REVIEW: in defense of Disney's WISH | why I enjoyed the 2023 film and how it could have been better
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- Опубликовано: 9 июн 2024
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OHMYGOD HEY!
I was recently invited to the West End screening of Disney's latest animated film: Wish, which is part of the Disney 100 celebrations.
The film features the voice talents of Ariana DeBose as Asha and Chris Pine as Magnifico.
Check out today's brand new film review for my thoughts on the story, the score and some of the negative feedback seen online...
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00:00 | introduction
02:01 | what is Wish about?
05:54 | what did I think of the film?
12:25 | how was the score?
17:45 | were there Disney references?
22:18 | how could the film have been improved?
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#disney100 #disney #wish 
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My only problem was that you are celebrating a 100 years of Disney and instead of making broadway like songs that represents Disney best eras they hired someone who makes pop music. Which in my opinion did not fit the world of the movie at all.
The visuals on the songs were lovely but I couldn’t help but compare the animal songs to be our guest and under the sea.
The music was my biggest issue as well. Because of what you said but also because pop changes so quickly, I think it can’t help but date the film very quickly.
Unpopular opinion but I thought the music was amazing and really fit the musical theatre genre!
Shut up, I like the music
@@HelloMissJordan I second that! I really like all of the songs, actually, which is not the case with every Disney movie - for example, I never liked In Summer from the movie Frozen even though I liked all of the others. Actually, I think I like Wish's songs more than Frozen's overall, now that I think about it. Not to mention some of the older Disney movies (not all, of course!).
The only issue with the songs is that some of the lyrics are a little... Idk, amateurish? In comparison to other Disney movies, that is. I'm not talking about the infamous "I let you live here for free and I don't even charge you rent", no, this one is actually a good use of irony to present the villain's narcissistic personality. But like, what is "throw caution to every warning sign" supposed to mean, logically? Or basically Asha's entire verse in At All Costs. As much as I like the general feel and sound of it, some of the lyrics unfortunately don't fit naturally together, some of the lines seem to be constructed kind of awkwardly.
I hope it's not just me who feels this way, seeing some lyrical imperfections but still loving the songs.
Pop songwriters are nothing new for Disney animated movies, you know.
The movie starts with the story of magnifico and then the song Rosas immediately repeats what we were just explained. 🥺 it seems like they added the intro after the song was made.
Oh that's a great point, you're so right
There is a LOT of people who want Asha to be the villain and Magnífico to be the hero because Asha wants him to grant the people their wishes and that her grandpas wish was dangerous and vague
This makes me so mad because they clearly didn’t hear it correctly
What Asha said was that if he can’t grant them their wishes then he should just give them their wishes back she NEVER told him to grant all of their wishes
Also coming into Magnífico’s defense when he said that the grandpas wish was dangerous when it is clear to the audience that that wasn’t the case
One Easter egg was when Asha’s friends are jumping and swinging on the ropes ones is doing the Tarzan scream
I really do appreciate the measured analysis, as opposed to the bandwagoning of "modern Disney, therefore automatically the worst thing ever put to screen".
I do agree the villain felt a bit flat. To me, it felt like they were trying to straddle the line between a classic "so evil just for the sake of being evil that it's almost cartoonishly evil" villain (by way of Evil Queen, Maleficent, Jafar, etc.) _and_ the more modern "tragically misunderstood or misguided but well intentioned anti-hero" villain (by way of live action Maleficent, Thanos, etc.) but in pursuit of both ended up with neither.
While I love the sentiment, I'm going to have to disagree with your proposal to code Magnifico as a classic era villain and his songs in the Menkins-esque style while coding Asha as the modern protagonist with LMM-esque style songs. While I agree that it would have led to "fuller" characters from both of them, it could (and knowing the internet, would) be easily interpreted as "out of touch modern Disney execs make movie saying classic Disney = evil and modern Disney = good". I think flipping that script and having Asha be the classic heroine (ala Pocahontas/Mulan/Belle era) and Magnifico be the modern misguided villain (i.e. not going too cartoonishly evil in the final act, and perhaps give him a line near the end of "NO!!! I can do this! [[desperately]] I _have_ to do this...") would have been able to round out both characters without the unfortunate connotations of the other way around.
