A movie about never being too young or old to be surprised by life.
While it was never intended to be anything more than a fluffy but forgettable indie, All I Wish has garnered a small amount of attention thanks to leading lady Sharon Stone. When the actress was initially approached by writer/director Susan Walter to appear in the film (then titled A Little Something for Your Birthday), it was to play the role of the main character’s mother. While the part of the mother is nicely written, with its own slight sub-text to it, Stone refused and instead pitched herself for the role of the protagonist with misguided views on romance. Perhaps wowed by both Stone’s determination and gusto, Walter agreed and adjusted the script of All I Wish to suit the 50-something year old actress. The result turns an otherwise disposable frothy exercise into a telling comment on reflection and romance.
The central figure of All I Wish Is Senna (Stone), an L.A.-based fashion designer who happily jumps from one young guy to the next without any desire for commitment, much to the chagrin of her mother Celia (Ellen Burstyn). However the game changes when Senna meets Adam (Tony Goldwyn), a lawyer who has relocated from Boston whom she meets at her birthday party. Although initially semi-flirtatious with Adam, Senna’s mood begins to change over time as she soon begins to wonder if he is “the one.”
It’s pretty clear the kind of movie All I Wish would have been without the casting change. The whole thing could have been one long romantic comedy cliche full of slapped together characters and empty-headed dialogue. As it is, All I Wish is a still film loaded with a clunky set-up and scenes which are sometimes just as rough as the transitions between them. On the comedy side of things, apart from Goldwyn’s admirable quality to play the fool in the movie’s final act, most of the laughs, especially one which involve any kind of pratfall, prove somewhat flat. Had Walter cast a twenty-something as her film’s lead, there would have been almost nothing particularly special or unique to separate this story from others featuring an overly confident main character who thinks they are above falling in love before finding out that they actually aren’t.
It’s the aforementioned casting change which gives the film a real soul and a voice so uniquely its own. Forget the fact that it’s sadly still considered brave to showcase a woman “of a certain age” living the kind of lifestyle typically associated with someone in their 20s; All I Wish’s meaning is far greater. The film is ultimately a portrait of a woman who has spent years convincing herself that she’s perfectly settled, comfortable, and confident in her life, only to find out that she may not be. Apart from a spotty professional life, it’s hard not to envy Senna’s confidence in who she is as a person and her pride at not settling down because she ever felt she had to despite offers and pressures from her mother. Even if she might not know it, Senna is waiting for the love that works. In Adam, she’s found it and is now forcing herself to face the fear of love after a lifetime of avoiding it.
Even though she’s far too naturally graceful, refined, and self-assured to pull off the film’s physical comedy moments, Stone is still so much fun in the role. The Oscar nominee gets Senna’s zest and hunger for life while greatly excelling at the movie’s more sensitive moments where the character is facing the fears which plague everyone. Goldwyn, meanwhile, makes for a great leading man. As the ever-genuine Adam, the actor has never been this free and laid back before, resulting in a performance which feels honest and real. Always the pro, Burstyn is able to give subtle backstory to her character in just a few short scenes, while Liza Lapira and Famke Janssen add surprising warmth to the film as Senna’s best friend and former boss, respectively.
There will no doubt be some who come across the film and state their surprise at this former box-office A-lister headlining a film such as this. While their reaction is somewhat justified given the lack of quality among Stone’s film output in recent years, All I Wish shows an actress at the top of her game and ready to play. It’s also almost solely because of her that the film’s ideas on love at any age for ANYONE comes with its own set of risks and possibilities. This is certainly true in the various interludes throughout the film which feature each character stating their own views and personal experiences with love and birthday wishes. The moments, which are used as segues between time lapses in the film end up being the movie’s most poetic feature. Thoughtfully written and brimming with touching heart, these scenes prove to be the heart of the film Walter and Stone have created- an exploration of the different meanings behind a wish and what it says about the person who makes it.
