Wish Upon a Star
Encyclopedia
Wish Upon a Star is a 1996
television film directed by Blair Treu
, written by Jessica Barondes, and starring Katherine Heigl
and Danielle Harris
. It focuses on two teenage sisters that magically swap bodies
because of a wish
made on a shooting star. They spend several days living each other's life, sometimes with the intent to sabotage the other's reputation and achievements, but they learn to appreciate and help each other along the way. The tagline to this movie is "I Wish I May, I Wish I Might, Become My Sister For A Night!"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118178/
, but both feel that they have little else in common. Alexia's (Katherine Heigl
) days revolve around being popular, dressing stylishly, and spending time with her jock boyfriend
, while exerting minimal effort academically
. Hayley (Danielle Harris
) is socially reserved, admiring her older sister's popularity from a distance while excelling in her studies, particularly science and math. Hayley and Alexia don't get along well at all, with Hayley resenting her reliance on her frequently late sister for a ride to school and Alexia preferring not to be seen with her less-than-cool
younger sister.
One night, Hayley is outside studying the night sky for her science class, while Alexia relaxes in the outdoor hot tub with her boyfriend, Kyle (Don Jeffcoat
). When Hayley sees a shooting star
, she wish
es aloud to become her sister Alexia, then turns to see Alexia also watching the sky. The two of them awaken the next morning to find themselves trapped in each other's body
. Hayley assumes responsibility for the swap, mentioning her wish.
Distraught, Alexia forbids Hayley to go to school in her place, and she instigates a variety of wish-making attempts for Hayley to reverse their condition, all of which are unsuccessful. Hayley is content to fill her sister's role for the day, as she can now experience the glamor of Alexia's life firsthand.
After the first day ends, they realize that they may be stuck like this for a while. They each spend the next few days purposely trying to ruin anything important to the other, such as their social reputation and extra-curricular activities. One day, Hayley (in Alexia's body) wears the same outfit that she had worn the day before, and Alexia (in Hayley's body) goes to school dressed up as a dominatrix
.
Their parents choose not to interfere, as they had just started a "hands-off" approach to parenting
. Eventually, however, Hayley and Alexia learn to look at their lives with new perspective. As they each become accustomed to the other's life, they begin to relate to one another better and become closer as sisters.
While spending an evening outside searching for a shooting star to make their wish to switch back, they decide to spend one more day as each other. Hayley's task (in Alexia's body) is to help convince her teachers that Alexia is not an "airhead," and Alexia (in Hayley's body) is to help show Hayley how easily Hayley can get a guy.
Hayley's and Alexia's plans work, and they decide that it's time for them to switch back. As they lay outside watching for a shooting star, they fall asleep early; Hayley wakes up during the night in time to wish on a star. When she awakens the next morning, she finds that they didn't switch back and believes that they will never be able to return to their own bodies, but she doesn't tell Alexia.
Alexia and Hayley attend the Winter Festival dance, where Hayley breaks down and tells Alexia that they can't switch back. Alexia then confesses that she saw the first shooting star when she was with Kyle and wished to be Hayley, since she had been jealous
of Hayley's intellect
and well-structured plans for her future.
Realizing that it was their combined wishing that caused their switch, they sit outside and, seeing a shooting star, wish together to be themselves again. Opening their eyes, they are delighted to see their wish has come true. They return to the Winter Festival, where Alexia is crowned queen. She then dances on stage with her boyfriend, while Hayley finds their new neighbor Simon and dances with him.
in West Valley City, Utah
. Their school was the Hunter Vikings, but the real Hunter High are the Wolverines. The real Hunter High basketball team was the opposing team in the basketball game and were called the Wolverines. Harris
, who plays the little sister in the film, is actually a year older than Heigl
and was hired only days before filming began. The movie was filmed in late 1995 and early 1996, which is why snow
is present in some shots and Danielle Harris
has visible breath when opening the door. Moonpools & Caterpillars
was the rock band featured in the movie at the Winter Festival Dance. The movie shares similar elements with many other films also featuring the FreakyFridayFlip television trope
.
1996 in film
Major releases this year included Scream, Independence Day, Fargo, Trainspotting, The English Patient, Twister, Mars Attacks!, Jerry Maguire and a version of Evita starring Madonna.-Events:...
television film directed by Blair Treu
Blair Treu
Blair Treu is an American film director. He directed Little Secrets and Wish Upon A Star.More recently he has teamed up with Brigham Young University professor Stephan F. Duncan, KBYU-TV and BYU TV to create Real Families, Real Answers....
, written by Jessica Barondes, and starring Katherine Heigl
Katherine Heigl
Katherine Marie Heigl is an American actress and producer. She is possibly best known for her role as Dr. Izzie Stevens on ABC's Grey's Anatomy from 2005 to 2010, for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Drama Series in 2007...
and Danielle Harris
Danielle Harris
Danielle Andrea Harris is an American film and television actress, best known as a scream queen for her roles in several horror films, four of them in the Halloween series: in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers as Jamie Lloyd and in Halloween and...