((Spoilers not touched on in this video ahead... you've been warned))
Another thing I was discussing with a friend is that modern Disney has been trying to get itself away from romance subplots, but this could have been aided by one. I don't mean full-on "true love" tropes, but I feel if they coupled either Simon and Asha or Simon and Dahlia (I prefer the latter), just as "casually dating", they could have played better to his partner being sympathetic on how drained he's seemed since his wish giving ceremony. If it was Simon x Dahlia, this would have given Dahlia a stronger motive in "Knowing What I Know Now" to turn against her idol by witnessing how it's twisted the kind gentle Simon into something sinister, as well as given Asha's confrontation with Simon in the woods some good "you're breaking her heart" dialogue, perhaps giving him a moment of clarity to fight the spell himself and _earn_ his redemption. On the other hand, if it was Simon x Asha, you could build more guilt into his character (even give him a sympathetic heel turn song) struggling between his duty to the kingdom (doing what's needed for the greater good, even if it hurts him to do so), the personal emptiness of his missing wish (literally feeling a hole in his heart where joy used to be), and his love and loyalty for Asha.
"If I'm forgetting anyone, let me know" - yes, you forgot King Candy / Turbo from "Wreck-It Ralph". He was great, and you can tell because Alan Tudyk has been in every Disney movie since voicing him there!
King Candy from my point of view was the last time we had a traditional villain!
I am a 26 year old autistic bisexual person and Disney and stage musical are two of my special interests. I enjoy your videos a lot !
I have autism, I’m 30 and enjoy Disney and stage musicals too
Great review! I really enjoyed Wish and I agree or mostly agree with almost everything you said! Especially the idea of using someone with some Disney history like Alan Menken when creating a film that's supposed to be a more commemorative celebration movie. I am also biased in that Menken is my favourite musical composer lol. I did enjoy most of the music and think it was well done, but it wasnt what I expected for *this* movie.
I get the whole quirky-heroines criticism. Whilst I disagree with some who say they are all the same, I think if you look closely they do have unique distinctions, but they are for sure similar in a lot of ways. It'd be nice for there to be a quieter more reserved main character to better reflect the range of human personality. There are soo many things that Disney needs to focus on to increase representation and variety though, I feel like they must have a checklist that could last them decades lol.
I am happy i am not the only person who got into musical theater thanks to Disney.
Always makes my day when Mickey posts! Great video as always.
Wish feels like a great experimental film to release any time that is NOT the 100 anniversary. The songwriters were not up to task to do a film of this importance and probably needed more time than 4 years.
Maybe you should listen to what the songwriters have to say about why they made the creative decisions they did.
I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought the music was trying to mimic LMM’s style. I feel like trying to incorporate a more classic sound would’ve been nice to see.
I would’ve love something like “I Wonder” from Sleeping Beauty. Short, sweet, gives insight into Aurora.
I did enjoy the film, I do feel like it would’ve been more successful if it had come out in the 2010s, but also it’d be impossible for it to exist then.
I love LMM. But I do get the music stylings should be a bit of both old and new! And the 2010’s were a less difficult time to find quality entertainment
I enjoy this movie too. Great job. It’s been confirmed that Moana 2 will be out this November. You should do a similar kind of review with that one too
I think “knowing what we know now” reminds me more of I’ll Make a Man Out of You from Mulan more than some of the Hamilton numbers
It also reminds of Savages from Pocahontas
Mickey Jo even though it’s old news, I need to know your thoughts on Patrick Page and Michael Arden’s Hunchback of Notre Dame being unfairly overlooked for Broadway
I live for musical theatre old news lol and the show itself and the elements of why the transfer never occurred are so worth talking about
I really enjoyed Wish for what it was, it kind of felt like The Princess and the Frog to me, a film that had to straddle a lot of different opinions and be very sensitive to the way it depicted the company and its values. It was a pretty impossible task so I appreciate that it is as good as it was when considering all those points.
