Wishmaster (1997)
Last Watch Date - November 7, 2023
Total Times Watched - Four
Comments
Wishmaster came out in a time when horror was in a teen-focused phase. The fact that it focused on adults was a huge win compared to some of the other stuff. Think of Scream, I Know What You Did Last Summer, etc.
The concept isn't really unique. A djinn needs someone to make 3 wishes so that the rest of the djinni can invade the human world. Why? I don't know. It's some sort of terrible lore, that's why! It begins with a glimpse of horror in Persia before warping to "Present Day" America. It's nice to hop right into the action!
The cast in this is interesting because you have a lot of other horror callbacks. You have Candyman, Jason Voorhees, Freddy Kreuger, plus others who have been minor cast or crew for other horror movies. It's pretty cool if you know who they are (Raimi, Savini!) and get to see them. Andrew Divoff is GREAT as the Djinn. He's creepy, cool, sinister, and funny all at once. He knows how to get the most out of his scenes. Tammy Lauren is ... ok? She has a lot of overacting parts, but for the most part she's good enough. Everyone else is a bit cheesy.
Before I get into the Djinn, I want to mention the effects. The practical effects are so good. Lots of blood, guts, gore, and some silliness (like a skeleton ripping out of a man's body and attacking people). The computer effects? Whew, they are pretty horrendous. I get it, this movie only had a $5 mil budget. Corners had to be cut. At least they only used computer effects sparingly compared to practical. LET ME SAY AGAIN that the practical effects are SO GOOD. I love them. Kurtzman comes from that background so you get that as a focus.
Ok, I can't beat around the bush anymore. The Djinn is not very original. He's a sort of mashup of the Cenobites from Hellraiser and Freddy Kreuger haunting Alexandra's ... psyche? I guess. I don't understand the djinni motives. Why are they torturing people in their weird void realm? What do they get out of this? Why do all of the wishes have to come true in some horrifying fashion? Wouldn't it be easier to get someone to wish three times by having GOOD outcomes? Then you can do whatever you want to the humans. Are the djinn compelled to be dickbags? I don't know.
Recommended?
Yeah, I think it's worth watching once at least. It's cheesy and goofy, but it's fun and has some funny deaths.
