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Civil War Analysis

In war movies typically there are only two sides the good guys, typically America, and the bad guys, painting wars as a very black and white scenario when it is anything but. When films showcase a war from the perspective of one side it makes you root for them and want them to win the war even if it takes death and destruction for them to win. However, we won’t care about the death because they are not the heroes of the film they are painted as the enemy, and just that, they tend to dehumanise the opposing side to make you want to root for the protagonists more, which is what makes the film Civil War more impactful. Civil War is a dystopian civil war film directed and written by Alex Gardner. The film stars Kirsten Dunst as the main character Lee, Wagner Moura as her colleague Joel, Stephen McKinley Henderson as another one Lee’s colleagues Sammy and Cailee Spaeny as Jessie, a teenager who admires Lee, as the main characters of the film. Civil War follows a team of journalists as they venture to DC to try and get an interview with the President of the United States, in this film America is divided int two sides and is nearing the end of a Civil War. The film shows us the war through the eyes of journalists, unbiased sources tasked with documenting the war and those impacted by the war. By doing the film gives us a glimpse of what it is like for those impacted by a war there’s no side to root for as it emphasises the death and destruction caused by both sides. The film also shows us how war can change people as seen by the character development of the main characters throughout the film. In addition, the film gives us a glimpse of the horrors of war which is very with both the Israel-Palestine and Russia-Ukraine wars occurring in the present. Film and art are typically used to show what it was like when it was made, even if it is not directly related to those events and is a great way to raise awareness even if people do not realise. All of this what makes Civil War such a great movie.

Civil War focusses on a war going on in the United States of America, we find this out during the first scene where the President, played by Nick Offerman, is addressing the country assuring them of their victory. We first find out that is a war within America when the President speaks of the “Western Front” consisting of California, Texas and support from Florida. Until this moment there is a close-up of the President’s face as he practices and then starts his speech, his face is the only thing in focus the visible parts of the background are blurry. In between his speaking we see glimpses of what has been happening in the war, there are brief cutaways of soldiers and of civilians being attacked by the military or resisting. This creates anticipation we are getting glimpses of the ongoing war; we are unsure who both sides are and who the President is, this generates interest and draws you in as you wonder what is going on. Until it is revealed that it is a civil war in America as behind the President is a large American flag and he mentions the Western Forces, who are the opposing side, are also Americas specifically from Texas and California. It is a good start to the movie as it immediately grabs your interest and creates intrigue it has you invested in the film right from the beginning. By having the civilians wearing normal clothes and the military in their uniform it shows that he does not actually care about his people as he speaks of “victory” and yet these glimpses show that what he deems victory is innocent unarmed civilians being attacked. It shows that usually in wars innocent civilians get attacked, they suffer the consequences of the decisions to go war, which they had no part of. It also highlights the arrogance of the President and the arrogance associated with America as he deems it “the greatest victory in the history of military campaigns.” Having the war be set in American and between two opposing American sides was a good choice, as typically when America is involved in a war movie they are painted as the heroes in act of American patriotism and propaganda. However, this time you have no idea who to root for as both sides are American which gives the audience more of an unbiased view because they do not have a specific side to root for which gives them a more open-minded view of the movie. It also shows that America is not as perfect or better like we have made to believe, it shows that they are also capable of having wars and conflicts in America instead of just portraying it as perfect as they tend to do. In addition, they never directly tell us what caused the divide and conflict which makes it universal as you can apply this to any war that’s broken out because no matter the reason they started, they all end the same way with death and tragedy. The President hiding out during the war also shows how those in power force their citizens to fight their wars even when they are not the ones who started. They are dragged into and forced to fight when those who start the war do not participate. This is emphasised by the scenes in between the President’s speech where we see glimpses of the conflict. Starting the film this way was a good way to give insight into the film and draw the audience into the film and keep them watching.