Interesting. Magnifico's song was the only sequence where the film really came alive for me. I wish the chorus didn't repeat the same phrase. I notice that in some of the other language dubs the lyrics switch up rather than repeating.
I would LOVE to talk about The Color Purple movie with you. I am so excited to see it!
Regarding Wish: I feel there are too many heavy handed references to other movies. Asha is a great character and I loved her dynamic with her mother & grandmother & also with Dahlia. Queen Amaya is another great character. 9:29 I agree with you about this completely Mickey Jo. You’re A Star & Knowing What We Know Now are my favorite songs. I feel like Knowing What We Know Now gives off a similar vibe to Do You Hear The People Sing from Les Miserables .
I’m excited for the Color Purple too! And Wonka
Another Easter egg is when Magnifico holds up a wish that's for true love and says "So much for true love!" mockingly.. that's an iconic Ursula line from The Little Mermaid (I believe she says it when she's gone giant at the end). Also you're correct the deer is called Bambi, I think the Little John bear calls him by name. There's also a lot of Easter eggs in welcome to Rosas, like someone asking for hair down to their feet (like Rapunzel), etc.
Tbh I found the density of Easter eggs really, really tiring. I think if they had had like less than 10 really subtle ones that didn't harm the plot it would have been fun, but as it is it felt like the story existed just to get to the references more than anything else. Like they just sat around in a room and came up with 100+ easter eggs, and then that was 40 min of the 90 min runtime, and then they tried to tie them together. That combined with the narrative being generally vague and inconsistent, and not really having a solid act structure or even a compelling conflict, really made it feel more like a theme park ride through references more than a film that existed for any reason other than Disney 100. It didn't have anything to say, it didn't add anything, it just referenced better films and then ended. Which is a shame, because the Mediterranean/North African setting could have been a very cool return to their older style of fairy tale fantasy, they just.. didn't do that.
visually, the star seems drawn in a Japanese kawaii style. nothing else in the film seems drawn this way. I guess it's supposed to be magical and cute, but it seems like it is from a different film and is disconcerting.
to expose the critics, some of them praised Chip N Dale For the same stuff
As much as I LOVED Wish in general I felt disconnected at times & I think it's because as other said who did the music. TBF I really like most of the songs & they are bops however a Pop composer trying to make Disney style musical songs makes it a bit messy. I also was annoyed by who betrayed Asha because it felt too forced & they were forgiven too easily. That being side I have the big Star plush sitting next to me as I type this so they won because I bought the merch. Oh & lastly Alan Tudyk is MVP of Disney voices now & I feel the man can do no wrong.
Yes that's EXACTLY how I felt about the songs! Like they didn't really fit into the context or the emotion. They're good, they're just not movie songs 😅
Honestly though, even with all the stuff I felt the movie could've done better, I still enjoyed it and left it feeling good. I think we need to encourage this type of movie as much as possible so Disney starts going in that direction again.
@@sh_joy Pop songwriters are nothing new for Disney Animation, you know.
@@gamestation2690 Oh? Maybe this particular songwriter just didn't do a very good job then 😄
You summed up my thoughts on this movie perfectly! Did I expect anything spectacular? No since I haven’t been too happy with Disney as of late in terms of the movie side. At least better than being mediocre like most of what we’ve got since Encanto! Better than Strange World for example! So Wish was a minor compensation for my recent frustration! This Wish and This Is The Thanks I Get were the stand outs of the song. The former was the only song I listened to in its entirety before I saw the movie. The next day I listened to At All Costs! I never heard of Julia Michaels before the movie so I was cautious how she was going to pull off the soundtrack. Wish is one of those animated movies where the visuals and music are enough to translate into something compelling. Which is becoming tougher to do in recent years. I appreciated it for being a Disney100 celebration especially the Easter eggs were clever! I understand some people say it’s too over the top. But couldn’t ruin my enjoyment so easily. I had the same assumptions as you what the movie was going to be like if all the past wishes were going to be involved in some form as you did. But what we got instead is better than nothing! My faith in Disney Animation is momentarily restored. And who knows how long with Frozen 3/4 and Zootopia 2 in the works.
