventional. But the most-impressive number, lyrically and musically, is “This Wish”. Redundancies aside, Ariana DeBose and the lyricists cared deeply, or they wouldn’t have used it for the marketing. It shows that even if AI was involved, a human hand guided it.
Another issue with this movie is the response to one detail. Magnifico, Wish’s antagonist, has been defended as “being right”. To that, I wonder if film literacy’s dead. Like Abuela Madrigal in Encanto, sympathetic isn’t the same as correct. In Magnifico’s case, he’s not even sympathetic, as he’s a victim of underwriting. The movie clearly wanted to allude to John Lasseter’s tenure at Disney while hearkening back to classic Disney villains, and it doesn’t work. You can’t have your cake and eat it too, especially when many of the plot beats feel rushed.
Also, how is Magnifico “right”? Because he felt that he had to safeguard corruptible dreams? Who decides that? And even if that’s true, which it’s not, that doesn’t excuse his controlling nature. He’s even coercive to his wife! Do people not understand manipulators?!
Another issue with this movie is the response to one detail. Magnifico, Wish’s antagonist, has been defended as “being right”. To that, I wonder if film literacy’s dead. Like Abuela Madrigal in Encanto, sympathetic isn’t the same as correct. In Magnifico’s case, he’s not even sympathetic, as he’s a victim of underwriting. The movie clearly wanted to allude to John Lasseter’s tenure at Disney while hearkening back to classic Disney villains, and it doesn’t work. You can’t have your cake and eat it too, especially when many of the plot beats feel rushed.
Also, how is Magnifico “right”? Because he felt that he had to safeguard corruptible dreams? Who decides that? And even if that’s true, which it’s not, that doesn’t excuse his controlling nature. He’s even coercive to his wife! Do people not understand manipulators?!
Yet my biggest issue isn’t even the fault of the movie, but rather how it’s impacted Disney: this was a new art-style meant to celebrate Disney’s 100 year anniversary. It was supposed to honour the studio’s legacy. And once it came out…it was met with a lukewarm response. So Disney panicked, “course correcting” with sequels. We’re seeing that with the lineup for the next few years.
Don’t get me wrong: I’m not saying they’ll be bad. Not only am I excited for the sequel to Moana to debut this year, I also think the worlds of Frozen and Zootopia have infinite potential. For all I know, these sequels might be amazing! But that they’re prioritized over original stories is worrisome. Doubly-so that they’re not innovative like Wish.
I’ve championed photorealistic CGI animation before, despite its limitations, but I want animation to not be creatively stagnant. I want it to push boundaries in new and exciting ways, which Wish was attempting. It didn’t succeed, but it was an attempt. Like with Chicken Little, Disney needed to try first. It needed room to fail, and that’s not happening here.
Don’t get me wrong: I’m not saying they’ll be bad. Not only am I excited for the sequel to Moana to debut this year, I also think the worlds of Frozen and Zootopia have infinite potential. For all I know, these sequels might be amazing! But that they’re prioritized over original stories is worrisome. Doubly-so that they’re not innovative like Wish.
I’ve championed photorealistic CGI animation before, despite its limitations, but I want animation to not be creatively stagnant. I want it to push boundaries in new and exciting ways, which Wish was attempting. It didn’t succeed, but it was an attempt. Like with Chicken Little, Disney needed to try first. It needed room to fail, and that’s not happening here.
If Disney, a corporation with infinite resources, is afraid to learn from failure, what does that say about the animation industry? Are movies like Nimona and TMNT: Mutant Mayhem one-off responses to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, ones meant to underperform and fizzle out? Will we never break free from the standard set by Pixar in 1995? Is Disney making a feature film like “Paperman” never going to happen again?
It's not even like this movie was atrocious. Disney’s made far worse in the 70’s and 80’s, perhaps even in the early-2000’s. But they were allowed to. And they learned from them, as opposed to doubling-down on safer, more-established alternatives. That’s less a failure of Disney of yore than of Disney of now, which worries me. Because other animation studios are paying attention and taking notes.
Maybe I’m overreacting, and this is a small hiccup in the bigger picture. Maybe Disney has actual, original films in the pipeline that are as innovative as Wish, except well-written and with soul. It could even be that these sequels were inevitable, I don’t know. But that doesn’t make the reactions to Wish less of a problem. Because if this is how we respond to risk-taking, what does that say? After all, isn’t the ultimate deciding factor our feedback, both vocally and financially?
It's not even like this movie was atrocious. Disney’s made far worse in the 70’s and 80’s, perhaps even in the early-2000’s. But they were allowed to. And they learned from them, as opposed to doubling-down on safer, more-established alternatives. That’s less a failure of Disney of yore than of Disney of now, which worries me. Because other animation studios are paying attention and taking notes.
Maybe I’m overreacting, and this is a small hiccup in the bigger picture. Maybe Disney has actual, original films in the pipeline that are as innovative as Wish, except well-written and with soul. It could even be that these sequels were inevitable, I don’t know. But that doesn’t make the reactions to Wish less of a problem. Because if this is how we respond to risk-taking, what does that say? After all, isn’t the ultimate deciding factor our feedback, both vocally and financially?
Think about it.
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