But all that is part of the afterglow, as What You Wish For is all about noir. Even though this is one of those suspense films that could easily run with the big skinless dogs of horror, the filmmaker smartly keeps everything in the noir lane to great effect. Interestingly, the only elements that stray from noir tradition are the lighting and score. The bright lighting is made to look as natural as possible, and the score by Jeff Russo and Tracie Turnbull is strikingly whimsical. Does this white party atmosphere have the reverse effect of making everything seem even darker? You bet it does.
If there is an actor that is tailor-made for noir, it is Stahl. He is the greatest everyman since Mitchum, with the perfect grizzled look, complete with stubble and sunburnt tattoos. His character is doomed in the classic loser tradition, as he was once a revered professional whose addiction made him fall. The lead actor maintains a likable earnestness that is fed by a desperation that drives him to do awful things. Like in post-war America, many people in the current age can identify heavily with this situation. The possibilities of this anti-hero orbit only expand when you wonder what kind of villainy he could pull off.
“[Stahl] is the greatest everyman since Mitchum…”
Topolski does a particularly clever take on the femme fatale, presenting a compelling portrait of how corporate evil breathes. Her chilling performance shows the multi-floored architecture of representing a much greater evil than yourself. She remains balanced on that imaginary razor-thin line that separates instruments of evil from the evil that they do on command. That her femme fatale allure to Stahl is financial instead of sexual is a further indication of the level of innovation being served.
What You Wish For is everything you could wish for in a well-lit plunge into the abyss. The script’s condemnation of the class system is much more potent than the overrated, sneering misfire The Menu. The lingering smolder of the main character’s past glory covers him like the haze from a gasoline puddle and entices viewers to go along with every action he takes, up to a point.
"…everything you could wish for in a well-lit plunge into the abyss."
