What REALLY Went Wrong With Wish (Disney's Wish) | READUS 101

[@kittygardenva2741]

When a movie's idea of revolution essentially boils down to 'defeat the bad king and replace him with a queen with the exact same systems of authority and the same absolute power that corrupts absolutely', you know something went wrong. Another show that had potential for good social commentary that didn't stick the landing is My little Pony A New Generation. The plot is about Ponies, Unicorns, and Pegasus(es) all afraid of the other and in an arms race against each other, (you can probably tell what this is an allegory for). Eventually, one pony stirs up a large angry mob over paranoia (at his mother's behest). With his army he builds a giant weapon to use against the unicorn and pegasus cities that ends up destroying his own town of ponies and is only stopped by the ponies, unicorns and pegasus(es) all coming together, and he and his mother get off scot-free. Nobody condemns his actions, except for a deleted scene that for whatever reason they took out.

[@borjankosarac3645]

And like much modern social commentary, it’s so disingenuously and superficial that anyone can see how thin it is… Because when you rely on the system you’re criticising you can’t dare do that for real.

[@toonydotloony]

hey no talking down to MLP a new generation. they defeat him and he becomes a laughingstock stripped of his power. would you prefer he go to prison? i get that, but like. im really glad they took the badge away from the cop pony. MLP:ANG isn’t punitive like that

[@zombietrash416]

​@@toonydotloonyi like your name.

[@ggcrickle]

It's arguable that Asha is qualified as an apprentice. She really isn't. She wasn't interested in magic, she wasn't interested in helping her people, all she wanted is to get her grandfather's wish. That's it.

[@zombietrash416]

100%. She wanted the job for selfish reason. If it wasnt for her nothing wouldve gone wrong. She is the antogonist.

[@min0uet]

As a film major, I wanted to expand on something that was mentioned in the video that really bothers me from a scriptwriting standpoint: Wish knows that the movies it's trying to emulate are good, but it doesn't understand WHY they're good. To avoid writing an entire essay I'll just go over the example mentioned in the video: "City of Rosas" vs. "The Family Madrigal". The reason that "City of Rosas" doesn't work is that it doesn't understand why "The Family Madrigal" is a good opening song, and just tries to emulate it on a surface level. Wish's understanding seems to end at "our main character sings to a group of outsiders about her [family/city]". The thing is, the reason "The Family Madrigal" is about Mirabel's family, and doesn't tell us much about Mirabel herself, is because that's the *whole point of the movie.* Mirabel doesn't see herself as special enough to sing about, and doesn't want to bring up that she doesn't have a gift, so she focuses the entire song on the rest of her family, with the last verse being devoted to her literally trying to get out of giving any information about herself. This establishes the main conflict of the film: Mirabel loves her family, but doesn't see herself as special. Even some of the melodies in the song are setting up later plot points of the film, like Abuela's verse using the same melody as "Dos Oruguitas", but that's a whole nother kind of analysis. Comparing that to Wish, what does "City of Rosas" tell us that we didn't already know? It tells us how the city was established and how the wish ceremonies work, but we already knew that from the storybook explanation. It doesn't tell us anything about Asha herself except that she loves the city, but that's really only surface level since it doesn't have to do with the main conflict. We learned about the setting and our main character from "Family Madrigal", but "City of Rosas" could be cut from the film entirely and nothing would really change. Like I said, this kind of surface-level understanding applies to most other things Wish is trying to emulate from other Disney hits, but I don't want this comment to get any longer lol. Hopefully this example showed how badly they're misunderstanding what makes a film work, and why Wish ultimately feels so surface-level.

[@Nopeasaurus]

I think disney’s inability to understand what makes their prior films so well liked is something that can be applied to Frozen 2 as well. F2 doesn’t understand the characters and what people liked about them. They mistakingly believed Elsa’s popularity stemmed mostly from her powers and Let it Go and not because of her struggles with social anxiety and mental health issues. So in F2 they made Elsa obsessed with her powers because they assumed thats what people want to see from Elsa. Seriously look at the interviews with Jennifer Lee, she outright admitted she had difficulty understanding Elsa and even had to take personality quizzes online to get a better grasp to her character (that’s actually hilarious). They also had Elsa sing Into the Unknown, a song that is just Idina Menzel singing the same verse over and over again but with a higher intensity each time. Yet it has none of the emotional appeal that Let it Go has. Overall, while F2 did amazing at the box office that was largely because 1) it was riding off the curtails of the first film 2) Although the writing was awful, the animation was beautiful 3) Excellent marketing with one of the best edited trailers I’ve ever seen. Anyway, I think F2’s inability to understand the success behind Frozen and why it resonated with audiences is what led to a movie like Wish. Wish tried to emulate the success of prior disney movies by 1) constantly adding references to their classic films but most of the meaning behind them is not included. Its just “oh look peter pan!” and thats it. 2) Asha basically being a Ariel/Anna/Rapunzel clone but with nothing unique or memorable to distinguish herself from your typical adorkable female disney lead. She just wants to grant her grandpa’s extremely vague wish. Thats it.