. It focuses on two teenage sisters that magically swap bodies
Body swap
A body swap is a storytelling device seen in a variety of fiction, most often in television shows and movies, in which two people exchange minds and end up in each other's bodies. Alternatively, their minds may stay where they are as their bodies adjust...
because of a wish
Wish
A wish is a hope or desire for something. Fictionally, wishes can be used as plot devices. In folklore, opportunities for "making a wish" or for wishes to "come true" or "be granted" are themes that are sometimes used.-In literature:...
made on a shooting star. They spend several days living each other's life, sometimes with the intent to sabotage the other's reputation and achievements, but they learn to appreciate and help each other along the way. The tagline to this movie is "I Wish I May, I Wish I Might, Become My Sister For A Night!"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118178/
Plot
The two Wheaton sisters share a household and a high schoolHigh school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
, but both feel that they have little else in common. Alexia's (Katherine Heigl
Katherine Heigl
Katherine Marie Heigl is an American actress and producer. She is possibly best known for her role as Dr. Izzie Stevens on ABC's Grey's Anatomy from 2005 to 2010, for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Drama Series in 2007...
) days revolve around being popular, dressing stylishly, and spending time with her jock boyfriend
Boyfriend
A boyfriend is a person's regular male companion in a romantic or sexual relationship, although normally not in long-term committed relationships, where other titles A boyfriend is a person's regular male companion in a romantic or sexual relationship, although normally not in long-term committed...
, while exerting minimal effort academically
Academia
Academia is the community of students and scholars engaged in higher education and research.-Etymology:The word comes from the akademeia in ancient Greece. Outside the city walls of Athens, the gymnasium was made famous by Plato as a center of learning...
. Hayley (Danielle Harris
Danielle Harris
Danielle Andrea Harris is an American film and television actress, best known as a scream queen for her roles in several horror films, four of them in the Halloween series: in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers as Jamie Lloyd and in Halloween and...
) is socially reserved, admiring her older sister's popularity from a distance while excelling in her studies, particularly science and math. Hayley and Alexia don't get along well at all, with Hayley resenting her reliance on her frequently late sister for a ride to school and Alexia preferring not to be seen with her less-than-cool
Cool (aesthetic)
Something regarded as cool is an admired aesthetic of attitude, behavior, comportment, appearance and style, influenced by and a product of the Zeitgeist. Because of the varied and changing connotations of cool, as well its subjective nature, the word has no single meaning. It has associations of...
younger sister.
One night, Hayley is outside studying the night sky for her science class, while Alexia relaxes in the outdoor hot tub with her boyfriend, Kyle (Don Jeffcoat
Don Jeffcoat
Donald Lee "Don" Jeffcoat, Jr. is an American actor.-Biography:Jeffcoat an American actor, who got his big break playing Eric Antonio on The Wonder Years, has starred and appeared on a number of films and television shows, including the children's game show Wild and Crazy Kids broadcast on...
). When Hayley sees a shooting star
Meteorite
A meteorite is a natural object originating in outer space that survives impact with the Earth's surface. Meteorites can be big or small. Most meteorites derive from small astronomical objects called meteoroids, but they are also sometimes produced by impacts of asteroids...
, she wish
Wish
A wish is a hope or desire for something. Fictionally, wishes can be used as plot devices. In folklore, opportunities for "making a wish" or for wishes to "come true" or "be granted" are themes that are sometimes used.-In literature:...
es aloud to become her sister Alexia, then turns to see Alexia also watching the sky. The two of them awaken the next morning to find themselves trapped in each other's body
Body swap
A body swap is a storytelling device seen in a variety of fiction, most often in television shows and movies, in which two people exchange minds and end up in each other's bodies. Alternatively, their minds may stay where they are as their bodies adjust...
. Hayley assumes responsibility for the swap, mentioning her wish.
Distraught, Alexia forbids Hayley to go to school in her place, and she instigates a variety of wish-making attempts for Hayley to reverse their condition, all of which are unsuccessful. Hayley is content to fill her sister's role for the day, as she can now experience the glamor of Alexia's life firsthand.
After the first day ends, they realize that they may be stuck like this for a while. They each spend the next few days purposely trying to ruin anything important to the other, such as their social reputation and extra-curricular activities. One day, Hayley (in Alexia's body) wears the same outfit that she had worn the day before, and Alexia (in Hayley's body) goes to school dressed up as a dominatrix
Dominatrix
Dominatrix or mistress is a woman or women who takes the dominant role in bondage, discipline and sadomasochism, or BDSM. A common form of address for a submissive to a dominatrix is "mistress", "ma'am", "domina" or "maîtresse"...
.
Their parents choose not to interfere, as they had just started a "hands-off" approach to parenting
Parenting
Parenting is the process of promoting and supporting the physical, emotional, social, and intellectual development of a child from infancy to adulthood...
. Eventually, however, Hayley and Alexia learn to look at their lives with new perspective. As they each become accustomed to the other's life, they begin to relate to one another better and become closer as sisters.