the villains have always been the most interesting characters. always the best lines, the most theatricality, the most over the top humor. they stand in for every difficult situation we must struggle against and seeing them defeated is very satisfying. we know the protagonist will overcome so its never too stressful to watch. i liked Encanto and appreciated the message....but the psychological growth of the characters is just not as entertaining as Cruella or the sea witch.
The villains get no psychological growth, and they are almost all one note and evil for no reason...that is the biggest criticism of classic Disney. The world is not black and white.
The motivation usually seems to be a desire for power and control over others which seems to be a very common need in a lot of people
Jealousy and greed, those other dark human emotions also usually come into play. their inability to change or improve is what makes them really villain's. @@carlito876
I think Frank Wildhorn would be a great conposer for Disney to hire. As we know, he can conpose a really good villain song like Alive from Jekyll&Hyde or Hell to Your Doorstep from The Counte of Monte Cristo or Life After Life from Dracula.
What about Pasek and Paul?
@@manuelorozco7760 sorry. I don't know who that is.
@@DerekMckean The songwriting duo behind Dear Evan Hansen, La La Land and the Greatest Showman
*;@manuelorozco7760 They co-wrote Speechless, Jasmine's song for the live-action Aladdin, with Alan Menken, as well as an original song that was understandably cut because it slowed the plot.
@@unsightedmelodies6801 I actually liked Speechless. But I get what you mean
In defense of Wish, which I haven't seen and probably won't for years, I get SO UNCOMFORTABLE when mostly grown men shred into it when it's geared towards children. I am glad that people who did like it, regardless of age or gender, are giving honest, balanced, and nuanced reviews.❤
I'm a grown man, so I guess I can't have an opinion. But I will give one anyway. I liked it. The music is catchy, probably my favorite Disney score since Frozen. If you think this movie is "geared towards children" I would argue you are wrong. It is geared towards family audiences. Parts of it will appeal to children, but some of it will be beyond them, as they are deeper concepts presented for a general audience.
The problem with this argument is that this makes people think cartoons are only for children. That's what made the Disney Renaissance so great - it was geared towards both and didn't shy away from grown topics
@clowchan The "problem" is with clown like the two of you that need to run in and patronizingly beat the "Cartoons aren't just for children" argument that has already been resolved since the days of Ralph Bakshi, because y'all don't want other people judging you for watching movies geared for children. Sorry, but more cartoon movies ARE geared for children and families with young children when they're not trying to be surface level "adult" because they and people that watch that shit still equate "adult" with "sex", "nudity", "violence/murder" and "swearing". Often because y'all still believe that something for "children" means Cocomelon or Dora the Explorer.
There's nothing wrong with something being "for kids". Y'all have a problem with it because you're too insecure to admit you like kids media and need to point the finger elsewhere to feel better about yourselves.
I disagree with this because I think children are smart. As a mom of a two year old, I’m amazed at how smart he is every day. That being said, I hate hate HATE when studios churn out lazy dumbed down movies for kids because they deserve better. And I think people are especially critical of Disney because they have proven their ability to write smart, powerful films that speak to children and adults. I saw wish with my son. We both liked it. But as Mickey said, it wasn’t outstanding. And for a film celebrating 100 years of outstanding artistry, I think that’s a shame. Also I think the music styling and some of the jokes date the movie which is also a shame because Disney at its best is absolutely timeless.
Disney absolutely deserves heckling for the live action remakes, particularly lion king and Mulan that drain the soul and pervert the message of the originals.
Hey. There is an ultimate Disney cross-over short called 'Once Upon a Studio'.
