Synopsis
The Djinn (John Novak) is unwittingly released by Tara Spencer Nairn. Adopting the identityof one of her friends, the Djinn insinuates himself into her life. If she makes three wishes, hisentire race will be unleashed upon the earth. The tricky thing is, her last wish is that she couldlove him for himself. Oops. How is the Djinn supposed to grant a wish that only she can grant?He certainly has an odd way of courting her. Very, very, very low-budget stuff, mildly divertingfo… those of us who actually live in Winnipeg. Less so for everybody else.
Audio
A very solid job on the audio, especially with regards to the music. The mix is strong, thevolume loud, the surround effect impressive. The left-right separation of the sound effects,though, is rather ordinary — in fact, it’s barely noticeable.
Video
The picture gets off to a bit of a rocky start, with rather washed out colours (and I’m nottalking about the deliberately pale video footage). These improve, becoming quite strong, thoughthe picture remains a touch soft and there is some grain as well. The format is 1.85:1 anamorphicwidescreen.
Special Features
For such a tiny picture, this disc is loaded. I’m not sure TWO commentary tracks werenecessary (one with director Chris Angel and actors Michael Trucco and Jason Thompson, theother with Angel and Novak). In fact, the amount of overlap suggests that the movie really can’tsupport both. (The Novak track tends toward plain silliness too). Again, plenty of stuff to interestWinnipeggers, though. “Wishmasterpiece Theater” is an irritatingly narrated behind-the-scenesfeaturette (some interesting footage here, though the piece is only 7 minutes long). TheWishmaster Dating Guide is a collection of groaner audio jokes. There’s also a trailer and somehard-to-make-out storyboards. Finally, there are some liner notes from the director. The menu isscored and animated, though the riot of colours sometimes makes it hard to see exactly whatoption you’ve selected.
Closing Thoughts
Look, you don’t expect Citizen Kane out of this. As sub-TV budgets go, this could be worse.And the extras go beyond the call of duty.
Special Features List
- 2 Commentaries
- “Wishmasterpiece Theater” Featurette
- Wishmaster Dating Guide
- Trailer
- Storyboard Gallery
