We continue the 31 Days of Frights with Wishmaster from 1997. A gemologist (Tammy Lauren) unwittingly frees an evil genie (Andrew Divoff) that plays deadly tricks on her friends and acquaintances.
Wishmaster is so awesome. The concept is so much fun, and we find out that we should really be careful what we wish for. Each wish that is granted is twisted into a horrific, cleverly written scenario. The Djinn is obviously not your friend. The movie was directed by special effects guy Robert Kurtzman. Kurtzman had previously worked on many films, such as From Dusk Till Dawn, The Exorcist 3, and Nightmare on Elm Street 3.
The Acting and Effects
Our main character is Alex, played by Tammy Lauren. She is the person who releases the Djinn and needs to make three wishes for him to take over the world. As far as the acting goes, she does what needs to be done, but she is pretty bland overall. That is okay, though, because Andrew Divoff as the Djinn carries this entire film.
Whether he is in makeup or in his human form, Andrew Divoff is always entertaining. In makeup, he is terrifying yet comical, and his voice is one of a kind. As a human, he is charismatic yet still unnerving. You can really see how he can gain the trust of anyone in the movie.
Greg Nicotero, who would later work famously on The Walking Dead, did a lot of the special effects for Wishmaster. There is a lot of great makeup and effects in this movie. The makeup work on the Djinn is superb. He does not come off as campy. If I saw something that looked like that in real life, I’d be terrified.
There is some great creature design as well. There is a scene where someone wishes for the type of party no one will ever forget. The Djinn unleashes a wave of monsters, and the designs are incredible and unforgettable.
The Wishes and Cameos
The wishes granted throughout the movie are very inventive. It almost reminds me of the Final Destination series a little bit. In that series, we know when death is near, and we wait anxiously to see how and in what form it is going to arrive. In Wishmaster, we know someone’s simple wish is going to go wrong, and we wait anxiously for how it does.
Someone wishes to be beautiful forever, so they are turned into a mannequin. Someone wishes not to see horrific things going on, so their eyes are plucked out. It all makes for a fun viewing experience.
There are so many cameos in this film that it almost becomes its own game to point all of them out. In the movie, we see Robert Englund, Tony Todd, Ted Raimi, Kane Hodder, Reggie Bannister, and Tom Savini. Angus Scrimm, who is famous for playing the Tall Man in the Phantasm franchise, is the narrator in the film, and we even get a cameo from the statue of Pazuzu from The Exorcist. It is a lot of fun seeing these icons of horror communicating with the Djinn throughout the movie.
Overall
Wishmaster is a hell of a good time. It’s entertaining throughout with a villain that, in my mind, should be up there with the likes of Freddy Krueger and Michael Myers. This had the potential to continue for a long, long time. Three sequels followed. Wishmaster 2 is a good time once again, but Andrew Divoff is missing from parts 3 and 4, and so is the charm. Hopefully, one day, Andrew Divoff could return, and we can get a brand new Wishmaster film.
Wishmaster is available to watch on Amazon Prime, Tubi, and Pluto TV.
Come back tomorrow for some more spooky reviews.