By having the film follow journalists travelling through America as they travel to Washington DC, we get a view of all the different perspectives and lives of different people in the country because not everyone in a war-torn country is going through the same things. Giving different perspectives of people in the film make the film feel more realistic as their depictions of the different lives and perspective and this aids in the growth and development of these four main characters. In the beginning we see people standing around waiting for water and chanting “We want water” showing how conflicts impact people’s everyday life, then a bomb goes off. A long shot shows the smoke once the bomb goes off and a water bottle rattling around. This emphasises how innocent people suffer during a war they were there to collect water, a necessity to survive, and ended up being targeted just to make a point and place pressure on the opposing side. Another example of normal people’s lives being disrupted is the refugee camp. The journalists make a stop at a refugee camp to stay over for the night when they arrive there are kids playing with a skipping rope. The shot shows a large number of people in the background, families, kids playing and a lot of tents. It then zooms out to show they are in a stadium with tents and portable bathrooms. This emphasises how many people have lost their homes due to the war yet are still trying to live normal lives despite dealing with this loss. The film the jumps to a completely different perspective a small town completely unimpacted by the war. This dramatically juxtaposes what was just shown at the camp. We are introduced to this town through shots of a sprinkler, leaves, beautiful white house and two young girls casually going for a walk, leaving the main characters, who have been exposed to all the tragedy of the rest of the country, in shock and confusion. Joel even asks the store attendant if they are aware there is a war going on in the country, she then responds with “Oh, sure, but we just try to stay out.”. She then goes back to reading and says they should let her know if they want to try anything on. Her casual blasé attitude represents that of the whole town they are uninterested in the war and unbothered as it does not impact them, they are safe in their bubble therefore they do not care. They represent those who care more about themselves than those suffering, because the worse has not affected or involved them they stay out and go on with their lives while watching the war from their screens in the safety of their homes. In, addition to civilians the film also shows the perspectives of the soldiers from both sides. As the film progresses the journalists have the opportunity to accompany and document the perspectives form both the military and the Western Forces. So, they get to see first hand the violence inflicted by both sides of the conflict, which allows the audience to see both sides by showing us examples of both sides point of views. Having different perspectives makes the film feel more realistic as it shows the different ways a war can impact people and how different people react to wars. This can help teach the audience more about how war directly impacts the countries citizens.

In the film there is a big contrast between the journalists and everyone else as they have become desensitised to the war. Lee is a famous war photographer she is used to the violence and death associated with war and it no longer affects her. Throughout the film the journalists seem more concerned with getting the story first then they are about what is actually going on. This is evident from the first time we see Lee, she is watching the President address the country and the first thing she does is take a picture. It is medium shot of her sitting on a hotel bed taking the picture with her press gear next to her, showing how important her job is to her so much that it is the main part of her life and is almost all she cares about. In the following scene after the explosion there is a long shot of Lee looks at all the dead bodies and instinctively just takes photos as if nothing has even happened. There is no sound as the embers and smoke fill in around her this emphasises the tragedy of the situation and how it has escalated, attempting to evoke shock in the viewer as they realise what has happened. Lee is the contrast to this, yet she seems calm despite the events that just occurred because she is used to. This is further shown in the next scene where all the journalists are in a hotel bar drinking and having fun despite everything that is going on in the outside world. The most acknowledgment of the war is when Joel and Sammy talk about the Western forces are closing in on DC and how that’s what all the other journalists are also aware of. They are all racing each other to get there and cover the story first because that’s all that they care about getting the story first. This is emphasised when Joel does not want Sammy to join them as he is old and walks with cane meaning he will slow them down. Joel worries that Sammy slowing them down will mean that he and Lee might not get to the story first. However, Lee feels sympathy towards him due to their closer relationship, which is referenced in him referencing her past and later on by one of the other journalists after Sammy dies, so she convinces Joel to let him join them. Joel then lets Jessie, a teenage girl with no experience in the war journalism field, join them. Lee tries to talk him out of it because she knows its not safe yet Joel brushes it off saying they all had to start somewhere. This shows his desensitisation to the war as he believes it is a good idea to take directly into the conflict in DC even though she does not know what she is getting into and lets her put herself into a dangerous situation. The journalists’ desensitisation is a common theme throughout the film displayed by both the main characters and other press in the film. It accurately depicts what its like in the modern day because of the media we have easier access to the violence that occurs every day, so it has become normalised as were watching it from an outside perspective. It desensitises people and makes people lack empathy as it seems like a normal part of life as is seen with the journalists and other press in Civil War.

