Wishmaster, written by Peter Atkins and directed by Robert Kurtzman was released back in 1997 and tells the story of an ancient evil that was been encapsulated within an opal. When that evil is finally released, anyone and everyone who comes into contact with the ‘Djinn’ will become one more soul to add to his collection.
Depsite being released back in 1997, Wishmaster still manages to draw in fans of all ages from the horror family with its supernatural tale of a Djinn that had been incarcerated within a ‘fire opal’ jewel back in the year 1127AD, but when the statue of Ahura Mazda is delivered to museum currator and collector of all things old, Raymond Beaumont (played by Robert Englund) – an accident causes it to break free from chains that are transporting it off from a cargo ship, killing Beaumont’s assistant in the process. Contained within the statue is the fire opal which is quickly picked up by a dock worker who then pawns it.
The jewel soon finds it way to Regal Auctioneers where Nick Merritt asks appraiser Alexandra Amberson to examine it. This seems to awaken the Djinn and when she asks her collegue, Josh Aickman to analyze it, it explodes – destorying the lab and releasing the Djinn.
On hearing of Josh’s death, Alexandra begins to look into the history of the jewel as she tracks it back to the statue of Ahura Mazda and also that of Raymond Beaumont. Beaumont tells Alexandra to speak with Wendy Derleth, an expert in historial folklore, who explains to her that the Djinn grants wishes in exchange for souls.
With Alexandra busy trying to find out more, the Djinn is slowly making his way around the city, granting wishes to those he crosses paths with, but he always finds a way to grant their wishes with undesirable results.
His aim is to track down the jewel he was incarcerated into as he needs this to open the gateways to hell, thus releasing legions of Djinn on Earth.
The movie stars some incredible acting talent with the likes of Tony Todd, Kane Hodder and Tom Savini all having relatively small roles. Robert Englund, whilst only have a few brief scenes still maintains a screen presence that feels just as creepy back then as he does in todays more modern movies.
Also, lets not forget about the incredible perfomance by Andrew Divoff who brings a terrifying menace to the Wishmaster both in human and monster form. It is hard to picture anyone else playing the role of both the Djinn (in monster form) and that of his human form – Nathaniel Demerest as his screen persona is truly terrifying at times and even in some scenes where you think he is being polite to some people, you just get the feeling he is simply toying with them until he gets what he wants. A great example of this is a scene involving department store worker, Ariella, who – when asked about ageing and staying beautiful forever – he turns her into a mannequin!
There are other scenes such as this – such as the ones involving Tony Todd’s character, Johnny Valentine and also that of Kane Hodder’s character, a security guard for Nick Merritt.
But as on-screen monsters (or villans) go, Andrew Divoff plays his role brilliantly well.
Overall, and without wanting to give the ending away, Wishmaster is truly an iconic movie that has aged quite well over the years. The practical effects still look superb and whilst the CGI can at times look a little dated on their own, they still dont detract from the overall feel of the movie.
If you didnt already know, there are three other installments in the Wishmaster franchise – Wishmaster 2: Evil Never Dies (1999), Wishmaster 3: Beyond the Gates of Hell (2001) and Wishmaster 4: The Prophecy Fulfilled (2002). However, Andrew Divoff only stars in the first two movies with Joh Novak playing the role of the Djinn in the third and fourth installments.
Please remember to comment down below if you have seen Wishmaster (and/or any of the other installments in this franchise) and let us know what you thought of them.
Why not place them in order of your favourites? With number one being your favourite and number four being your least.
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