Wishmaster 2 (1999)
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| Directed by: |
Jack
Sholder
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| Starring: |
Andrew
Divoff/The Djinn |
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Holly
Fields/Morgana |
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Paul
Johansson/Gregory |
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| RATING
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PLOT-CRUNCH:
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The Djinn (Divoff) is once again released from his prison, this time by a
cute art thief (Fields) but he needs to collect 1001 souls before he can
get the 3 wishes that will connect his world to ours. 1001 souls…that’s
a lot of work, where can an evil genie go to shop for those? Of course…Vegas
baby…Vegas…
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THE
LOWDOWN: |
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Not really a sequel, more a remake of the original that ups the humor and
downs the budget. I’ll go pro and con with this one.
PROS
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We see more of
Andrew Divoff without makeup and he hams it up deliciously..
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The Djinn is put
into various interesting settings: the scenes with him in jail are
hilarious, the Djin in Vegas or the Djin hangin with the Russian mob…fun
times.
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The humour is
darker and more prominent than in the first, ever seen a guy f..k
himself up the ass??? Now that’s funny!
CONS
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The effects are
vastly inferior to the original’s: in the beginning they’re pretty
good but as the movie rolls on, they get weaker and sillier looking.
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The end slaughter
scene in Vegas feels rushed and doesn’t go the distance with the
opportunities it has.
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The story is too
similar to the original’s except it’s less thought out.
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I didn’t care for
the subplot involving ex-boyfriend priest Gregory (Johansson), the
"redemption" theme left me indifferent and the choice to not
follow or respect the "djinn" rules set up in the first one
was kind of a cheat.
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It mostly comes
down to budget. This one just didn’t have enough money to achieve
what it set out to do properly. So the movie feels half baked, cheap
and put out for the buck. I WISH the next Wishmaster has a BIGGER
budget…
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| ACTING: |
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Holly Fields (Morgana) gives an interesting mix of vulnerability and strength
to her part. She also looks great in skimpy outfits. Paul Johansson
(Gregory) is pretty boring, I mean he’s got the looks but he doesn’t
have that special something to make him interesting onscreen. Andrew
Divoff (Djin) is having a jolly old time, going further with his
interpretation of the Djin. The Djin acts less "human" even in
humanoid form and that gives place to some really funny bits. Just the way
he looks at people who want to kick his arse…with a big fat grin on his
face…it cracked me up. His performance keeps the movie alive.
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| GORE: |
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Enough…There’s a guy that goes through prison bars (juicy), literally.
The opening scene has some nice gooey stuff going around and the end
carnage in Vegas does offer a few goodies. There’s one girl who
defecates gambling chips… now that’s different!
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& A: |
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I WISH there was…
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| DIRECTING: |
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Sholder does what he can with the low budget. In lesser hands this could’ve
been a total disaster. But Sholder capitalizes on Divoff’s presence,
makes the movie look slick and moves the film at a quick pace…maybe too
quick…It’s too bad the visual effects (computer ones) are weak, they
tarnish the movie’s feel.
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| SOUNDTRACK: |
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I WISH I remembered the score…
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| BOTTOM LINE: |
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It doesn’t measure up to the original. On it’s own it
does offer us a few laughs, a few creative kills and Divoff’s different
take on the sultan of mayhem is definitely entertaining. He keeps the
movie afloat and makes it worth a peek. I think it boils down to "are
you a Divoff fan", if so check it out, if not rent the first one
again…it’s carries the same themes, is more developed and has gnarlier
effects.
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| BULL'S EYE: |
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Divoff told The Arrow that he no longer will play the Wishmaster. But
there’s two sequels in the works filming back to back…bad idea. It
reminds of Stepfather 3 without Terry O Quinn…it won't work.
The
Arrow interviews Andrew Divoff here
Discuss
this movie on The Arrow's HORROR BOARD
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