[@wanbon]

I had the unique pleasure of seeing Wish while on the cruise ship the Wish, and I have never been more baffled by movie. I told my aunt that is a movie that feels like it was meddled to death by management insisting certain elements "have to be there" (the talking goat, the bad jokes, the "twist" villian, etc). It feels like the collective sigh and giving up of every creative working on it. Also the visuals are... Mystifying as a so-called callback to "ink and paint" days; they didn't usually use watercolor for such things. This movie doesn't feel like anyone's baby and really shows. The cruise on the other hand was actually pretty good - I got a pic with Spiderman, which honestly *was* all I could wish for.

[@SailorMya]

This is so true! (Minus the cruise! That sounds like a lot of fun!) It probably started with a room of corporate types brainstorming idea's for Disney's 100TH year and a vague idea for this movie was born with it needing ALL the references! They kicked it down the line till it was done but nobody was ever passionate about getting this soilless cash grab out the door on time... the idea probably came with corporate's restricting "checklist" too...

[@katherinealvarez9216]

24:35 yes, and it is one of my favorite films, not because of the gargoyles, but because Quasi got what he needed- freedom from his abusive father, reunited with his mother's people and acceptance overall, plus a family who would fight for him. (Off topic, I know, but yeah Hunchback definitely stood out and it's so good)

[@quartzofcourse]

Also, hellfire is an absolute banger

[@katherinealvarez9216]

@@quartzofcourse yes. Yes it is. And so is the Sanctuary Scene.

[@jessrl8025]

The whole soundtrack is a banger

[@Readus101]

Sorry it took me so long to release this. One week turned into a whole month quicker than I anticipated.

[@nerdtubewtf]

From my perspective, left in hopes it may help, Your taking you time is important to your needs. You find the right words and hope that helps me. Also scarcity makes me love when I see you. Not to mention it allows me time to digest your excellent, neigh on magical, thoughts ideas and perspectives of this world. not sure why today I'm so chatty, but dear person you hit me when I needed hope the most and I love you for that and really want you to know if it helps. (I hope my ND brain & writing don't come off as too, weird) Love you and most here. Happiness to you all.

[@jenesishunter9674]

That's beautiful darling 😊 I'm happy that King 👑 prioritized himself, before coming back as well.

[@FairyPrincessNia]

As a black girl obsessed with Disney Princesses, I really wanted this movie to be good.

[@ILikedGooglePlus]

I'm so sorry

[@zainmudassir2964]

Remember to be positive 😊❤

[@akeelahbruce1821]

Same, I'm gonna stick with Tiana

[@hannahneuhauser521]

Depression and burnout are so valid! Thanks for this video and sharing your perspective :) I hope you receive plenty of rest soon!

[@NunyaBiznessss]

This is the criticism I needed to see since this movie came out. You have a clear respect for art, Disney's history specifically, and the good things this movie tried to do, and how all that plays into the trainwreck it turned into.

[@BeatsPerMinute2]

honestly didney's wish is the perfect example of corporate arrogance interfering with what could've been one of the most impactful and wonderful movies of our time and turning it into bland nothing that they think we'll eat no matter if we like it or not, and given the rising ideology of feeding children boring or infuriating nothingness just to shut them up, i'd say they were right

[@StasiaFinley]

Not me getting an ad for Wish, now streaming on Disney+, leading into this and again at the end

[@eastsidereviews727]

Songs were kind of mid, story was undercooked, and I just think Disney overall is just...idk lacking like the magic Disney has had in years past is just missing or misplaced and I think that's why this movie didn't do the numbers that Disney may have wanted.

[@herecomemacOnTT]

My fiancé and I kept saying that this movie felt like a Disney parody taking itself too seriously, and after it ended, + recommended Enchanted, the one that did it leagues better. I also said that the songs between the Wish song and the reprise of it feel like they were trying to make Broadway songs and juuuust missing it.

[@nambeb1978]

Your analysis in the first section puts perfectly into words why the “Asha wanting every wish to be granted makes her the true villain” take I saw a lot when the movie was first released bothered me so much after I actually watched the movie. That take ignores that 1. Asha was really arguing for the every wish to get a CHANCE to be be granted and so that the ones that weren’t going should be returned, and 2. Magnifico, as you pointed out, isn’t making an practical argument about the danger of every wish being granted at the same time. He’s specifically choosing the ones that don’t threaten him and his status and on top of that hoarding the ones that could pose a threat so that their owners never get a chance to making them come true. In the end, the “villanous Asha” argument is really just taking Magnifico at face value and, ironically, parallels the scene when Rosas where so ready to accept that Asha was a dangerous traitor. Feels like another case of people being too ready to have just the least charitable interpretation of a woman of color, real of fictional tbh.

[@lyndonwesthaven6623]

But isn't that mostly of a failure of storytelling? Like, it wouldn't have been hard to flesh out the idea that people are poorer without their dreams, that they're giving up on things they could attain, or that precious innovation is being sacrificed to maintenance of the status quo by simply showing characters we care about be diminished in a way that genuinely sad or at least unsettling. Without that people get stroppy and contrarian just because they feel like they're being talked down to.

[@danielpalama3700]

Yep, you definitely hit the head on the nail of the coffin. I saw some good concepts and from what they did in the corporate interviews of the writers and staff, they definitely could have told a better story or I guess something could have felt a bit more classic fairy tale. But i guess they did a sin of making things interconnected in the Disney canon and we know how weird that went with Once upon a TIme.