While spending an evening outside searching for a shooting star to make their wish to switch back, they decide to spend one more day as each other. Hayley's task (in Alexia's body) is to help convince her teachers that Alexia is not an "airhead," and Alexia (in Hayley's body) is to help show Hayley how easily Hayley can get a guy.
Hayley's and Alexia's plans work, and they decide that it's time for them to switch back. As they lay outside watching for a shooting star, they fall asleep early; Hayley wakes up during the night in time to wish on a star. When she awakens the next morning, she finds that they didn't switch back and believes that they will never be able to return to their own bodies, but she doesn't tell Alexia.
Alexia and Hayley attend the Winter Festival dance, where Hayley breaks down and tells Alexia that they can't switch back. Alexia then confesses that she saw the first shooting star when she was with Kyle and wished to be Hayley, since she had been jealous
Jealousy
Jealousy is a second emotion and typically refers to the negative thoughts and feelings of insecurity, fear, and anxiety over an anticipated loss of something that the person values, particularly in reference to a human connection. Jealousy often consists of a combination of presenting emotions...
of Hayley's intellect
Intelligence
Intelligence has been defined in different ways, including the abilities for abstract thought, understanding, communication, reasoning, learning, planning, emotional intelligence and problem solving....
and well-structured plans for her future.
Realizing that it was their combined wishing that caused their switch, they sit outside and, seeing a shooting star, wish together to be themselves again. Opening their eyes, they are delighted to see their wish has come true. They return to the Winter Festival, where Alexia is crowned queen. She then dances on stage with her boyfriend, while Hayley finds their new neighbor Simon and dances with him.
Production
This movie was filmed at Hunter High SchoolHunter High School
Hunter High School is a large public high school located at 4200 South 5600 West West Valley City, Utah. It was opened in 1990 with its first graduating class graduating in 1991...
in West Valley City, Utah
West Valley City, Utah
West Valley City is a city in Salt Lake County and a suburb of Salt Lake City in the U.S. state of Utah. The population was 129,480 at the 2010 census,...
. Their school was the Hunter Vikings, but the real Hunter High are the Wolverines. The real Hunter High basketball team was the opposing team in the basketball game and were called the Wolverines. Harris
Danielle Harris
Danielle Andrea Harris is an American film and television actress, best known as a scream queen for her roles in several horror films, four of them in the Halloween series: in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers as Jamie Lloyd and in Halloween and...
, who plays the little sister in the film, is actually a year older than Heigl
Katherine Heigl
Katherine Marie Heigl is an American actress and producer. She is possibly best known for her role as Dr. Izzie Stevens on ABC's Grey's Anatomy from 2005 to 2010, for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Drama Series in 2007...
and was hired only days before filming began. The movie was filmed in late 1995 and early 1996, which is why snow
Snow
Snow is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by...
is present in some shots and Danielle Harris
Danielle Harris
Danielle Andrea Harris is an American film and television actress, best known as a scream queen for her roles in several horror films, four of them in the Halloween series: in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers as Jamie Lloyd and in Halloween and...
has visible breath when opening the door. Moonpools & Caterpillars
Moonpools & Caterpillars
Moonpools & Caterpillars was a Filipino American rock band based in California. The band was most popular in the 1990s.They released three albums commercially, The Pink Album , Lucky Dumpling , and 12 Songs...
was the rock band featured in the movie at the Winter Festival Dance. The movie shares similar elements with many other films also featuring the FreakyFridayFlip television trope
Trope (literature)
A literary trope is the usage of figurative language in literature, or a figure of speech in which words are used in a sense different from their literal meaning...
.
Cast
- Katherine HeiglKatherine HeiglKatherine Marie Heigl is an American actress and producer. She is possibly best known for her role as Dr. Izzie Stevens on ABC's Grey's Anatomy from 2005 to 2010, for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Drama Series in 2007...
- Alexia "Ally" Wheaton, Hayley in Alexia's body - Danielle HarrisDanielle HarrisDanielle Andrea Harris is an American film and television actress, best known as a scream queen for her roles in several horror films, four of them in the Halloween series: in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers as Jamie Lloyd and in Halloween and...
- Hayley Wheaton, Alexia in Hayley's body - Don JeffcoatDon JeffcoatDonald Lee "Don" Jeffcoat, Jr. is an American actor.-Biography:Jeffcoat an American actor, who got his big break playing Eric Antonio on The Wonder Years, has starred and appeared on a number of films and television shows, including the children's game show Wild and Crazy Kids broadcast on...
- Kyle Harding - Scott WilkinsonScott WilkinsonScott Wilkinson is an actor, who has played in such films as A Crime Of Passion and A Secret Life and Harry's War. and Wish Upon A Star- External links :...
- Benjamin "Ben" Wheaton - Mary Parker Williams - Nan Wheaton
- Lois ChilesLois ChilesLois Cleveland Chiles is an American actress and former fashion model known for her role as Dr. Holly Goodhead in the 1979 James Bond film Moonraker.-Early life:...
- Principal Mittermiller - Ivey Lloyd - Caitlin Sheinbaum
- Matt Barker - Simon
- Jacque Gray - Kazumi
External links
- Wish Upon A Star at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...