However, for one of the characters, Jessie, this is not the case for her. She is a teenage girl who wants to become a war photographer like Lee, who she really admires. She is still young and is not really exposed to the violence outside of the town she lives in. We can see this in the way Lee tries to protect her and looks out for her. Her innocence is shown many times throughout the film in her reactions to the tragedy she witnesses, unlike Joel and Lee she who barely bat an eye she gets emotional and feels sick because of the things she sees. This is seen in the gas station scene where the man shows her two beaten men hanging. A close-up of her shows us she is hyperventilating, and her eyes are red and glazed over showing us she is scared by what she has seem. In the car ride after the camera cuts between her and Lee as she is going over the events and asking a million questions trying make sense of how she reacted and why she reacted that way. This shows how disconnected the two as Lee still doesn’t believe Jessie should be on the trip that is why the two are not pictured in the same frame as she explains the harsh reality of being a journalist and the horrific things they see and report on. Her innocence is shown again when they get caught in the middle of a shootout. One of the men gets shot and is bleeding out and she captures the photo. A medium shot with an eye level angle shows her as she moves the camera away from her face and she is shaking and hyperventilating. The background is blurred bringing the focus solely on her and her feelings. However, once the shootout is over, she is sitting trying to calm herself down, she then sees them executing the enemy soldiers and she chooses to stand up and take the photo. This symbolises her accepting the horror that comes with her dream job and choosing to push aside her feelings to become a photographer like Lee. From then on, she embraces the situation taking her photos and showing Lee. She even tries having fun as seen when she encourages Lee to try on a dress and takes photos of her to jumping from one car to another while they were driving because it seemed fun and everyone one was laughing, except Lee. However, this changes once she faces the trauma and fear herself instead of photographing it from the outside. Her and the journalist in the car are taken by a soldier who has them on their knees and threatens to shoot them. In the background we see a truck dumping bodies into a mass grave. Jessie is terrified as the man causally shoots the other journalist and Tony. This brings her face to face with something terrifying watching people she knows dies in front of her. Sammy then rushes in bumping the soldier with the car and rescues them. She throws up because the situation traumatised her. They find out Sammy is shot and ends up dying. This is her first experience directly facing loss as she grew close to Sammy. These traumas affect her and as upset as she is it almost numbs and hardens her. This is shown in the end when she seems careless in her actions, the soldier tells her to stay back but she ignores them to try and get a good photo. Lee then jumps in and protects her from getting shot. At first, she is in shock the film goes silent and the camera zooms out showing Lee’s dead body behind her. She then stands up and looks back for a second before she decides to leave Lee behind to get the photo of them capturing the President. She has become like the other journalists as then film progresses losing her innocence and caring more about the photo than her friend and the person she admired, who got shot trying to protect her. The movie ends with Jessie’s photo emphasising the loss of her innocence to achieve her dreams of being a war photographer.