[@WillTheGreatest]

Got an ad for wish in the middle of this. The mousegorithm knows

[@LordKhabal]

“Wish” felt more like a commercial for the Walt Disney Company than it did an original story or 100-year anniversary addition to the studio’s animated film library. The references to other Disney titles and just unabashed “rEmEmBeR THIS dIsNeY mOvIe?!” moments that littered the film up to literally the last visual image the film leaves us with (…Disney… why TF do the fireworks explode into a PERFECT Mickey Mouse silhouette?!) were so distracting I didn’t even notice the socio-political commentary you so expertly and thoroughly described. That’s a really important allegory for Disney (or any animated studio) to tackle… and I completely missed it because I was drowning in Disney-branded ‘Memberberry goulash. Watching “Wish” made me feel like I was being marketed to rather than being told a story. It felt gross.

[@Farmeryeti]

I thought the worldbuilding/backstory for Magnifico was really kinda lazy - it talks about how he studied sorcery and stuff to become as powerful as he did and theres all the talk of "dark magic and how its forbidden" but the movie never really touches on it more than that. Studied from what? By who? Why is dark magic forbidden? Who wrote that spell book? Why not destroy it if its so forbidden? Couldnt anyone just learn to become a sorcerer themselves and grant their own wishes? I get its going for the fairy tale thing of "once upon a time here are the characters and thats it" thing but none of those really made a point to give the evil sorcerer enough of a backstory to raise those kinds of questions. The Evil Queen in Snow White is just evil and thats fine. If you're gonna go to the trouble of giving him a past, then at least do the work.

[@TheAmityElf]

This was a super satisfying watch. And also a very well-utilized FNAF reference.

[@mysteryxio9957]

I really think they should have kept star as a human like character

[@danielmalinen6337]

This was a very US centric interpretation of the film. In Europe and elsewhere, the film resonates in a different way, for example in my own circle there has been talk that the kingdom of Rosas is an allegory for the Disney company and King Magnifico is a critique of Walt Disney himself and how Disney was a good person on the surface but a much more sinister character under his surface. Asha, on the other hand, would represent a new generation and new hope. One reason for this interpretation is that Wish was marketed very strongly and aggressively as Disney's anniversary movie. The biggest problem with the film is that it has been rewritten several times, for example, originally the film was supposed to tell about the romance between Asha and the star boy and their battle against the evil king and queen, but in the end the star boy shrunk into a cute Luna star from the Mario games and the queen was made good. Asha, on the other hand, suffers from being more of a side character and narrator in her own film, while King Magnifico takes the spotlight.

[@nemowindsor8724]

That would be a very cruel and egocentric thing for young animators to have done. Also very unfair to Walt.

[@lilmaibe]

Where the heck in Europe are you?

[@danielmalinen6337]

@@lilmaibe in Finland

[@lilmaibe]

@@danielmalinen6337 Alright. Just wondering 'cause it's honestly the first time I heard that take. Everyone around me (spanning pretty much all of europe south of finland and scandinavia) had different takes. Ah well.

[@roristevens2810]

The filmmakers went on record saying Asha was Walt’s analogue, but that only works if you don’t consider how mercenary he could be and how much so the company is now. Multiple American critics saw a parallel between Disney buying up companies like Lucasfilm and Fox and Magnifico hoarding the wishes of others.

[@rebekkahbetancourt3069]

You put this perfectly! I thought the music was very meh and that they tried too hard to make it sound like Moana and Encanto. It honestly distracted me from the message of the film. I thought that overall the story was a little weak.

[@tomatoisjp]

Tbh, dc's debacle with Monarch is my north star when it comes to not changing the story because someone guessed the ending. Dc spent years, long after people stopped caring about the stupid hawk reveal, "fixing" monarch back to being captain atom, and like... its such a waste of energy. Sorry, your fnaf bit got me in a mood, had to get mine out of my system too.

[@Readus101]

lol Absolutely fair!

[@lindsaymitchell6760]

I recently got hyper fixated on The Black Cauldron for a project and because I heard Disney bought back the film rights to the Chronicles of Prydain in 2016. Also, guess which film DID NOT get a shout out in Wish! But if Disney wants to replace the Narnia movies, the Prydain books are a good option. The first book by itself has enough material for a kids movie, there was no real need to combine two books into one film. They could easily knock out a four or five part series. Anyway, from what I can tell, The Black Cauldron suffered from a lot of bad timing, over thinking, too many creative voices, and too much executive interference. The original plan was to combine all five books into one movie, which sounds like a disaster. Or basically making an original film without changing the names of characters and settings. One of the selling points of The Black Cauldron was that it was supposed to be Disney's "darkest animated feature". The actual film doesn't shy away from spooky imagery and a sometimes grim tone, but I wouldn't call it dark. I think when the Disney execs are envisioning a family who'd watch their films, they're thinking of a family with fairly young children; definitely under 10 years. In the right hands, I think the Prydain series would be perfect for 8 to 14 year-olds. There's a dearth of good media aimed at tweens, and unlike the late 90s/early 00s, animation for that demographic is pretty normal. And theme wise, the Prydain books share a lot with giants like Lord of the Rings and Earthsea: having hope in a hopeless time, the importance of friendship and community, the power of mercy and compassion, struggles with identity, the passage of time and it's effects, the devastation war brings to a land and people. There's so much stuff in the books that with the right development team a Prydian series would do really well. And now would be a great time to release them. I just think we'd get something as disappointing as the original Black Cauldron but for different reasons.

