What You Wish For (2023)

7/10

PANDIAN1206211 June 2024

Warning: Spoilers

"What You Wish For" is a dish you bite into thinking it's one temperature but realize after chewing it over that its true heat breaks late... A movie about a man's lies getting him deeper and deeper into trouble...A level of danger is inherent in what's taking place, and the stakes only get higher as the night progresses making your night disturbing...

Movies that will shake up and give you something new to digest. "What You Wish For" may have some twists you can smell coming from a few paces away,keeps you hungry to discover what happens in the final course...

Nick Stahl shines as Ryan from the very first moment he is on screen, all the way to the very end. Viewers go on quite the journey with him, and while he is a bit mysterious at first, it becomes rather easy to connect with him and root for him to make it safely through this experience...

Thankfully, "What You Wish For" does not force you to wait too long for this to happen...The first act is going to feel predictable, but the movie keeps enough twists and turns hidden for the third act, have no fear & perhaps the climax is indeed a biggest strength for the movie... Some scenes are a little difficult to watch, but "What You Wish For" never gets too gory, but there is an uneasy feeling that many will get during certain scenes...

Overall "What You Wish For" works extremely well as an entertaining and suspenseful thriller. It is dark, yet funny at times, and provides a social commentary that will resonate with many in different ways...

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6/10

Solid Thriller

dubond2 June 2024

Sort of like a B movie version of The Menu, What You Wish For follows Ryan (Stahl) a chef with gambling problems who flees to a Latin America villa that his friend is staying in. Ryan wishes he had his friend, Jack's life because it seems so much better than this. Well he gets his wish... but soon finds out that Jack's life wasn't as great as it initially seemed. This is a very weird and solid indie that I would say mostly works and is definitely worth watching. The plot of this isn't really anything new but if you like dark comedies you will probably like this. Although in my opinion this movie sort of flounders in the third act and the ending to me was kinda ultimately unsatisfying, but I would still say this is worth a watch.

Stahl who was a promising actor in the early 2000's sort of disappeared for a while and fell off the radar due to his substance abuse issues. Although if you look at his IMDB page for the past few years he's been trying to work his way back by doing smaller indie movies like this. What You Wish For is likely the best of the bunch. Also if you want the best experience when watching this movie go in blind and don't watch the trailer (it spoils basically everything). Nick Stahl definitely deserves to have a comeback.

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10/10

Proof that a good story is better than unlimited budget

farout-456651 June 2024

This was clearly a movie on a budget. As someone who hates the cringe porn style of B movies this was a better watch than most mainstream movies out today.

Unlike B movies this manages to immerse you in and hold your interest and attention.

This is mainly thanks to the story, the pacing and the general style.

Some acting was amateurish and wooden. However it seems to have been perfectly apt with the story as it was consistent with the theme of the story throughout.

Its honestly a well written and done movie. I dont know if its a fluke that it all seems to have come together with such style.

We desperately need more movies like this where substance and story telling has to come above a formalistic, repetitive, boring, big budget money grab.

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9/10

Understands what it is and takes us on a well balanced and wild journey

jtindahouse1 October 2023

Short review: The synopsis for 'What You Wish For' was so vague I really had no idea what to expect going in. The little we did get about a chef with a gambling problem assuming someone's identity didn't even scratch the iceberg though. This film was an absolute blast from start to finish.

I don't think I'll ever forget the minute the ball drops in this film. It was said so casually and reacted to so calmly that I thought I must've misheard or misunderstood. I didn't though and from there on out we were on a wild ride.

The film is dark, but also often hilarious. It finds a great balance in terms of how seriously to take itself, certainly leaning heavily towards the serious side, but just enough tongue-in-cheek moments to realise just how out there of an idea this is. I really enjoyed this one. 9/10.

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10/10

Surpsingly good and unexpected!!

joeygassert2 June 2024

I just saw this get added to the streaming site I use, so I really had no idea what to expect. I read the description and it said something about a chef who was down on his luck, and that it was also a thriller.. so I gave it a try!

Its very dark and unsettling, and its like your watching the movie through the eyes of the main character because he is in nearly every scene.

I loved how it just kinda jumped right into it and it never lets up, the ending has a really nice twist too! If you like thrillers and you're looking for something fresh and entertaining, this will absolutely do the trick.

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5/10

What You Wish For

BandSAboutMovies18 October 2023

Warning: Spoilers

Ryan (Nick Stahl) has left the boring life of working in a chain hotel kitchen to travel to the rainforests of Latin America and meet up with his culinary school classmate Jack (Brian Groh). It may not have been by choice that Ryan has left his job, as he's run up some bad debts and has someone even worse after him.

Jack is living the life that Ryan always wanted. So when his friend disappears and gives him the chance to take over his life - and his money and status - well, sign Ryan up. The problem? Jack wasn't exactly working his dream position. Now, Ryan has all of his problems.

Directed and written by Nicholas Tomnay, this finds Ryan working for some of the most horrific rich people ever, lorded over by their employee Imogene (Tamsin Topolski), and forced to stay one step ahead of both their frightening culinary demands and the police who are looking for the real Jack, who by the way hung himself this morning.

Ryan always wanted to make a meal more exciting than roasted chicken. This meal is way more interesting - and maybe final - than any he imagined. What an interesting idea for a film and one that really delivers.

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9/10

Keep your distance!

kms-914611 June 2024

It is so absurd, that it is no longer neither a horror nor a thriller. If you prepare yourself for pure fun, then it can by a good watching.

There are difficult moments, but gradually it becomes so unrealistic, that you can easily survive.

It has an atmosphere of old good criminal stories, location is fabulous, some scenes are pure fun.

I generally hate horror movies, but this one is not the one.

I would not go that far, that we have a satire on the rich people here, but definitely there may be some truth about crazy ideas of those who have everything and boredome makes them sick in their minds.

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....more effective,twisty thrillers like this!

dweston-386694 June 2024

Warning: Spoilers

What starts out as a down on his luck chef with a gambling debt who takes on the identity of his recently decreased pal turns into a darkly funny, pacy horror/ thriller that has us both chuckling at the insanity of the story and it's various sick side turns.

We both kept imagining that this twisted dinner party would be something extravagantly silly that both Matthew and Liz would attend in London or indeed Phil with his cooking at home for obnoxious people with money. ' Tongue sorbet', anyone!

Like the superb 'Fresh' from a couple of years ago, this is a showcase of body horror, cannibalism and keeping an audience guessing that is lean (no pun intended) and doesn't need a lot of money to make one satisfied throughout the experience. Unlike Furiosa!

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