Just like Jessie the main character of Civil War, Lee, also grows throughout the film. Lee initially comes off as a cold hardened person because of what she has been through, but this is not the case. Lee is a well written and well-rounded character with a good character growth. She comes off as hardened and uncaring due to the trauma she has seen. This is seen in the scene where she is in the bath, emphasising her vulnerability in this moment. The medium shot is framed by the walls of the bathroom showing how closed off she is. It then shows us flash back from all the horrors she’s seen. The backgrounds are blurred slightly with emphasising he violence in her flashbacks, such as the soldiers running into the burning building, or the man being burned alive. It shows the audience what she has seen and why she is the way she is and explains why she wants to protect Jessie from this. This is emphasised when we find out from Joel that Lee was Jessie’s age when she started. Throughout the film she protects Jessie even if she does not show her emotions much, protecting her from a bomb and the situation from the gas station by distracting the man. She expresses her worry for Lee and protects her throughout the film even giving her life by jumping in front of a bullet for Jessie. However, as she tries to protect Jessie and her innocence she added to the trauma as Jessie had to watch Lee die because of her and ultimately hardens her like she was. Lee however does grow throughout the film because of Lee. We see her smiling for the first time with Jessie at the refugee camp as they talk about photography and look through Jessie’s photographs. This is seen again when Jessie convinces her to try on the dress. We see her reflection the mirror, the shot shows us her reflection emphasising her vulnerability at the moment, she looks somewhat at peace if even only for a moment she even laughs for the first time as Jessie takes her photo. This shows us the impact Jessie has had on Lee, making her feel emotions she has not felt in a while and breaking down her walls. Lee finding her inner peace in a key element in the film. They once again get caught in a trap with a shooter in the distant house and two people outside. Joel, Jessie, and the two soldiers are talking about the shooter and how they are fighting to survive not for a specific ide, once again highlighting the complexities of war. However, Lee is not focused on them or getting the photo, a closeup shows us she is staring at the plants in front of her, with the focus on the flowers, this is emphasised when they show jessie and once again the focus moves to the plants with only gentle music playing in the background. This shows how at peace she is taking in her surroundings instead of focusing on taking photos, she is growing as a character as she is realising there is more to her life than just her work. It also seems as though she is reconnecting with who she was before she became hardened from the horror she sees everyday from her job. It is seen again in the scene where they face the soldiers Lee gets so upset when Johnny gets shot and when she panics once Sammy is shot, which is different from the beginning of the film where she barely reacted to these situations. In the scene at the base, she is seen from an over the shoulder shot deleting the photo of Sammy, Sammy was clearly important to her and she could not keep something that reminded her of his death, this symbolises her detachment from the job as it is all her life revolved around but now that she has firsthand experience in the loss she photographs every day. This is emphasised when she risks her life to protect Jessie which leads to Jessie becoming just like her. Lee was a good main character from the film she was a complex character who shows development as the film goes on even sacrificing herself to save Jessie instead of only focussing on her job.

