Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

Wish Upon Blu-ray Movie Review

The box giveth and the box taketh.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman October 19, 2017

It is absolutely everyone's fantasy: to find that magic "genie in a bottle" and make those three wishes that everyone believes will make their lives a million times better. Maybe their wishes gravitate towards the selfish side: money, power, fame, sex. Perhaps the larger-hearted would wish for that elusive world peace or an end to hunger. Some may fall prey to wishing for something darker and more nefarious, like pain and suffering for an old enemy. But call it making a deal with the devil, comeuppance, karma...nothing in life is free, not even granted wishes. Strings are always attached, in some form or fashion, and in Director John R. Leonetti's (Annabelle) Wish Upon, one girl's granted wishes are most certainly not without repayment...in blood. The film is a fantasy turned into a horror, as granted wishes enhance one girl's life while destroying the world around her. It's a basic Horror film, sort of in the vein of the Final Destination films, in which a suddenly perfect world with seemingly limitless (OK, limited to seven) possibilities turn heaven into hell.

Clare Shannon (Joey King) is an everyday high school girl who is still trying to recover from her mother's suicide some years earlier. She has a couple of friends (Sydney Park, Shannon Purser) but she is otherwise largely ridiculed at school, particularly by one of the more popular cliques. One day, her father (Ryan Phillippe), who is a notorious dumpster diver (someone who digs through the trash looking for discarded "treasures"), finds an old Chinese box that he gifts to Clare. Soon thereafter, when Clare has been pushed too hard at school, she wishes that her most hated tormentor would rot. Turns out that she begins to rot. At the same time, Clare's longtime dog dies. She slowly begins to realize that the box is capable of granting her wishes. Soon, she gains the affection of the boy she's always crushed on, inherits a fortune, and her prospects are looking up. But as her wishes are granted, tragedy begins to befall the world around her. Is there a correlation? And can she figure it out before her world completely crumbles and everyone she loves ends up dead?

Wish Upon's premise ins't exactly made of the sort of storytelling novelty that will be studied for decades to come, but the film at least presents a classic idea with enough draw to make its first act-plus more or less enjoyable. The main appeal is waiting to see what Clare will wish for next and who will pay the price. The film takes its time assembling the nitty-gritty details of her dark and troubled past as she zooms on by any deep hurt when she makes her enemy suffer and inherits a fortune, enough to take her friends on a major shopping spree. But beyond the façade of her newfound glamorous life, the box continues to take its pounds of flesh, and it takes Clare a while to figure out that the tragedies befalling her community are not just coincidence. But the movie grows slow and repetitive, becoming bogged down with unimaginative second and third act discovery and resolution phases that culminate in an all-too-predictable string of events near the end and a completely expected final scene. The movie takes no risks, and what might have been a good movie is instead, at beast, a reasonable diversion that's worth a single watch but holds almost no replay value.

The script, which has been assembled from spare parts and tired concepts, is certainly a problem spot for a movie that takes a classic human fantasy and takes it down a predictable road. The acting certainly does little to enhance the project, but neither does the cast destroy an already shaky concept. Joey King's performance as Clare doesn't move mountains, but she's serviceable in the role, evolving with the part from closed-in and wounded to excited to frightened to a battle for her very soul, conscience, and even, maybe, existence. She covers a wide gamut as her character moves along a very pronounced arc and series of peaks and valleys. It's not award-winning stuff, but she handles core character duties well enough, particularly as she makes various wishes of minimal import (most popular girl at school) but is at least believable for someone in her shoes. The supporting cast does nothing to drag the film down. Her friends, her enemies, her father, all of them deliver adequate, though certainly not revelatory, performances. This isn't the kind of movie built to really stretch an actor -- it's all concept, putting the audience in the lead character's shoes, with the cast only facilitating the imagination's engagement -- but the cast at least holds down the fort as-needed.

Wish Upon Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Wish Upon was digitally photographed and makes the transition to Blu-ray with no cause for alarm or outcry. The image's glossy texture is more or less restrained, presenting more stable and sturdy and less excessively smooth. Detailing is high, whether considering standard facial close-ups and clothing textures or additional, eye-catching elements, such as old wood around the house, objects in the attic, walls and lockers at school, or, of course, the box itself, which offers bountiful texturing on its Chinese lettering and general surface elements. Colors are pleasantly bold and punchy, offering rich diversity, plenty of natural pop, and no sign of over saturation or dullness. Black levels can push a shade or two too bright in some scenes; a nighttime shot around the 21-minute mark is a good example. Skin tones appear flush and accurate. Light noise may be found scattered about but never in excess. This is an agreeable, stable image from Broad Green.

Wish Upon Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Wish Upon features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack that grows more intense as the film moves along, though to be sure it has its moments prior to the bigger action and scare pieces in the later bits. The track offers some examples of substantial movement, depth, and element placement. Cars race past a character in one early scene and again later in the film. The track produces a prominent, stage-saturating low-end depth when the box first opens and begins playing its melodious but haunting music. Score is wide and clear, whether airy notes or more prodigious pieces during the film's more intensive sequences. Thunder cracks and filters nicely through the stage midway through. A large crash at the 62-minute mark delivers the most intensive single sound element in the film, making a huge impact that perfectly supports the accompanying visuals. Environmental din always satisfies, particularly in the busy hallways inside and exteriors around the school. Dialogue is always clear and precise with perfect prioritization and placement.

Wish Upon Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Wish Upon contains three featurettes and two brief motion comics. Two cuts of the film are included: the Theatrical Version (1:29:53) and the Unrated Version (1:30:54). A DVD copy of the film is included with purchase.

• I Wish (1080p, 2:33): Cast and crew recount the plot's basics and share their own wishes, were they granted the opportunity to make them.
• Attic Tour with Joey King (1080p, 2:11): The actress shows off one of the film's most visually interesting sets.
• Directing Darkness (1080p, 2:32): Another plot recap followed by a look at John R. Leonetti's direction and the cast's response to the box.
• Motion Comics (1080p): Short story-building tales that fill in some blanks from the movie. Included are Lu Mei's Curse (2:06) and Arthur Sands (1:39).

Wish Upon Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Wish Upon is a crude but serviceable, generic but watchable, Horror film. It combines common fantasy with bloody mayhem to passable and predictable result. It's a movie that simply goes through the monitions with little intrigue or creativity but some urgency as well as a few conceptually interesting kill and near-miss sequences. Broad Green's Blu-ray delivers quality video and audio, paired with a few brief extras. Rent it.