Wish Upon A Star

[00:00:00] Get ready for a little sibling switcheroo. This week we're revisiting the 1996 teen classic Wish Upon A Star. Let's see if this Disney Channel favorite still holds up. Welcome to the No More Late Fees podcast. I'm Jackie.

[00:00:28] And I'm Danielle, and we're just two best friends and ex-blockbuster employees re-watching some of the best and worst movies of the late 90s and early 2000s. This week, we're heading back to the golden age of TV movies with Wish Upon A Star. But before we dive in, let's get into some housekeeping. Ooh, what happened, Jackie? I thought we nailed it. I don't know. We'll see.

[00:00:58] Andrew's going to be disappointed either way. If you love the podcast and you want to support us, here's a few ways that you can. If you love the podcast, help us out by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. Your reviews help us grow and keep the nostalgia alive. And don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode. We've got a lot of really good deep dives coming up for you, I promise, so you don't want to miss it.

[00:01:23] If you want to show off your love for nostalgia, check out our No More Late Fees merch at nomorlatefees.redbubble.com. From movie-inspired designs to podcast swag, we've got something for every movie lover. And we're so excited to have our friend Bria back on the pod to help us break it all down. Welcome back, Bria. Thank you. Thank you for having me.

[00:01:49] If you want to learn more about Bria, check out this week's bonus episode as we rank our favorite teen movie dances. And you can also listen to her previous episodes on 7, Love and Basketball, and she can play that game. All right, let's get into Wish Upon a Star. The movie follows two sisters, the stylish and popular Alexia and the brainy and awkward Haley, who wake up one morning to find they've switched bodies.

[00:02:16] As they struggle to navigate each other's lives, they gain a new understanding of what it's like to be in each other's shoes, literally. The movie stars Katherine Heigl, Danielle Harris, Donnie Jeffcoat, and Lois Childs. It was directed by Blair True and written by Jessica Barondas. I hope that's right. You can currently watch it on Peacock, Prime, Tubi, Pluto, and Hoopla if you have your library card. But before we start, let's get into our ratings rewind.

[00:02:47] So you know the drill. Before we get into the movie, we'll reveal the rating our Y2K versions of ourselves would give. Then at the end, we'll see if our current selves agree with our initial rating. Our scale consists of would buy it, would buy it again. The best, would plan, repeat. Five day rental. Would watch again. Two day rental. Eh, it's alright. And same day rental.

[00:03:15] I don't even, I don't know what other ways to say trash anymore. I don't like it. It sucks. Be gone. Be gone, devil! So Bria, what was your Y2K rating of Wish Upon a Star? Oh, would buy it, would buy it again.

[00:03:41] One of those movies that would come on Disney Channel or something and you're like, oh my god, like this is that one movie. Like, you know, you're excited to see. So, love this movie. On God. On God. Jackie. Did you say on God? I sure did. Won't you do it? Mine would be a five day. I enjoyed this movie anytime I caught it on TV. Not the day.

[00:04:12] Not the judgment. I really thought this was going to be. I'm sorry. Unanimous. You're fucking it up, Jackie. I never sought it out which would have been the difference between a would buy. I remember seeing it on streaming. Swimming away! Oh my god.

[00:04:41] That was amazing. Daniel, come back. Come back. She can't hear us. No. She took her headphones off. But I remember seeing this finally like on streaming and being super excited about it because, you know, movies like Model Behavior and Suzy Q or things like that. Like, it's super hard to find some of those. Yeah. And it wasn't. Oh, she's back. She's swimming back.

[00:05:11] Oh my god. Does she break up the DVD? Is that a DVD? Oh, she does have the DVD. Danielle, what is your Y2K rating of Wish Upon a Star? Would buy it. Bought it. Got it. I love how you just swam away. Yes.

[00:05:35] What you missed was me saying how excited I was when it finally was on streaming and stuff. And you can watch it freely because movies like Model Behavior, Suzy Q and stuff, like, they don't exist on streaming or, you know, at best you get somebody who taped it and it's on YouTube or something. Yeah. Model Behavior is not. Actually, one of our guests, Gina, has like a whole theory.

