Wakko's Wish

Wakko's Wish is a 1999 direct-to-video animated musical comedy film based on the 1993–98 animated series Animaniacs, serving as the series finale until the announcement of the 2020 revival of the series. It relocates all of the Animaniacs characters to a quasi-19th century fairy tale world and portrays their race to find the wishing star that will grant them a wish.

Wakko's Wish
VHS cover
Directed byLiz Holzman
Rusty Mills
Tom Ruegger
Produced byLiz Holzman
Rusty Mills
Tom Ruegger
Screenplay byCharles M. Howell IV
Earl Kress
Tom Ruegger
Randy Rogel
Kevin Hopps
Nick DuBois
Story byTom Ruegger
Starring
Narrated byTom Bodett
Music byRichard Stone
Steven Bernstein
Julie Bernstein
Gordon Goodwin
Tim Kelly
Edited byJohn Carnochan
Tim Hill
Production
company
Distributed byWarner Home Video
Release date
  • December 21, 1999 (1999-12-21)
Running time
80 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The film was first released on VHS on December 21, 1999, by Warner Home Video under the Warner Bros. Family Entertainment label. It contained 10 original songs and features a majority of the voice cast reprising their respective roles from the TV show.

Plot

Note: Some aspects of the plot borrow from, and are a parody of, the Marx Bros.' Duck Soup.

In the town of Acme Falls within the kingdom of Warnerstock, all the people (including the mime) live happily together. However, upon the death of their beloved king, Sir William the Good, Warnerstock enters a state of civil war. Taking advantage of the situation, the neighboring kingdom of Ticktockia (a parody of Time Inc. at the time of its merger with Warner Communications) , led by King Salazar the Pushy (drawn as a caricature of classic film actor Basil Rathbone and wearing a cloak with a clasp that resembles rapper Flavor Flav's clock necklace), takes over Warnerstock, and makes all its people poor and miserable due to overtaxing (also a parody of the formation of Time Warner, now WarnerMedia, owned by telecom conglomerate AT&T, which acquired Time Warner in 2018). Three siblings, Yakko, Wakko, and Dot Warner, are particularly broke, as Dot needs an operation. Wakko finds work in another town to pay for it, but Plotz takes his pay – a ha'penny – from him, lying that it's for taxes.

Wakko, saddened about Dot's illness and finding no other choice, wishes upon a star. A fairy (who calls himself a "Desire Fulfillment Facilitator" or "Pip") falls from the star and explains that Wakko had just chosen the only wishing star in the sky. The star itself [which Rita and Runt witness] falls shortly after in the mountains and the fairy tells Wakko that whoever touches the star first gets one wish. The following morning, the siblings tell the whole town in singing form about the star in their excitement, and all rush towards the glow in the mountains. King Salazar finds out about the star, orders Taxman Plotz to stop the Warners from reaching the star alive, and orders his troops, led by the Captain of the Guard (a caricature of Dennis Hopper), to secure it.

Plotz does not stop the Warners from reaching the star at the same time as all the other townsfolk. However, the King's army has already built a military base around the star, and a small ice palace to the side of it, and the townspeople (including Plotz) are all captured and locked up so that the King may have his wish. The Warners hint that the wishing process is not as simple as the king thinks in a desperate bluff. The King captures the Warners and tortures them in outlandish ways, from Mr. Director's terrible singing (Mr. Director being a caricature of Jerry Lewis), then a filthy gas station restroom, and lastly Baloney the Dinosaur (who is a parody of Barney the Dinosaur). After being traumatized, the Warners tell the King that any wish, which he makes, may have an ironic twist and demonstrate this to his annoyance. He orders the Warners executed, but Dot uses her "cuteness" to save them. The Warners escape.