[@Readus101]

I was genuinely thinking about how Disney could revisit the Chronicles of Prydain now that fantasy series the likes of Game of Thrones and Wheel of Time are being adapted, and especially considering they lost the Narnia rights to Netflix. However, considering how easy they tossed their finished Spiderwick Chronicles adaptation to the side, I don't know if I wanna see Disney get a hold of anything that isn't directly concerning the creator.

[@lyndonwesthaven6623]

I certainly read and enjoyed them in elementary school (although I was already a bit prone to darker taste as a child) but honestly, at this point, I'm so soured on adaptations I basically hope they don't. Same for Old Kingdom and Abarat

[@eepyJay]

I've not seen Wish and had no interest in any videos about it, but when I saw you'd posted this I had to see what's up! This was really well written! And I'd personally love to see what a rewrite could shape up like (subbed to the 2nd channel!) 🤔 I feel like there are definitely some movies or cartoons I've seen that the author or writer intended to have a clear social commentary that was muddied due to upper management meddling, but now I'm on the spot I can't recall 😢

[@sunsun5005]

For the homework, this allegory isn't about deconstruction like Wish is but I saw a lot of failed potential in Endgame's choice to erase Peggy's narrative by sending Steve back to his time. There was a (probably now non-canon) spinofff show Agent Carter where Peggy's character gets development. She moves on to have a meaningful life on her own terms. It's a story about living through grief and finding more life on the other side. Then a re-written ending which is set up as an improved, happier ending has her growth erased and replaced with wife life in the suburbs

[@ApollodoraTheExplora]

This is a really fantastic video essay! You’ve brought out things I’ve had a lot of trouble putting into words about Wish. I wanted Wish to be good, but found myself rolling my eyes throughout the whole thing. The sheer amount of half-hearted references to other Disney films got very tiring very quickly. Also, not for nothing, but, THEY CAST VICTOR GARBER AS THE GRANDFATHER AND ONLY GAVE HIM A SINGLE LINE TO SING?! THAT MAN HAS THE VOICE OF A GODDAMN ANGEL AND THEY COULDN’T GIVE HIM A SONG; HIS WHOLE WISH IN THE FILM WAS ABOUT SHARING MUSIC WITH PEOPLE!!!

[@HeartlessSlayer]

Honestly, as someone who thought this film was ok and defends it from extreme haters who keep trashing on the film for unreasonable reasons, your points here sadly REALLY hit the nail on the head that even I could tell when watching the movie... the executive meddling and reliance on algorithm. Its a damn shame too cause one of the reasons I still like the movie is because commentary aside as you pointed out (never look at the queen the same way again now) is that the concept of wishes being a part of them as of means for hopes, dreams and personal identity just appeals to me, but even I could see how it could've been better, and your comparisons here especially with the point about shareholders holding so much influence really paints a bad sign with how this movie, even with the creators doing the best they could, was doomed to begin with BECAUSE of those hands from money holding influencers. As for Pocahontas... that was mostly because the petty asshole himself, Katzenburg, was trying to appeal to so many tropes that the academy eats up so he could get that best picture nomination/win while dismissing The Lion King as a "filler" movie... LOOK HOW WELL THAT TURNED OUT.

[@eastsidereviews727]

As per usual, another informative and enjoyable video. Always love seeing your work!

[@raphaelmarquez9650]

Looks like La'Ron came to a similar conclusion as I did with Wish's allegories. I thought it was an allegory of the Walt Disney Company, with the citizens of Rosas being the imagineers, the wishes being the many ideas they've thought of in the past, and King Magnefico as Bob Iger/Chapek. Now that the film underperformed in theaters, we're doomed to having Disney sequel slop.

[@100dollartissues]

I saw it as an allegory of Disney too, and that the citizens were everyone who wanted to see themselves represented in Disney media. They “give” their individuality to a corporation in order for it to then sell it back to them.

[@rachelv673]

Love your videos!

[@eddykagia4212]

15:10 THIS PART RIGHT HERE....

[@toyosibee.mp3]

"Trixie Mattel-level phobia" okay yeah, that's gonna have to be a subscribe!

[@swordofkings128]

2:13 flol the short guy seeing a giant chicken cloaca and being grossed out and then getting an egg laid on him is pretty funny

[@katherinealvarez9216]

So it was studio execs and greed all along.

[@JustEmeraldStar55]

Good to have you back buddy. You’ve been missed. Glad you’re doing better ❤️

[@dwaynewood2424]

Disney's Once Upon a Studio, although a short, is a much better celebration than Wish.

[@hartthorn]

I'm not a HUGE musical guy, but I did love a lot of the music in Wish for its heart. If the music aspect was lacking (I don't know, I thought it was doing a good job), I found a lot of great stuff in the lyrics. Small moments that pulled on my heart strings quite heavily. Magnico's "This is the thanks I get" being a specific one. It sold him as what we are now seeing as what a villain really looks like. He's such an egotistical little douchebag while freely using his subjects like pawns on a chess board... but REALLY badly.