[00:06:02] She talks about it on TikTok that she believes that Justin Timberlake got it removed. Scrummed it. Yeah. Because you really can't see it. And even on YouTube, like, anytime someone puts it up there, it just disappears. Yeah. But that one, I know people have found it on VHS and stuff. So, like, our other guest, Megan, aka TakeGirl, she, I just saw her find a copy. Nice. So. I've seen the VHS. Yeah.

[00:06:30] But it's super rare. But I mean, I know it exists and some of those people, can you rip it to DVD in some way? Right. I, because I don't like, I'm like, oh man, I don't know if we'll ever be able to do that one. But speaking of DCOMs, so I did a few TikToks that were talking about the difference between a Disney Channel original movie, which is a DCOM, or a Disney Channel premiere film,

[00:06:58] or a Wonderful World of Disney, which was on ABC. Yeah. And so, so many of those movies at that time, especially because sometimes the magical world of Disney movies would actually play on Disney Channel, a lot of people were calling all the movies DCOMs and they are not all DCOMs. This one is not a DCOM. It premiered on Disney Channel. So that meant it wasn't produced by Disney.

[00:07:27] It was produced by another company and essentially bought and they premiered it on Disney Channel. So that is why the formula for this one is not like, they talk about sex and virgins and all sorts of things that are like a no-no. And I don't know, I didn't check if it was on Disney Plus, but I don't think it is. It's on Prime, so.

[00:07:51] It's on Prime, but like, because it's not an official DCOM, it's, I was like, I wonder where Disney was going to fit with it, you know? Yeah. And I didn't, I didn't see it, but I could be wrong. So that is a misconception. It is not a DCOM per se, but it did air on the Disney Channel. And because it's a TV movie, we have no box office, but the film did get a positive rating from Fox Weekly.

[00:08:18] It gave the film an 8 out of 10, accurate. And on August 15th, 2002, the movie was re-aired on the Disney Channel and had 3.4 million viewers. So it is a cult classic for sure. And I think like one of the first things I noticed when I started to get on the interwebs and TikTok and stuff, it's definitely a movie that's talked about quite a bit. Mm-hmm.

[00:08:48] Also, I just- It's one of those impressionable movies, that's why. It is. The fashion, like, like watching it, you feel like you were at that time. Like it just, the nostalgia is heavy for that one. And it was right after Clueless. So I think anything that came after that, that was similar in that way, I was eating that shit up. Yeah, you could tell they reheated like Clueless's fashion notches.

[00:09:14] I said this is like Freaky Friday meets Clueless too, because even the opening scene with her picking out her outfit. She may not have Cher's amazing computerized closet, but it's still that vibe of like getting ready and all that stuff. So yeah. Plus she has, she drives a Jeep, the clothes. That, oh, yes.

[00:09:35] And then like, then I felt like Tina Fey must have watched this movie because some of the, like the way that the girls, her and her, Alexia and her friends operate with the rules. Yeah. And I was like, that seems odd. So now Jackie, Tina Fey. No, Snow Day. Snow Day. And Witch Upon a Star. And I just want to say, I have the burn book here, but I don't think I'm going to need it for today's episode. I don't think so either. Yeah.

[00:10:05] So before we get into the cast and crew, let's hear a message from one of our pod pals. Welcome to Spooky Tuesday, a horror movie podcast hosted by three girls who love fake blood. Matthew Lillard and making everything gay. We're breaking down all of our favorite slashers, thrillers, monster movies, and black comedies on the new scariest day of the week.

[00:10:32] You can find Spooky Tuesday wherever you listen to podcasts and watch our video episodes on YouTube. Find out more at www.spookytuesdaypod.com. See you next Tuesday. Okay. Cast and crew. Where to start?

[00:10:52] Danielle Harris, who plays little sister Haley, is actually a year older than Katherine Heigl, who plays older sister Alexia, but 10 inches shorter than Heigl, which helped create the illusion that Harris is younger than her. Yeah, I get it.

[00:11:10] Because at this, like when I think about this movie, and one of the attractions that I know originally to watch it was that I love the movie, My Father the Hero, and Katherine Heigl was in that.

