Wish Upon
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Screen for YOUR familyParent's Guide to Wish Upon
Wish Upon is a 2017 supernatural horror film that follows Clare Shannon, a high school outcast who receives a mysterious music box. This box promises to grant seven wishes, offering Clare a chance to escape her challenging life and attain popularity, wealth, and romance. However, Clare soon discovers that each wish comes with a terrifying consequence: someone close to her dies in increasingly gruesome and elaborate ways.
Things to Consider
Violence
The film features graphic and often elaborate depictions of death and violence, which are central to the plot as consequences of the wishes. These include bloody accidents, suicides, and direct acts of harm.
A woman's hair is yanked forcefully enough to snap her neck. Clare's father, Jonathan Shannon, is decapitated by a dropped chainsaw, with the bloody results shown just outside camera view. Clare's mother's suicide by hanging is a traumatic event Clare witnessed as a child. Clare's friend Meredith dies when an elevator plummets 30 floors, impaling her on glass and metal debris. Another friend, Gina, slips and is impaled head-first on a pointed object. A teen, Paul, slashes his wrists in a suicide attempt, though he survives.
Profanity
The movie contains frequent and strong profanity, including multiple instances of offensive language and misuse of religious exclamations.
Witchcraft & Occult
Witchcraft and occult themes are central to the entire plot, revolving around a cursed object, demonic entities, and the consequences of engaging with dark supernatural powers.
Scary & Intense Content
As a horror film, "Wish Upon" features frequent scary and intense sequences, including disturbing imagery, jump scares, and the graphic depictions of death caused by the cursed music box.
Disrespect & Rebellion
The protagonist, Clare, displays significant disrespect and rebellious behavior, particularly through her selfish use of the wish box and disregard for the fatal consequences impacting those around her.
Anti-Christian Themes
The film prominently features an anti-Christian worldview, with a pagan and occult premise where demonic forces are active and seemingly undefeatable, lacking any positive religious counterbalance or resolution.
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Additional Context
Best For Ages
This film is recommended for ages 15 and older due to its frequent and graphic violence, pervasive supernatural occult themes, strong profanity, and disturbing content including suicides and themes of intense disrespect.
Good to Know
The film's theatrical release was rated PG-13, but the director's cut initially received an R rating due to significantly gorier content, indicating a deliberate toning down for a younger audience, though the core themes and intensity remain. The movie ends with a setup for a potential sequel, as the wish box falls into the hands of another character, Ryan. The protagonist, Clare, evolves into an increasingly unsympathetic character, making it challenging for audiences to empathize with her choices.
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