In Civil War the use of lighting and colour are used effectively to emphasise the messages and themes of the film. The film utilises different lighting styles and techniques to enhance certain scenes in the film. The film typically uses more natural lighting as most of the film takes place outside. Lowkey lighting is also used to create more shadows, emphasising the darker themes of the movie as it takes place during a civil war. For example, in the gas station scene where Jessie and Lee are shown the bodies of the two looters hanging at the gas station, back lighting is used, the background is lit but the foreground is darker emphasising the violence and horror of what they are seeing as it is Jessies first time facing this violence on the trip. In addition, Jessies face is only partially shadowed whereas lee is fully dark as she is hardened and used to this darkness, so it symbolises the start of Jessie losing her innocence. Throughout the film the lighting is usually harsher adding to the tense feeling of the film. However, there are moments where softer more golden lighting is use. This is done to create a contrast to the harsher lighting as the softer lighting creates a more comforting feeling to the film. It is used in the scenes at the refugee camp where the lighting is coming from fires and string lights adding to the comforting feeling of the scene. In this scene the lighting emphasises the scene as it displays family and friends bonding over a fire, sitting with their family or reading a book to their kids so it creates a loving atmosphere to the scene. In addition, the scene at the town not involved in the war is brightly lit. It shows us that this town is safe compared to the rest of the country, people are living their normal lives and are happy. In the scene in the store Jessie and Lee’s faces are only half lit using chiaroscuro lighting. This shows us that for this moment they are partly happy, it is there one moment of peace and normalcy from the war before they go venture back out into the war. Moreover, the film also uses colour to enhance the scenes. For example, at the shootout scene in the field Lee is staring at the ground the camera focuses on the blue flowers, this symbolises peace and serenity which is what Lee is experiencing while laying in the grass. When the camera moves to Jessie it shows white flowers which represents innocence which is commonly associated with Jessie as Lee and Sammy think she is too young to be there and has not witnessed all the horror of war. This is emphasised by her wearing white and having light blue press gear instead of black like the others. In the shootout scene early in the film, after the shootout she is leaning against a wall with colourful paint splattered, referencing her childlikeness and her innocence. However, she steps out to take a photo of the execution representing her losing her innocence and accepting the horrors that comes with her dream job. In contrast, the other journalists typically wear darker colours like browns and greys representing their hardened personalities and darker outlooks on life due to their harsh jobs. However, Sammy wears a light blue shirt representing his calming personality and role in keeping the others calm. It also has links to angels which foreshadows his death. The soldier they encounter that threatens to kill them wears red glasses drawing the attention to him as the red stands out against the other colours, it also shows the violent outlook he has as he easily kills without a second thought. In the store scene Lee is the only one that tries clothes on. She tries on a green dress, green represents tranquillity and growth representing the growth she is undergoing at that moment in her character development. The film uses lighting and colour well to represent and emphasise different themes.

Civil War steers away from typical American patriotism found in war movies and shows an unglamourised, realistic view of war, showcasing the loss, violence and horror of war that other film steers away from. The characters are interesting and show good development throughout the film. Colour, lighting and camera angles are utilised well in the film adding to the symbolism and emphasising the themes of the film. The film is very detail orientated and well produced. The plot is interesting and keeps the audience engaged showing different perspectives and not falling into tropes and cliches. Overall Civil War was a very good movie and one everyone should watch.

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Wish Filmic Essay

When you think of Disney you feel a sense of joy and nostalgia due to the animated movies that played a part in your childhood. Last year Disney celebrated its one-hundred-year anniversary, one hundred years of creating some of the most beloved and iconic animated movies in the world. To celebrate this anniversary, they decided to release a new movie, “Wish”. “Wish” was released in November 2023 and came onto streaming services in April 2024. It was directed by Chris Buck, who also worked on Frozen and Tarzan, and Fawn Veerasunthorn, who worked on Zootopia and Moana. Although both directors had success with previous Disney films, the same cannot be said for their latest work “Wish”. The movie release did not go as expected, what was meant to be a fun nostalgic Disney movie ended up being an anti-climactic failure. Disney tried to create a modern version of the old Disney movies people love, but it did not work out well. The plot of “Wish” felt shallow and incomplete, lacking the magic found in Disney movies. The characters received the same fate, they lack depth and character development. The animators attempted to mix the old Disney style with more modern animation which resulted in the movie feeling incomplete and disconnected. In addition, the music fell flat, the songs were boring and almost emotionless compared to other songs from Disney. Although Wis had the potential to be a cute heartwarming Disney movie, it was boring and forgettable.

For the movie “Wish” animators attempted to combine the aesthetic of old hand drawn 2D animation with the modern 3D animation style. This was done as a tribute to the original Disney animation style. The background of the film has more of a classic hand drawn feeling to it, emulating the old watercolour style of earlier Disney films, especially with the cottages and castles in the background. However, the colours of the background are dull which does make the background seem boring when compared to the bright array of colours usually associated with Disney. Even though the background and objects have more of a 2D animation style, the characters in the film are in 3D, the modern Disney animation style. The concept of blending the watercolour style and 3D animation could make for an interesting and magical look to the movie. However, this did not have the desired look or outcome. The combination of the animation styles made the movie feel unfinished. In addition, having the background be 2D and the foreground characters 3D made the two worlds feel disconnected, which effects the immersiveness of the movie and makes it harder to connect to the characters and storyline. Disney attempted this combination to create a nostalgic feeling with a modern twist, however, if creating a sense of nostalgia was the objective this would have been better achieved by going back to the original animation style for this movie only. It would have brought in a lot more interest as 2D animation is no longer common making it stand out more and it plays on people’s nostalgia by recreating the feeling off movies from their childhoods.

