Wishmaster 4 - La profezia maledetta

I didn't have too many expectations about this movie, having just recently seen Wishmaster 3. I just found out that the original Wishmaster was a Wes Craven flick, that was likely better this sequel, but I haven't seen it yet, nor have I seen Wishmaster 2. They probably would've ruined me for this one, but since I'm likely starting at the bottom of the barrel I can't complain. I loved this one, and Wishmaster 3. No, not really all that scary, either of them. But good fun, I found myself laughing thoughout much of it. Treat it as a comedy, you'll enjoy it more.

I loved some of the ideas they brought in to this sequel. The evil djinn is actually a bit of a good guy in some cases here. He has to actually win the heart of a girl in the old fashioned way: flowers, candy, and sex. And on top of it all, he must protect his love from being murdered by the equally evil agent of heaven. You can't tell who's a good guy and who's bad sometimes. Interesting twist on the good vs. evil plot -- I liked it.

It seems John Novak has a better handle on being the Djinn than he did in the previous movie. Wishmaster III was horrible, so I had serious reservations on watching this one. However, it wasn't too bad. Not as good as the first two (Andrew Divoff was amazing), but I quite enjoyed this one. The heroine is nice eye candy and the dialogue isn't too hammy. Even a Djinn can find love!

Wishmaster 4: The Prophecy Fulfilled (2002)

** (out of 4)

The fourth and (so far) final film in the series has Djinn (John Novak) taking over the body of a lawyer so that he can make his client Lisa (Tara Spencer-Nairn) ask for three wishes, which will fulfill the evil one's prophecy. It appears there are fans out there of the first WISHMASTER movie and it appears some of them are lukewarm when it comes to the first sequel. After that, it appears those same fans hate parts three and four with a real passion so perhaps my not liking the first film made these direct-to-video sequels seem not as bad. I'm not going to sit here and say that this film is a lost masterpiece or some sort of classic that people from all walks of life should seek out. This film is very far from being good but when you compare it to the majority of the direct-to-video films from this era I think this film offers quite a bit. For starters, those who hate fake looking CGI blood will be happy to know that this film offers real special effects and quite gory ones at that. The gore level here is quite high so blood fans should at least be entertained by this aspect of the film. We're given a couple really graphic death scenes including the highlight of the movie where a lawyer is forced to pretty much torture himself and this leads to all sort of gore. Another major plus going for the film is that the lead actress isn't afraid to take off her clothes. These type of horror films never deliver heart-warming stories or Oscar-winning performances so it's good that this delivers in other ways and that is the gore and nudity. I also didn't think the performances were all that bad with Spencer-Narin making for a good lead and at least she's watchable. The supporting players aren't too bad either with Novak once again doing a good job with the lead of the demon. The problems are what you'd expect to find in a film like this and that's the unoriginal story, too long of a running time and the fact that there's just really not much going on. Still, fans of gore and nudity should at least find enough of that here to keep the film entertaining.

There are so many things wrong with this film it's hard to even begin. The first two Wishmaster films were quite good, the third was sub-par, but still not terrible. I was thinking maybe there was hope that this one would be somewhere online with the first two films. Was i ever wrong, this one is truly pathetic even as far as sequels go. The first scene is a graphic sex scene, and then they play some MTV "Happy Song" ... first bad move for a horror movie, trendy pop songs ruin the whole atmosphere early. The "Demon" voices of the Djinn and the Guardian (or whatever the idiot angel with the sword was) makes it laughable. I mean, they sound like childish attempts at making normal vocals into demonic vocals. In closing, the first third hour of the movie is the worst, the second third of the movie is tolerable, and the last third of the movie is just plain moronic. I'll bet Wes Craven is glad he had nothing to do with this disaster.

Lisa Burnley (Tara Spencer-Nairn) owns a boutique and lives with her beloved boy-friend Sam (Jason Thompson), who became crippled and very bitter after a motorcycle accident. Sam's lawyer Steven Verdel (Michael Trucco) has a crush on Lisa. The Wishmaster possesses Steven's body, and he tries to grant three wishes to Lisa, to release the Djinn demons and start the Armagedon on Earth. However, when she tells Steven: "- I wish I could love you for who you really are.", her third wish is a paradox, since it depends on herself to be granted. The Wishmaster unsuccessfully tries to seduce Lisa.

Although having flaws in the story, "Wishmaster 4: The Prophecy Fulfilled" is a good sequel. I like this character very much, and the two first movies are excellent. In this fourth episode, there is a lack of humor in the deaths of The Wishmaster. Further, there is a character, Hunter, supposed to be good, but the guy decapitates an innocent woman without any reason. Lisa is the "Waker" that will fulfill the prophecy since she found the red stone. One who wakes a djin shall be given three wishes. Upon granting the third, an unholy legion of djins are freed through a doorway between the worlds upon the Earth. The actress Tara Spencer-Nairn has a beautiful body (specially her breasts) and is very gorgeous. Therefore, this film is not as bad as indicated in some IMDb reviews. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil) "O Mestre dos Desejos 4" ("The Wishmaster 4")