Review: Disney's fairytale prototype 'Wish' is gorgeous to watch, but skimpy as a storytelling vehicle

Disney’s newest, “Wish,” takes its inspiration from a century of Walt Disney’s animation genius — though “inspiration” is a big word for what feels like an empty exercise in corporate branding.

“Wish” sets itself up not just as a Disney animated movie, but an amalgam of every Disney animated movie, from “Snow White and the Seven Dwarves” to “Encanto.” Unfortunately, though the animation studio is at the top of their game in terms of animation technology and artistry, in this case the movie labors mightily and brings forth a mouse.

In Rosas, a benevolent city-state on a Mediterranean island, we meet Asha (voiced by Ariana DeBose), a tour guide who shows arrivals how wonderful their new home is. One reason it’s wonderful, Asha explains, is that everyone, on their 18th birthday, reveals their most precious wish — and gives that wish to their ruler, King Magnifico (voiced by Chris Pine). The King, who is also a sorcerer, keeps all the wishes safe, and on rare occasions grants one to come true.

Asha — who is applying to be the King’s apprentice (a sorcerer’s apprentice, get it?) — hopes that, on this occasion, Magnifico will grant the wish of her grandfather, Sabino (voiced by Victor Garber), who is turning 100. When the King denies this request, and reveals the secret that he denies nearly every wish because they might threaten his throne, Asha runs to the tree where she and her late father used to look at the stars, and she makes an unauthorized wish on a star.

This time, the star answers. It comes down to earth as a cute luminescent blob, spreading stardust around in its wake. When that stardust touches animals, it makes them able to talk — and one of the first animals we see this happen to is Asha’s pet goat, Valentino (voiced by Disney’s reliable voice actor, Alan Tudyk). When it happens to the woodland creatures, we learn there’s a deer named Bambi and a bear named John (possibly a reference to the Balou-like Little John in Disney’s “Robin Hood”).

Diehard Disney fans will watch “Wish” when it appears on home video and go through it frame-by-frame, with a checklist of Disney animated movies and seeing how many are referenced. Maybe, just maybe, this gambit will keep viewers from noticing how slight the main story is. The script is credited to Jennifer Lee (“Wreck-It Ralph,” “Frozen”) and Allison Moore (a TV writer making her movie debut), but it feels like the entire corporate structure of Disney gave notes. It’s as if Disney learned from the Marvel Cinematic Universe that you can construct an entire movie out of Easter eggs.

The song score, by lyricist Julia Michaels and composer Benjamin Rice, includes the scene-setting opening (“Welcome to Rosas”), Asha’s “I want” song (“This Wish”), and a great villain song for Magnifico (“This Is the Thanks I Get?!”), just as the formula demands. Thankfully, DeBose and Pine are talented singers, and deliver a lot of intense emotion.

The good part of “Wish” is the way directors Chris Buck (“Tarzan,” “Frozen”) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (a story artist on “Zootopia,” “Ralph Breaks the Internet” and “Raya and the Last Dragon”) deploy 100 years of Disney animation magic to make every frame pop off the screen. If you can overlook the skimpy story, “Wish” is a visual treat.

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‘Wish’

★★★

Opens Wednesday, November 22, in theaters everywhere. Rated PG for thematic elements and mild action. Running time: 92 minutes.