Wish movie review: Wishy-washy, yet fairly ingratiating

‘Wish’ is a new musical-comedy from Disney, helmed by Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn

Film: Wish
Cast (voice): Ariana DeBose, Chris Pine, Anjelique Cabral, Natasha Rothwell, Victor Garber, Jennifer Kumiyama
Directors: Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn
Rating: '3/5
Runtime: 95 mins

It's Disney's 100th year and ‘Wish' the all-new musical-comedy, helmed by Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn, is its latest celebratory salvo into animated entertainment.

The protagonist/narrator is a plucky 17-year-old Asha (Ariana DeBose), who lives with her widowed mother Sakina (Natasha Rothwell) and her paternal grandfather, soon-to-be-centenarian, Sabino (Victor Garber), on a fictional Iberian Peninsula island called Rosas.

The ruler of Rosas, the handsome sorcerer King Magnifico (Chris Pine), abuses his magical power to grant wishes for people, by allowing only one person a month to get a wish. And Asha, a prospective intern at the Palace, is aghast at her dear grandfather Sabino having to wait indefinitely to get his wish granted.

She is the classic Disney heroine and she comes with one-note superficial traits that fail to draw you into her grouse. Though the overall effect is cute and entertaining, there's nothing memorable about Asha and her attempts to free the wishes from Magnifico's control. The story just doesn't cut the ice. The animation is child-friendly and has cutesy appeal but it's not in the same standard as Disney Greats. The songs soar into high notes but in the end, you just fail to remember them.

None of the characters feel rounded or memorable. Even the conversations have little depth. Asha cares deeply but we really don't know why. It's her personality trait but is that reason enough to put others at risk? Even the King's turn into evil feels hopeless.

The animation is not in top form either. The wisecracking talking animal/goat as Asha's non-human sidekick, brings on some strong appeal though. There's also a golden star named Star (way too obvious), who is summoned from the sky after Asha makes a wish. The homage to the hand-drawn animation of the past comes as a total misfire. Even the 3D/ 2D merge fails to evoke depth.

Wish may not be a total disappointment but it's also not a beautiful celebration of Disney's past.