The characters in “Wish” lack depth, they feel one dimensional making it harder to connect with them. In addition, the characters in the movie lack development, they stay the same throughout most of the movie. The antagonist is one of the best parts of the film, they drive the plot and challenge the protagonist. Disney is known for its amazing villains, unfortunately Magnifico, who is voiced by Chris Pines, is not one of them. The story starts with him being a hero, an amazing sorcerer who founded Rosas and grants people’s wishes because he understands how important they are and how hard they are to achieve. So, he collects everyone’s wishes and randomly grants these wishes at wish ceremonies. However, very soon into the movie he is revealed as the villain when he reveals he will not grant everyone’s wishes only the ones he deems worthy. He is revealed as a narcissistic and egotistical ruler who does not care about his people, but not much is done with this information. The twist happens way too quickly with almost no build up and motivation he simply does this because he can. There is no villain arc or backstory that justifies why he acts the way he does, which adds to the rushed feeling of the movie. His actions are somewhat understandable, some of the wishes are vague and could have very negative consequences as you do not know how they will play out, so it makes sense that he is more cautious. Unfortunately, the protagonist Asha seems to have received the same fate as Magnifico. Asha is portrayed as a very optimistic teenage girl, who cares way too much, and is quirky in an attempt to make her relatable, as seen in the scene where she gets nervous and starts playing with her cheeks and talking weird. Like Magnifico Asha does not have any arc or character development, she starts and ends the movie in the same place. She does not learn a lesson or grow throughout the movie she simply goes from admiring Magnifico and loving wishes to hating Magnifico and giving everyone the ability to fulfil their own wishes. The lack of development of the main character and the lack of motivation for the villain and his actions impacted the plot of the movie.

Moreover, the side characters in the movie seem to receive the same treatment as the main character, having simple personalities and being flat characters. Asha’s family plays a role in motivating her such as her mother and father. Her mother supports her and her father, who died, taught her about the stars which is why she wants to be the king’s apprentice and makes a wish on a star, these action further and play important roles in the plot. Asha’s grandfather’s role is to start the movie, he is turning one hundred and has not received his wish and all she wants to do is have his wish granted which is why she asks Magnifico, and he says no, this is how we find out he is a villain. Her family serves as motivation for her goal in the movie, saving everyone’s wishes. Then there are Asha’s friends whose personalities are just references to the seven dwarves. Dahlia is the leader of the group and Asha often turns to her for advice and help, she represents Doc. Safi sneezes a lot due to allergies he represents Sneezy. Dario is a sweet character but not the brightest, having eaten a cookie Safi sneezed on, he represents Dopey. Hal is not there a lot but when she is she is often happy and upbeat, representing Happy. Simon is often sleepy, making him Sleepy, due to him giving Magnifico his wish, his friends even call him boring. Bazeema is shy and timid having her own place to hide away, she represents Bashful. Then there is Gabo who is often seen bring Asha down and looking for the negatives in every situation, he represents grumpy. Asha has a group of friends who are simply there to help her and have personalities that can be described in one word, having all seven of them there were not very necessary to the plot. Dahlia was necessary as she aids Asha in calming down in the beginning and helps her sneak into Magnifico’s study and distracting him. The other necessary character was Simon as he turns Asha in to get his wish granted which helped further the plot. Aside from Dahlia and Simon the other friends were not needed for the plot. Then there was Magnifico’s wife Queen Amaya, she was portrayed as an important character as she acts as Magnifico’s conscious persuading him to not use dark magic. She does this because she loves him, then suddenly she turns on him instead of trying to help her husband who she loved, then took over his kingdom once he was defeated. They make it seem like they were a close couple, and she was always supporting him, her suddenly turning on him did not really make much sense. Then there is the non-human character, Asha’s pet goat Valentino because every Disney Princess needs her animal side kick. In the beginning he is a regular goat who constantly tries to communicate with her but cannot talk, but after the star comes Valentino is able to talk. Once he can he becomes the funny talking animal sidekick, however, a lot of his jokes feel forced so although there were some bad ones, he did have some comedic value to the movie. In addition, to Valentino there is Star, a sentient star that Asha wishes on then crashes to earth to help her get her wish. Star is a cute little star, who is very happy and just wants to grant people’s wishes. He is magical and often uses his magic in fun mischievous ways, like making the animals in the forest sing or the dancing chickens in the castle. Star is a very important character in the movie as he is the personified version of Asha’s wish, and his magic is crucial in defeating Magnifico. Unlike many of the other characters his importance is shown from his arrival and in Magnifico’s obsession with getting to Star. Although some characters were not necessary to the plot, the movie did have a lot of diversity, all the characters looked very different from each other. They had a variety of weights, heights and ethnicities in the movie even giving Asha braids which has never been done on an animated Disney character before. Although the characters did have their shortcomings, they still had a part to play in the plot of the movie and were well designed by the animators.