[@TheMayonakaMidnighter]

Hunchback is effectively "Deconstruction: The Musical" for those of us born into the evangelical or catholic systems

[@xyz1087]

just found your channel, it's fantastic. you're so underrated. subscribed immediately as the vid finished :)

[@mk-aka-morgan8386]

I've been trying to participate in the Boycott against Disney for Palestine, but I was babysitting my librarians kid and he had gotten me to watch it with him. Definitely a bad movie, but I feel like it had so much potential- Asha's design is great, and the care she shows for the people throughout the movie was great to see. Some of the music was pretty good for the narrative (not... All though 😅)- and some of the scrapped ideas were great! It's sad to see that the people working on the movie didn't get the chance to make it into something they could love 😔

[@jonathanj4432]

Great job man I agree love how your explanation isn’t another annoying angry rant about why the flim didn’t work and went into detail about it.

[@mariastevenson9227]

Tried to be too marketable but forgot to be memorable

[@jessrl8025]

Depression and lethargy have been my creative foils these last few months as well. Glad to see you back! I never saw Wish since it looked super meh from the trailer, and then I saw the reviews. Iger and Zazlav are the worst enemies of their companies. Stifling the creativity that made their production houses famous and then blaming the creators for a screwing up their profit margins

[@goranisacson2502]

I haven't seen Wish, only seen videos about it, but this one is interesting as it feels like this is the first one to really be generous enough to it to read themes and potential plots whereas most other videos just call it bland and soul-less and go on with their day. I'm probably not gonna watch the movie anytime soon... but I just thought it was interesting to see LaRon give it such grace, compared to so many others.

[@sparxstreak02]

My main issue with Wish (that I don’t think was discussed in full here) is that Asha as a protagonist does not fundamentally grow, develop or change throughout the film. A main character CAN get what they want but it needs to feel organic & earned by the character actually learning something by the end. Tiana from the Princess & the Frog does get her restaurant but she comes away with a deeper understanding of what actually matters in life & that her restaurant wasn’t what she needed to be happy. Asha does not accomplish the same thing. She could’ve seen why NOT every wish should be granted (one of the promotional slogans even being ‘Be Careful What You Wish For’) or that wishes are something that you need to make come true yourself in order for them to truly feel fulfilling (which they somewhat attempted to do - but badly 😖). Asha’s ideals are not challenged in a way that allows her to see the bigger picture & she believes from start to finish that ALL wishes should have a chance to come true & in the end is rewarded for it by being given the exact SAME power to grant wishes as Magnifico but as a ‘Fairy Godmother’ 🤦‍♀️ Just watch the Nostalgia Critic’s review of the film to see my full opinion of the movie 😑

[@TheNumnutRandomness]

Finally! I can actually find out what this movie is about 😂 KZbin's algorithm has been shoving various people's rantsonas at me about how Wish is the MOST AWFUL GARBAGE EVER!! and 'Was Magnifico was right actuallly???' But I can always trust La'Ron to bring the heat when it comes to deeper thematic analysis and missed opportunities.

[@vikarostudios1163]

I haven't seen Wish but great video! Always love your analysis

[@herecomemacOnTT]

I’d been putting off the movie, and watched it tonight JUST so I could understand your point of view about it. Will return to watching you now lmao

[@somefunkychicken]

Wasn't expecting a fnaf rant, but here for it.

[@angiecontreras9324]

I completely agree!

[@skybite]

This was Disney’s attempt on Super Mario Bros. Movie by trying to be a ‘member berry.

[@tenkiforecast]

There is a way to critique the structures of power by showing Amaya as kind, empathetic, and forgiving of her spouse by indicating it's an abusive relationship. Use the moments of doubt to be rationalizations that it's not unhealthy, it's not controlling, that it's "perfectly fine..." with that same consistent unease. Even when an abuser reveals themselves, people who have spent decades of their life with this person...it's a fear of the unknown, a fear to let go, and so fucking often the abused person chooses the abuser again because it's what they know. The film crew *could* have leaned into that allegory, and instead of having Amaya be a 'deader', show the guilt, shame, confusion, etc...from having supported and stayed in this abusive relationship. Show her relinquishing power, show her stepping down, show her acknowledging her inability to trust her own decisions anymore. FFS this is an allegory to work in here about how Magnifico's behavior is abusive, controlling, and exploitative. Absolutely not speaking from a position of having a parent ignore *thousands* of red flags and giant warning sirens with everyone telling them their spouse was an abusive bastard...and refusing to get divorced. But no, that would encourage class revolution and not changing anything, the system is 'perfect' and all you ever need to do is change the person at the top, that'll turn out *great*.

[@seeleunit2000]

You know, I never saw this movie, however from what you described if someone took the same premise from this, but fixed the mistakes of this film, then and that would make for an incredible movie.

[@TheGreatBadCat]

I'm sorry I love the out of pocket mini fnaf rant at the beginning That's a mood

[@BlahNetworkBro]

Why does it look like thissss?! Showing footage next to encanto makes me feel insane, wtf were they cooking with this shitty comic pop filter why does it look literally worse than tangled

[@zainmudassir2964]

Queen Amyra was basically joanne rowling

[@sildarmillion]

wow, i would not have picked up on that allegory on my own and what an allegory! and what a take on Wish! loved it! but i think it was an accidental allegory. i really can't see the creators being intentional about it :/

[@vsboardza]

great video as always!

