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‘What You Wish For’ Review: Nick Stahl Serves a Devious Dish in This Taut but Half-Baked Thriller
Suspense and stupidity are on the menu when a chef with gambling issues takes over a colleague’s luxury gig in Nicholas Tomnay's ‘What You Wish For.’
But that fantasy’s nightmarish reality hits hard for one talented chef after he assumes his culinary school comrade’s life in “ What You Wish For.” Filmmaker Nicholas Tomnay ’s sophomore feature percolates with atmospheric dread and austerity, but only superficially explores the twisted amorality of the 1% and those who service their whims. For every creative scenario that organically has characters — such as Detective Ruiz and Jack’s one-night stand Alice (Penelope Mitchell) — unable to leave the home after surprising everyone on event night, there’s a nonsensical contrivance holding it back. From the God’s-eye perspective used in the opening credits (a visual indicator of the film’s continual judgement of Ryan in these sinister shenanigans) to the static camera shots imparting a sense of disarming unease, Tomnay’s acute design sensibilities add an entrancing pull.
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