The plot of “Wish” screams Disney. Disney’s most common themes are dreams, wishes and making those wishes and dreams come true. Besides Mickey Mouse the thing most associated with Disney is wishing on stars and this movie focuses on that. The movie focuses on Asha a 17-year-old girl who wants to become the King Magnifico’s apprentice and for her grandfather’s wish to be granted. However, after the interview she realises Magnifico is not as good as he seems as he is not going to grant all the wishes. This sends her on a mission to save the wishes, so she makes a wish on the star feeling helpless and a star comes down to help her, and by the end they succeed and grant everyone’s wishes. The plot of the movie feels kind of shallow, which is due to the lack of character development and arcs for both the protagonist and the antagonist. It also feels very straight forward the villain reveals himself almost immediately they set out to stop him and then they do by banding together and using the power of their own wishes to stop him. The story feels very familiar, but it was not done in a new or interesting way. The plot feels boring and predictable with no plot twists or much emotion in the story even when Simon betrays her it does not have much impact because like Asha’s other friends it feels as though they have no real character development, or much personality so there is no connection to them. The movie does emphasize the importance of wishes which is on brand for Disney as characters become different after they give their wishes to Magnifico, such as Simon who becomes boring and sleepy after giving up his wish. However, the movie has no clear message is what it was trying to portray it simply was about wishes, it would have made sense if the movie message was to not give up on your dreams or the importance of wishes which is the message Disney has always portrayed such as with Tangled where Rapunzel risked everything for her dream which shows you should do whatever it takes to make your dream come true or that you need to take risks to make your dreams come true. In the end “Wish” had a predictable storyline and lacked the magic of a Disney movie which is why so many people were disappointed by the movie.