[@GaasubaMeskhenet]

I do hate that Amaya got to stay Queen but I think the ending leaves open an interpretation that it means something different now. She's among the people when we see her as Queen. Like it's just her job title and that job is simply to help people with their wishes

[@Trecherousbeast]

It annoys me so much that this movie is so… boring and uninspired. Disney has had a wonderful influence on animation and art in America’s history, literally creating an entire new market for it, adding on to it, and eventually creating the 12 principles of animation that are considered THE guideline on animation. Their history is so vast and filled with many skilled artists, and I’m shocked that despite all of this that Disney was not inspired by their 100 years of history other than to call back to it through references. Due to Disney’s corporate nonsense that’s been going on recently, I don’t think it’s physically possible for them to properly step back and admire what they’ve created. I honestly would’ve been more excited if some other random group had decided to make something in honor of all of the artists and animators at Disney, because at least I would know that it’s coming from someone who genuinely cares about them.

[@Boahemaa]

Loved the cartoon. I see the American connection but I'm not American so I saw it in a religious angle especially with the magic. I also saw it in the promise of revolution that often ends with the subjugation of hopeful citizens who are promised complete liberation but get a conditional liberation. Its all liberals not just the white ones. If people are doing well they will rather protect their position than join the revolution. I am surprised this is a Disney movie. It challenged the entertainment industry's promise of diversity but only greenlighting the projects that don't challenge the existing order. The music was the worst thing about the cartoon. It was abysmal.

[@ThePonderer]

Just got done watching this one for the first time. I can’t get over how numerous and fundamental this movie’s issues are. How do you make your 100 year celebration movie so absolutely broken and limp?

[@demonvamp33]

Oh man just the overall look of this movie is like bad the backgrounds are just so bland especially when you cut between it and encanto. Encanto looks so vibrant.

[@zombietrash416]

The king is white? I always thought Magnifico was a light skinned hispanic guy. Whats with all the Spanish influence on his kingdom? Is it there for no reason just thrown in there to make Disney seem inclusive?

[@zafranorbian757]

This is an interesting look at what the movie might have wanted to be. That said even if the movie really would have been able to express these themes. This is a way to USA specific look to resonate with an international audiences imo. Atleast with this kind of structure.

[@VannahSavage]

I haven’t seen Wish, but I liked your video and analysis so I’ll just subscribe and leave a comment and a like to feed the algorithm. 🙂 Edit: autocorrect

[@coopigeon619]

I agree that Wish could have been better.. It definitely had corporate meddling all over it. Even with the lackluster writing and lack of characterization and such, I still can't fully hate this film..I like the ideas it tried to present but it woefully missed the mark in my opinion. I like Asha as a concept but I wish (no pun intended) she was fleshed out more and had more personality...she has a spark of something but unfortunately she never really got to fully shine the way she was meant to.. I don't hate the music of Wish completely..I (kind of) like This Is The thanks I get because of the weird lyrics. But the "I'm A Star" Song is dumb and vague...not bad necessarily but felt out of place, or rather a filler jusy to check off a box.. Queen Amaya was slept on in terms of storytelling, character, and definitely singing voice..Her part in "Knowing What I Know Now" was beautifully sung in my opinion..I also enjoyed Asha's singing as well. I feel they should have went a more Broadway musical esque direction with the music. It was a HUGE mistake not to have Alen Menkin involved with the Wish soundtrack since he helped produce some of the best soundtracks the Disney Movies have to offer (ie: many of the Disney Renaissance films for example.). instead of whoever they got. Big missed opportunity. Speaking of opportunities; Star being human and a love interest for Asha (I miss classic Disney romances), Queen Amaya being a villain with her husband Magnifico (that would have went hard), fleshing out Asha and her friends more,.etc.

[@zainmudassir2964]

I Wish for your KZbin success

[@torren5950]

5:49 That's the first time I ever actually heard audio from this movie and it sounds like a Saturday morning cartoon. Seems like this movie failed on many levels.

[@Bonfirestars]

Honestly I think the movie is a little worse then mid But I agree this movie reeks of corporate interference

[@rosegiacomini260]

Nimona eating this movie for lunch, honestly. It tackles what Wish wants to with its fantasy dystopia, and it's a real L since Disney punted it when Blue Sky got shut down. I think Disney eats or kills other studios in the cradle so it won't matter if they make good movies, they'll be the only game in town and people won't have a choice. Anyways, support indie animation (Mandelbrot Hall from Studio Flimpo is still funding!) and go watch Nimona.

[@normanbear]

I miss Star Boy He could have saved this movie

[@elindayana8174]

I WILL NEVER FORGIVE DISNEY FOR NOT GIVING US A GOOD "WISH" MOVIE! They skipping the BEAUTIFUL LOVE STORY between Asha and the Starboy, and the evil couple, Magnifico and Amaya, broke my heart! 😭💔💢

[@mLernen]

5:10 isn't giving your wish voluntary not required?