As the King is about to make his wish (for the Warners to leave him alone), the Warners show up, and he tries shooting them himself with a cannon. The cannonball explodes after landing just short of hitting the Warners, injuring Dot from the shock wave of the blast. Yakko tries to convince Dot that she can make it, tearfully telling Dot the story of how she was born one last time. Dot appears to die, causing Yakko and the people of Acme Falls to cry in sorrow, along with some of the royal army, who become furious with King Salazar for his cruel nature. As everyone turns on the King (who seemingly appears a little remorseful), Wakko seizes his chance to head to the star, reaching it in time. Dot reveals that she had been acting and was not actually dead; the two were buying time for Wakko. Wakko wishes for two half pennies.

Wakko uses the second of these to buy food and "season tickets for the Lakers". The first one pays for Dot's operation, which is revealed to be a plastic surgery to give her a beauty mark. Wakko's first ha'penny, however, returns prosperity to the town as the butcher, the baker, and the grocer spend the money that they earned, and the people from whom they make purchases in turn do the same.

The hospital finds Yakko, Wakko, and Dot's birth certificates, and reveals they are the heirs to the throne. Their parents, seen for the first (and only) time in a portrait, were the king and queen of Warnerstock. They (literally) boot Salazar out of their palace, and he is attacked by his own dogs. The Warners use their newfound royal authorities to grant the citizens of Acme Falls their wishes - except for the mime (who is promptly crushed by a safe and Yakko stating, "I don't know about him, but that sure was my wish!"). Yakko then spins the Wheel of Morality, which specifies the moral of the story is "Just cheer up and never ever give up hope."

Voice cast

Production and release

Wakko's Wish featured 10 original songs, with lyrics written by Tom Ruegger and Randy Rogel,[1] and songs composed by Animaniacs composers Richard Stone and Julie Bernstein. The compositions Stone wrote for the film were some of the last he wrote for Warner Bros. Animation prior to his death on March 9, 2001.[2]

Although Wakko’s Wish had been rated highly amongst children and adults in test screenings,[3] Warner Bros. decided to release it direct-to-video[4] rather than spending money on marketing a wide release.[5] Wakko's Wish was originally slated for its VHS release in November 1998, but was pushed back to December 21, 1999.[6] On August 25, 2008, Wakko's Wish was released for rental or purchase on iTunes. Wakko's Wish has also aired on cable networks such as Cartoon Network,[7] Cinemax, Boomerang and more recently on The Hub (now Discovery Family). It is also available to download from the PlayStation Store. The film was released on DVD on October 7, 2014, shortly after the deaths of Liz Holzman in 2014 and Rusty Mills in 2012, two of the main directors of the film.[8]

Musical numbers
  1. "Never Give Up Hope"
  2. "Train Bringing Wakko"
  3. "I've Got a Ha'Penny"
  4. "So Much for Wakko's Ha'Penny"
  5. "Twinkle, Twinkle"
  6. "The Wishing Star"
  7. "Hungarian Rhapsody"
  8. "If I Could Have My Wish Then I'd Be Happy"

Reception

Test screenings of Wakko's Wish on children and parents revealed very positive reactions to the film. In February 1999, ToonZone reported that "97% of kids and parents gave it a review of 'highly positive'", and that "98% of children screened gave the film a rating of good, very good, or excellent".[3][5]

Critical reception

Critical reviews for Wakko's Wish were generally positive. Many comments of the film focused on the introduction of a serious tone to a series known for its off-the wall humor. Brett Rogers of AOL Hometown gave the film a positive review, saying that "[t]here’s a lot about this movie that will please die-hard Animaniacs fans," noting the appearances of almost all of the main characters and antagonists of the original series. Rogers pointed that the pathos not usually seen in the series may leave some Animaniacs fans distant from the film, but that the serious tone is "backed up with superb voice acting," by Paulsen and Harnell.[9] Other reviews were not so positive. MaryAnn Johanson of FlickFilosopher wrote that "[i]mposing the kind of story and characters necessary to fill a 90-minute movie upon the Animaniacs constrains their lunacy," and that doing so left the characters boring, so much that "older kids and adult fans of the Warners et al may be sorely disappointed."[10] Michael Stewart of Entertainment Weekly found that the lack of the typical Animaniacs humor was positive, saying that the film "avoids the forced wackiness that plagues the television series," while "deliver[ing] some laughs for both kids and adults." However, he noted a similar criticism to Johanson, saying that placing the entire Animaniacs cast into the film felt uncomfortable, and that the "[w]arm sentiments" of the film aren't the "specialty" of Animaniacs. He rated the film a "C+" overall.[11] Michael Dequina of TheMovieReport.com gave one of the most positive reviews of the film. Praising the film's "smart, satiric in-jokes for the adults and broader slapstick for the young ones," Dequina said that the film was "one glorious example" of a family film that would appeal to the whole family, and rated the film with three and a half out of four stars.[12]