Disney movies are typically musicals and many of their songs are still incredibly popular today. The music in “Wish” did not have the typical Disney feel to them, they felt less emotional and a bit boring making the songs forgettable. Despite having amazing voices on the cast such as Ariana Debose who has been on Broadway and in Stephen Spielberg’s West Side Story. Ariana has an incredibly powerful voice, but it seems as though her voice has been toned down for the music in the film not utilising her ability, using her powerful voice could have resulted in the songs having similar success to the song “Let it go” from Frozen sung by Idina Menzel, who has also sung on Broadway. The toning down of her voice could play a role in the songs feeling as though there is barely any emotion in the music. In addition, it seems as though they tried to create music similar to Lin Manuel Miranda’s style without the help of Lin, so the music did not have the desired effect. It resulted in the songs feeling incomplete and the words feeling slightly off even though there is no issue with the lyrics. This can be seen in the first song “Welcome to Rosas” which feels like a bad copy of “The Family Madrigal” written by Lin Manuel for Encanto. The feel of the song and the idea of explaining the backstory of Rosas to a group of people while they follow Asha around, feels very similar to when Mirabel told the story of her family and their history to kids of the village. In addition, the songs also feel lacklustre such as Magnifico’s villain song. Villain songs tend to popular among Disney fan’s such as “Be prepared”, “Poor unfortunate souls” and “Friends on the other side”, villain songs are typically over the top and reveal the villain’s diabolic side and their evil plans. With Magnifico’s song the dramatic build up is there, as he finally loses control and chooses to give in to the dark magic, however the song was anticlimactic. The instrumental felt too soft and not dramatic enough for a villain song, the words and story telling of the song also feel a bit boring and does not really capture your attention or draw you in like it is supposed to. Even Asha’s protagonist song which is supposed to be her moment of empowerment and motivation to get the wishes back, it feels boring, and the wording isn’t the greatest, but it is better than most of the other music in the movie. The music overall was not the greatest and did not add much to the plot, ultimately, they were not very memorable.

In the movie it is evident that Disney placed a lot of emphasis on the role of nostalgia in the film. This can be seen in references throughout the film. “Wish” starts with a storybook and the main character Asha narrating and explaining the story of how Rosas came to be. This is done to mimic the start of other Disney films such as Snow White, Sleeping Beauty or Sword in the Stone, the storybook opening was very common amongst early Disney animations and is associated with Disney hence creating that nostalgia feeling as it reminds you of the old Disney movies. Another major reference is Asha’s seven friends’ personalities being similar to the personalities of the seven dwarves. In addition to their similar personalities, all of her friends’ names start with the same letter as the dwarf they represent, Safi and Sneezy, Simon and Sleepy, Hal and Happy, Bazeema and Bashful, Gabo and Grumpy, Dario and Dopey and Dahlia and Doc. Their colour pallets even match the colours worn by the seven dwarves. In addition to this there are many other references littered throughout the film, some referencing other Disney characters or movies, this is done through jokes, clothing choices, or objects. Magnifico makes a lot of these references as seen when he is talking about the wishes as the wishes reference The Little Mermaid, Peter Pan and Mary Poppins, he makes a joke about “poppin’” the bubble, he also makes a joke about Neverland, and says the line “Mirrors, mirrors on the wall”, once again referencing Snow White. In addition, Magnifico’s magic is green, this is a common colour associated with older Disney villains, for example, Maleficent, Ursula and Dr Facilier’s magic, the evil queen’s poison apple and the smoke Scar walks through. In the forest scene once, the animals can talk the deer refers to the bear as John, like Little John from Robin Hood, and the bear refers to the deer as Bambi. There are also references in the clothes, in the background there is a boy dressed as Peter Pan talking to a girl who resembles Wendy. Asha also wears a cloak resembling the Fairy Godmother from Cinderella. However, it feels as though there was more focus on these easter eggs and references than on the actual important elements of the film as there were hundreds of references that played no important part in the film or furthering the plot. As fun as the references were having that many was unnecessary.

Disney’s “Wish” did not live up to its potential. The storyline felt incomplete and rushed, with the characters lacking development and the necessary story arcs. The music was not up to the expectations of Disney feeling like poor copies of Lin Manuel Miranda’s songs and lacking depth and emotion. In theory “Wish” could have been an incredible movie as the necessary elements were there, they just did not utilise them correctly. This resulted in Disney creating one of their most disappointing films, because the film was released for their one hundredth anniversary you would think that more time would’ve been spent perfecting the movie to properly honour the hundreds of amazing movies Disney has created.