[@Rainears129]

I haven't seen the movie, but yeah, from what I've heard a lot, it's that wish was just meh, which is not good for any form of media. This is especially sad for Disney, a company known for getting people to feel emotions over a drawing of a 16 year old girl who spent half her movie asleep. Disney can take simple movies and make them good; one of the most popular versions of Robin Hood- a character that has existed in English stories since long before Shakespeare- is the Disney fox version from the early 70's, and it's the movie version of a bed-time story. But Classic, Renascence, as well as the well known Modern Disney movies are known for engaging the emotions. (If you doubt this, go compare the scene where Cinderella's dress is destroyed in the animated vs the live action- and I think the LA Cinderella is the best of the LA reboots) But from what I've heard, Wish just couldn't do it. It was just too paint by numbers. Like the executives were like "Oh, we need a villian song! Write it!" without looking at what made such good villain songs like Hellfire or Be Prepared or Gaston/the Mob Song. Or "we need an I Want song!" without studying why Part of Your World, Just Around the River Bend, or I Just Can't Wait to Be King worked so well. Never mind that some of their best movies may not have had one of these songs, or they played with the formulas (Belle's I Want song was combined with the establishing number, which also happened in A Goofy Movie (credit to Sideways for pointing that out in his essay on the latter movie), Jafar in the animated movie never got a villain song, same with the Huns in Mulan, and technically, Hans didn't get a villain song either, or at least not an obvious one- I still say Love Is An Open Door is a sneaky villain song in a love song). Wish couldn't connect with the audience on an emotional level, because art flounders when it has to just follow what the charts say. Art doesn't develop well when it has to play safe and stick within certain parameters, especially if those parameters were set by things that came before. Yes, gambles come with the risk of them not working out, but they will often find people who really like them and possibly build a cult following. But, if Disney truly wanted to make a good movie to celebrate 100 years, they should have tried to tap into the Disney from the 30s that made a bet that people would come and watch an animated version of a fairy tale during the Great Depression, and taken risks with Wish.

[@hartthorn]

As for the homework: Yes, saw Wish in theaters, and adored it. I've been defending it for months from all the bad faith dips who are saying stuff like "Magnifico was right". For me, beyond the exploitation metaphor, the movie was about the concept of "Capitalist Realism", the idea that part of the trap is the inability to even imagine a world beyond capitalism. Asha being the one to bring it down is absolutely poignant to the prospect, but that it was talking about aspects underlying specific racial oppression. And one big spicy take I am very confident on: the big secret is Magnifico can't actually "grant" wishes. He has no way of just MAKING them happen. And he knows this. That's why he's so hyper-sensitive to Sabino's utterly benign wish of wanting to have a music career. All he can do is some minor enhancements and, more specifically, social control. The only 2 wishes we see him grant on screen are "Lady wants to be the top dress maker", which she will immediately become since she's got his endorsement, and "I wanna be a cop" which... yeah, that's easy for the ruling class to grant. And as we see from Sabino's actions, this idea of being granted this nebulous, unidentified IDEA of a wish, never actually knowing what it even might be, keeps everyone loyal and productive how ever they can be in the hopes they will get this "lottery win" fantasy. And I also see the ending as the idea that the only force that can oppose the overwhelming might of the capitalist class is collective action. It's only with the unified, DIRECT force of the entire populace going at Magnifico at his MOST powerful that he is almost EASILY vanquished and relegated to a footnote in history. Side Note but also something I love about the ideas in Wish is the combining of classic Disney idea of "When you wish upon a star" with my first and always science bae Carl Sagan's line of "We are all made of star dust". We, all of us, are the stars we need to start wishing on. Every one of us.

[@vicenterosa25]

when you were saying that fans predicting where your story is going is a good thing, I could've sworn you were talking about the godawful show runners of GoT. they changed some storyline because people predicted it. like, YOU WERE DOING YOUR JOB RIGHT!!! and then those last seasons...wow, what a downfall haha

[@DaddyOfTheSugarVariety]

I found Wish very boring & the goat very annoying. Before watching Wish I bought the Lego sets, they're pretty cool.

[@ScaryMeadow]

If only they could've jumped on the multiverse bandwagon instead for their 100th and made some silly, reference-filled, pat-on-the-shoulder celebration instead, and then push Wish ahead a year or two and let it be its own thing instead.

[@prowolf633]

Wish had fantastic potential yet it was all thrown away thanks to modern day ideas of “everyone has a tragic backstory and is not pure evil” and honestly I feel the queen was unnecessary. Disney needs to go back to writing real villains with no backstory whatsoever and killing them as villains! No more constantly forced emphasis on redemption, forgiveness, compassion, or any of those ideas! Sometimes we need real villains in stories rather than redeemable antagonists or toxic family who does not deserve to be reconciled with but is anyway (Encanto being the worst offender with Alma), even kids need to know at a young age that evil people who will never listen to reason do exist!

[@calebflores3389]

Commenting for engagement!

[@tyriqgreen9487]

Hey readus101 blood of zeus season 2 is out do a analysis on season 2 of blood of zeus.

[@sleepstump]

Treasure Planet. They did not want it to succeed.

[@SallyLock103emeCaris]

Interesting, thanks ❤

[@andrewkful]

I agree with everything except for one detail: ................. um ................ it's Magnifico white?? I mean yes he's played by a white actor ... but he sure doesn't look it.

