# Horror Movie Review: Wishmaster



## Sinister (Apr 18, 2004)

This is one of those movies you never really get tired of watching. At any given time, someone could say "Hey lets watch *Wishmaster*" and most likely ( if I haven't seen it very recently) I'll reply with, "Sure. Why not?"

The reason for this is in a large part to Andrew Divoff, the fellow who plays the evil Djinn in the movie. He's one of those smooth word game playing mofo's who would make a perfect foil for James Bond. He practically rules EVERY scene he's in and that is what makes this movie so goddamn entertaining; you're only as good as your villian. And this villian is GREAT!

A statue that is to grace a collectors private collection of lost gods, an idol named Ahura Mazda, is dropped by a drunken worker operating a dock crane, breaking the contents inside and killing the foreman. Another worker finds a precious stone in the rubble of the broken god, and sells it through different channels to where it finally reaches an auction house where it comes into the hands of a Linda Hamilton look-a-like named Alex Amberson. She has a friend she calls on to use the latest state of the art equipment to find out what type of flaw it is in the center of the gem she has discovered. It is of course, the Djinn, imprisoned by a Persian Sorceror some thousand years before inside what is known as a Fire Opal. The Djinn is unleashed and begins wreaking havoc the second it's loosed. He works his particular brand of destruction by granting people a wish, this he does at the price of their souls, and the wish is NEVER what they quite expected it to be. "Be careful of what you wish for," I believe the old adage goes? Alex, since she was responsible for the unwittingly freeing of the Djinn, is granted three wishes, and at the fulfilling of the third, the Djinn's "brothers" are turned loose on Earth to begin their Apocalyptic reign. How far does Alex go? Definitely worth the time if you haven't seen this movie, to find out.

This movie came along I believe while CGI was in its infancy and thank God it's used sparingly, and only for a few scenes, and never for the most important ones. Rubber Latex all the way on all the monster and gore effects. This movie is chock full of icons in the Horror industry Angus Scrimm (_Phantasm_) narrarates the beginning, Reggie Banister (also from _Phantasm_), Tony Todd (_Candyman_ and it's sequels) Kane Hodder (_Friday the 13th Part VII-Jason X_) Robert Englund (_A Nightmare on Elm Street-Freddy vs. Jason_) and also *Evil Dead* director, Sam Raimi's brother , Ted makes a cameo. That list of Horror heavies, ALONE ought to be enough to whet anyones appetite to see what is going on in this movie.

I can't recommend this enough. Suffice it to say, I believe this should be in every Horror fans collection, if it isn't in yours, go out and buy it immediately. My copy also has *Wishmaster II* so that's a double dose of Divoff, along with wide-screen format and the other goodies that come along (or should) in a DVD of this quality. Don't waste your money on parts 3 and 4, they just simply aren't worth the time. Divoff ain't in either one of 'em.

Rating: ****


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## Joyfuldead (Jun 27, 2004)

I love wishmaster, I have them all, but ofcourse the first one is so great and everyone and their mother is in it. great review.


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## Sinister (Apr 18, 2004)

Danke! It's just a carry over from the old site. Just providing a public service here.


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