This short was perfect and simple and definitely worth a watch.
It could be played before the Wish movie but that would steal the show.
I think that the Wish movie is classified as 'Fan Service' which can easily satisfy the fans like me but disappoint the general audience or the once that care about innovative arts.
Wish doesn't premiere here in Denmark until the 7th, but I went to the pre-premiere yesterday, and I really enjoyed it! (Beyond bawling my eyes out a little for finally seeing a mixed princess with box braids, I would like to be able to travel 30 years back in time to tell my younger self Asha was coming, since that was MY wish!)
As a fellow Disney and theatre person I'd love to see continued reviews of Disneys work (past and present) in this format, I love hearing your thoughts and analysis from a musical theatre perspective
I’m a fan of both too
These videos are what inspired me to get into musical theatre, started watching this channel in 2021 and now joining (in 2021) professional musical theatre training courses that will get me to the west end!!
Good luck!
I love your channel! I'm fairly new. I never thought I'd be interested in theatre again. I did a theatre degree and at the end of it, hated theatre so much I completely buried that part of me. It's been a decade now - thanks for reviving me!
Why didn't you just...change your major
@@emhu2594 i only hated it by the end 🤷 by then it was way too late to change.
Ok, not gonna lie, while Wish may not be my favorite Disney movie..??
(*which no offense by the way.)
My favorite part about it would be the end credits that I use to watch a video of on YT before it got blocked because in the end credits of the movie, it showed magical dust portraits of characters from my personal favorite Disney classics such as Jungle Book,Winnie the Pooh,Fox and Hound,The Lion King, and Tarzan and of course my favorite guilty pleasures of Disney like the ones I grew up with and the ones I just enjoyed as my favorite guilty pleasures from the Experimental and the first half of the Revival eras like Dinosaur,Atlantis,Treasure Planet,Lilo & Stitch,Brother Bear,Home on the Range,Chicken Little,Bolt,Wreck It Ralph, and Big Hero 6 and seeing those cameos in the end credits made me happy :)
Plus, sorry if this also sounds off-topic but besides my favorite Disney movies, Jetix,Pirates of The Carribean,TRON,Toon Disney, and Pixar were also my 2nd first introductions to Disney as well lol.
I liked Wish! not my favorite, but it was fine. beautiful and sincere, and the references weren't as in your face as I was fearing. I feel like the story could have gone in a more interesting direction, but I don't mind what was there.
the pacing felt rushed though. the music was forgettable and didn't push the story forward or reveal anything about the characters. the songs were just...there. and they teased a dragon and never delivered!
I disagree about the music! But I agree on everything else
Where was the dragon tease? That would’ve been dope
@@Thisismyusername227 there was a dragon on the book for evil magic. it was in the swirl of magic before the badguy went full evil. also, his evil green magic was heavily based on Malificent's, who you know, turned into a giant dragon. He was hoarding wishes. why go through all this dragon imagary and slap it on his magic and then do nothing with it. he used his magic to make giant green clawed hands! just go all the way!
hell yeah, I agree. you should write it! @@mgormley7530
While I don't agree with most of what you said, it's refreshing to hear at least one different opinion on this movie
I really enjoyed Wish. People want to be really picky about this movie. Most weren't going to be satisfied with it however it went. I feel it's the perfect hommage movie while still being it's own thing & feel fresh but classic. It's a perfect MIRROR (pun intended) between the old & modern Disney. It's the PERFECT set up to explain the origin of all the beloved classics where the magic comes explaining why some animals talk & others don't & being the fundament of why the wishing stars & dreaming is so crucial throughout the history of the entertainment company. Love how it explains to kids how we are made of start dust. "If you can dream it, you can do it"
My biggest criticism is that they should have given us the first couple of Villanious King & Queen & give them a son that as The Prince helps Asha to make the right thing that could have even woked as a love interest. Another bad thing about it it's that nowadays in this era of Disney movies the music feels really generic & Lin Manuel formulaic. I would have loved for the music to be more Flamenco inspired since it's the first Disney classic set in Spain. I been waiting for a flamenco Disney Princess for years & this was literally the perfect opportunity but they fumbled it. Also would have liked a different animal side quick since The Goat was already used for Esmeralda who also has purple as her color.