[@roristevens2810]

Rosas is, according to the filmmakers, located off the Iberian Peninsula. I think he's supposed to be tanned, which would fit into his vanity.

[@GaasubaMeskhenet]

I saw Amaya as how trapped liberals feel. I didn't see it as her life needing to be in danger before she did anything, i saw it as her becoming lost, all the paths to goodness she knew now in darkness, until a little mouse on her shoulder starts talking revolution

[@Aurora-Welch]

I think this movie is Kinda Underrated.

[@cairneoleander8130]

I’m gonna have to go watch the movie in a few days when my Disney+ starts back up, because that woman looks Native, not Black, and I don’t want to argue a point like that until I’ve seen the source material in full

[@roristevens2810]

Asha is canonically Afro-Latina (as is her voice actress Ariana DeBose).

[@cairneoleander8130]

@@roristevens2810 ah. Thank you. That clarifies some stuff. I’m all for representation, just not misrepresentation and I know a lot of Indigenous folks who get super annoyed when people get their ethnicity wrong.

[@roristevens2810]

No problem. You might have noticed from the clips that her family is interracially mixed; her mom Sakina is darker skinned while grandfather Sabino appears Caucasian (and is referred to as Saba), and I believe her father (only barely seen in flashback as he died in the backstory) is Caucasian. Her kingdom is specifically located off the Iberian Peninsula.

[@pbjmochi8400]

​​@@roristevens2810 Asha's Afro-Hispanic, actually (as La'Ron said). She's not Latin American.

[@cliffcolter9161]

I am so glad that Disney did not get there wish with Nimona!!! Such an amazing film that I thank my lucky stars (get it) that it was finished by Annapurna Films. They made a Gay/Trans movie icon. Shows what you can do with remarkable story and vision. Absolutely stunning! Simple story that hits your with emotional beats right in the chest. I was so happy to see this nominated for the Oscar and not Wish.

[@ronnochopper]

Yeah, cant say i disagree with this take. Disney really did manage to make bland corporate slop with a side of potentially really interesting social commentary. Its honestly roo bad this is the movie the tried 2d stylized 3d, which i guess was the one risk they did take. Though even that looked strangely undercooked in places. I mean if there is one througline i noticed while watching it was this undercooked feeling. Parts of it felt and looked great, and so many others looked and felt empty and bland. It was strange. I guess the execs spent so lomg strangling it they never managed to finish it.

[@GaasubaMeskhenet]

I didn't read Amaya as white

[@iagrim01]

Wish was so mediocre and meandering. When I saw it, I could not believe how boring and poorly animated the visuals of it were. It was so bad, I convinced myself it was AI-generated

[@BellamyJay]

This is exactly what I think happened.

[@pinkpunther]

I actually enjoyed strange world. I have a headcanon that ethan is trans

[@nerdtubewtf]

Only 7 min in and didn't see the film, yet this film seems to be a 'gentler, less on scene violence' than Squidgame. Just with Disney marketing. Like they are saying, see we are self aware. Alas it's just to peddle and weaponize said wishes/desires to win. I'm not that far yet, do I guess that they find some sort of scapegoat beyond the one dude? Or does the citizenry get off cuz they found the one dude to scapegoat so the town doesn't come to terms that this horror was their fault (akin to V's rant to the English in V for Vendetta). Love you La'Ron. Your videos and the words you used and how/why you do this gives me hope every day in this horrid world humans have made for all of us via our hubris (esp those with the power to stop it or keep it going, it IS a CHOICE to hurt other humans)

[@nerdtubewtf]

now at 16 min. Like you, saying the same thing, called it. I mean it's too damn predictable at this point. Been on this earth over 50 years hearing this same shite . I live in AZ so you know, being intersectional here in the 70's, let me just say it SUCKED. Not as bad as my boomer dad born in segregated mining town here. See the gringos needed someone to hate when their wasn't a big population. It's how they can claim a non 'southern' like record despite being as bad. It's in the technicalities, they didn't do it as much to black people, cuz well not as great of numbers and you need to have a 'them' for the mines and their colonies to work. KWIM? You give me words how to explain this feeling in my chest all these years. You are doing truthful hopes work and you give me hope. Can't thank you enough. This has been a rough 4 years existing as an intersectional disabled, high risk, ND person and I had given up hope in humans. Thank you for lifting a weight even if just for a moment. Love to you and all for this gift.

[@Magicghost23]

👍👍👍

[@punnavieira1681]

How many videos are keep going to lie about Wish’s failure, another reason why you shouldn’t trust online movie reviews? Anyway, let’s just say Wish really is another Disney failure, what really went wrong with it, or how this is worse than Strange World, Ralph Breaks the Internet, Chicken Little, or Tangled, or more disappointing than Raya and the Last Dragon, just like how most people lied about some animated Disney movies (Oliver and Company, Brother Bear, Home on the Range) that are bad or disappointing, and it does seem a bit unnecessary for Disney to make live action versions of their movies, and it’s pretty obvious that most movies failed due to bad writing and bad directors.

[@hannahbrennan2131]

I knew this movie was gonna be a mediocre mess when they released clips of the songs. Howard Ashman is doing somersaults in his grave.

[@kaykay8855]

First

[@sephirosu]

Scott didn't change anything because of Mattpat, that's just a lie Mat tells himself.