Accolades

In 2000, Wakko's Wish was nominated for four Annie Awards: One for "Outstanding Achievement in An Animated Home Video Production", one for "Outstanding Individual Achievement for Music in an Animated Feature Production" (Richard Stone, Steven Bernstein, Julie Bernstein, Gordon Goodwin & Timothy Kelly), one for "Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting By a Female Performer in an Animated Feature Production" (Tress MacNeille), and one for "Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting By a Male Performer in an Animated Feature Production" (Maurice LaMarche).[13] Since its release, Wakko's Wish has been rated as one of the "Top 60 Animated Features Never Theatrically Released in the United States" by the Animated Movie Guide.[14]

Trivia
  • Initially, it was intended as the first in a series of films based on the TV show, but after sales fell short of expectations, Warner Bros. canceled all planned sequels. However, the film has become a cult classic among TV series fans.
  • It is one of the last works performed by composer Richard Stone (he died of pancreatic cancer on March 9, 2001).
  • It is the last original animated production on the series, ahead of the 2020 reboot.

References
  1. "Wakko's Wish: Story: Crew". Official Wakko's Wish Website. Warner Bros. 2000. Archived from the original on October 14, 2002. Retrieved April 20, 2010.
  2. "Toon Zone News Archives: March 2001: The Day the Music Died". Toon Zone News. Toon Zone. March 19, 2001. Retrieved May 20, 2010.
  3. "Toon Zone News Archives: February 1999". Toon Zone News. Toon Zone. February 12, 1999. Retrieved May 11, 2007. ...97% of kids and parents gave it a review of "highly positive"...
  4. "First-ever "STEVEN SPIELBERG PRESENTS ANIMANIACS" feature-length spectacular unveiled". Time Warner Newsroom. Time Warner. October 26, 1999. Retrieved April 30, 2007.
  5. "Toon Zone News Archives: February 1999". Toon Zone News. Toon Zone. February 18, 1999. Retrieved May 11, 2007.
  6. Ruegger, Tom (November 30, 2010). "Cartoonatics: Animaniacs Christmas Movie".
  7. "Daytime tv highlights", Newsday, p. B.86, July 12, 2003
  8. "Animaniacs DVD news: Announcement for Animaniacs - Wakko's Wish". TVShowsOnDVD.com. June 26, 2014. Archived from the original on August 15, 2014. Retrieved July 30, 2014.
  9. Rogers, Brett (December 21, 1999). "Review of Wakko's Wish". AOL Hometown. Archived from the original on December 31, 2005. Retrieved April 18, 2010.
  10. Johanson, MaryAnn (December 21, 1999). "Animaniacs: Wakko's Wish (review)". FlickFilosopher. Retrieved April 18, 2010.
  11. Michael, Stewart (December 17, 1999). "Video Review: Wakko's Wish". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 18, 2010.
  12. Michael, Dequina (January 31, 2000). "Steven Spielberg Presents Animaniacs: Wakko's Wish". TheMovieReport.com. Archived from the original on September 22, 2012. Retrieved April 18, 2010.
  13. "Legacy: 28th Annual Annie Award Nominees and Winners (2000)". Annie Award Database. January 31, 2000. Retrieved April 18, 2010.
  14. Beck, Jerry (2005). The Animated Movie Guide. Chicago, Illinois: Chicago Review Press. p. 328. ISBN 1-55652-591-5.
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