Horrorfest 2025: Wishmaster

Wishmaster
Written by Peter Atkins
Directed by Robert Kurtzman
Starring Tammy Lauren, Andrew Divoff, Kane Hodder, Tony Todd and Robert Englund
USA, 1997

Since I came of age in the 90s, 90s flicks rarely look dated to me. WISHMASTER is a huge exception. Every frame of this thing looks old.

Part of this is because WISHMASTER came along in 1997, a time when CGI was ubiquitous enough to be in lower budget movies but not good enough to look good in low budget movies. 

Add to this the fact that they use CGI effects right up next to pretty great practical effects, and the CGI stands out as glaringly bad. There’s one scene early on in which a skeleton emerges from a man and gets up and walks around. As it’s emerging from a man, it’s a real practical effect and looks awesome. As it stands up and walks around, it’s shitty CGI, and looks stupid.

Anyway, WISHMASTER tells the tale of a djinn (genie) who is awakened in the 90s and wants to take over the world. If he can get someone to make three wishes, he can break down the walls between worlds and all his djinn buddies can come in. I think. It’s something like that. I don’t totally get the rules here cuz for part of the thing is that djinns are all powerful, but can only use their magic to grant a wish. So, the djinn spends a lot of screen time trying to manipulate people into making wishes. But then, other times, he just uses magic, anyway. So, not sure what’s going on there, or why he doesn’t just get the first person he meets to make three wishes, instead of specifically targeting the person who rubbed his… stone.

Add to this the fact that the djinn, like genies in many stories, has a ton of flexibility when it comes to how he interprets these wishes. Sometimes it’s so broad he might as well not be granting a wish at all. So why this charade? Also, who cares?

The good stuff here comes in the form of Andrew Divoff and his performance as the Djinn. He gives off a perfect weird, creepy vibe and is not afraid to help himself to the scenery. Also, the PRACTICAL effects and makeup are great. As long as the shoddy CGI isn’t on screen, this works as a fun showcase for some crazy effects. Genre fans will enjoy supporting roles and cameos of horror icons, including Robert Englund, Tony Todd and a whole lot more.