I agree with the first paragraph, but not the second. I actually really like what they did with the king and the queen, it was one of my favorite parts of the movie. I know I wouldn't have enjoyed a villainous married couple as much, and I don't think love interest was neccessary for this story. And personally I like the music, some of the lyrics could have been better but overall I like every single song in the movie. More flamenco would have been a nice addition though! But man, you're so right about people wanting to be extremely picky about this movie, and that most of them wouldn't really have been satisfied no matter what, due to their unrealistically high expectations and in some cases just plain hatred for Disney and what some like to call "woke culture" these days.
Flamenco would’ve been dope!
Thanks for your review. Only reason I want to watch it because of Ariana DeBose. Roy Disney doesn't get enough credit. Luca and Meet the Robinson's such a couple of beloved underrated films. I didn't like encanto or moana. Beast is the villian and Gaston is not. I'm so happy and it was to see Ariana DeBose as Nautica in Bring it on the musical on broadway.
I’m not a Beauty and the Beast fan either
My daughter is going to see this with her girl guides group this week and I didn't know what to expect so thank you for this review
I'm going to take my daughter to watch it, as long as she loves it then job done.
Wish is good, will see it again soon
I LOVED Wish !
I enjoyed it but the main problem for me was the pacing. But Magnifico was the most entertaining part of the movie.
Hi how are you doing
As much as Disney means to me, i think it’s worth remembering that Disney is on the BDS list, and supporting the people of Palestine is crucial to me right now - maybe I’ll watch Wish someday when there isn’t a major pressure campaign going on against Disney.
Disney is technically on their non-boycott/ apply pressure list mostly due to a specific character in an upcoming captain America film
Don't really care about the BDS since I still like Disney no matter what, the BDS can take their list and shove it up it's- well you know lol.
REMEMBER TO BOYCOTT DISNEY, FREE PALESTINE 🍉
Mickey, no. That movie looks and sounds like it was made with AI and I am kinds convinced it WAS. It is derivative pointless trash that is not worthy of being a Disney movie, let alone an anniversary movie.
Wow, honestly? reading that comment just makes me glad the Experimental era and Pixar were my first introductions to Disney along with Pirates of the Carribean lmao.
Plus, my favorite Toon Disney action block growing up called Jetix also has better fans than you critics XD lol.
It's not made of ai....jeez.
You don't have to like the movie, but please, stop with the AI nonsense. It's disrespectful to the actual creators who, no matter if the outcome pleases you or not, put a lot of work and, yes, heart into making it. Look at the movie's artbook, you can find a lot of the visual development and the creators' thought process in there. Watch some interviews with the movie's creators, including the songwriter. AI cannot, at least for now, make anything as good as this, at least not art and animation wise. Compare Wish's animation with actual AI animation, I'm sure you'll be able to see the difference.
@@M_JackOfAllTradesI think they are referring to the script being written by AI, not that it was animated with AI.
@@StorytellingHeadshots I've seen it rumored about the script, the song lyrics and even the animation. I know less about writing than about art and animation so I focused on the visual side more, but my comment was meant to encompass all of that. I really don't think they used AI to write the movie, at least not to the degree people are suspecting.
I can't believe you liked "Wish." It's kind of disappointing to hear you say that.
Good, maybe that's what you lousy critic trolls get for ruining lives with that reality talk you all blabber about lmao.
Question: why is it disappointing to you if someone else enjoys something you don't? Isn't it generally better to enjoy things (as long as they're not harmful to you or other people) than not? Enjoying (harmless) things makes people happy, I think it's a good thing even if you can't relate. At least that's what I think.
We want a Disney musical ranking!!! (Movie & stage) 🩵