‘Wish’ Review: Ariana DeBose Shines In A Low-Stakes Fairytale That Sells The Disney Brand Short

deadline.com:

“Be careful what you wish for” is the moral of Disney’s latest animation, an odd sort of greatest hits package that ticks all the boxes for what passes as inspirational fare these days.

Sadly, that message mostly applies to the studio bosses, who appear to have closed their eyes and blown out 100 candles in return for a 95-minute movie based on the company theme song: Pinocchio’s “When You Wish Upon a Star”.

Cliff Edwards’ haunting, seven-note refrain is referenced throughout the entire movie, but in a weirdly mutated version that, whenever it chimes in, sounds like whoever’s playing it has forgotten how it actually goes, or might be playing it with a rubber spoon.

Similarly, on closer examination (which is not at all advised), the plot comes to resemble a similarly wonky A.I. meditation on the song’s lyrics, which served Pinocchio’s themes very well with its talk of hearts’ desires, fate stepping in like a bolt from the blue, and dreams coming true.