[00:11:27] I didn't know too much later how young she was in that movie and how gross it was that the guy, I think she was like 14 maybe in that movie, and the guy love interest was like damn near in his maybe 20s. It was gross. Anywho, because I love that movie, I was like, oh, I definitely have to go see that.

[00:11:49] And it just, it's like she just kept on going into this, she went from My Father the Hero, this movie I was obsessed with, and that was one of the reasons I was drawn to Roswell, was because I was like, oh my girl, Katie's in it. You gotta see it. And then she went into Grey's Anatomy, I was like, gotta see it. And I kept following her. But also Daniel Harris was a draw because I loved Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead. Is that her? Yes, that's her.

[00:12:19] Yeah. So I was like, oh, gots to see this movie. Back to Katherine Heigl really quick. Like, she did say that like, she was about 17 when she filmed this movie, and you know, she absolutely loved making the movie, but it was the first time that like her metabolism kind of changed, and she couldn't just eat whatever she wanted without gaining weight. So that was like, really hard for her.

[00:12:45] And she said somebody had made a comment on the internet, because it was just starting to pop up around that same time. And somebody called, said she had thunder thighs, and was like, oh my god. In this movie? That's crazy. I think from this movie, yeah. Yeah. They gave her a hard time. And you know, like, she has big boobs, so that always makes you look a little bit bigger. Yeah. So I think she had a hard time with that, because she used to be a model. Oh, one more thing about casting. Interesting.

[00:13:14] Was I the only one who, like, watched a shit ton of Nickelodeon? And so as soon as Donnie Jeffcoat's name came up, I was like, wild and crazy kids with Donnie Jeffcoat and Omar Gooding. Yeah. He, I didn't think of, I didn't think of that, but you know I thought of a soap opera. Fun fact. Yes. There are multiple layers to this.

[00:13:38] One life to live, he played Joey Buchanan as a replacement for Nathan Fillion, who originated, well, I would say originated, because you know that, like, on soap operas, there's little kids, and then when they grow them up to, like, do the teenage stuff, that's when Nathan Fillion was in it. The funny thing is that, remember when we went to see Sweet Charity, and I, like, touched that lady by pure insanity? You grabbed the lady? She's fine.

[00:14:10] She played Dorian Lorde on the show, and was, like, an older, they had, like, a coupling, an older lover thing. And so when they switched, that Jeff didn't really fit that, so that storyline was, like, out the window. But I always remember that he took over for Nathan, and I was not happy, because I was like, mm, you okay? But when I, when I saw him in this, I was like, oh, there's, there's Joey Buchanan.

[00:14:40] So that's how I remembered him, but you're right. He was on that show. I never liked that show. You didn't like Wild and Crazy? No, because it was, like, it always took, like, they, they threw, I never understood why it was always fucking on, and I wanted to see Clarissa. I wanted to see my shows. I was, yeah. I was down for Wild and Crazy Kids. I just felt like Field Day, and I was like, I never liked Field Day.

[00:15:06] I still would love to have, like, a Wild and Crazy Kids party, like, water balloons, water gun breaks, like, pies to the face, like, all the things, like, but, yeah. It was a time. For sure. It was. Now kids don't even play outside, so. Yeah. And it was, like, the challenge, and, like, the kid version of the challenge, and, like. Is that what started it for you?

[00:15:33] It was, like, a precursor to, like, reality shows. Yes, and that's why it was played all the time, because it was probably cheaper to produce. So Wish Upon a Star, it starts out, we see Hayley Wheaton, who, they always bill her as, like, quirky and awkward, but she, I didn't feel, like, I felt like she was just, like, a regular student that was, like, good at school. I think she was a late bloomer. Yeah. She wasn't nerdy.

[00:16:02] I think if, like, her sister wasn't who her sister was, there wouldn't even be those comparisons kind of thing. So I think because her sister is, like, Miss Popularity, it makes her seem like there's not enough room for her to be. She's the smart one. That's, like, kind of where she is. And she's the smart one in a seemingly, like, highly intelligent family.

[00:16:28] So her parents seem to both be psychiatrists, psychologists, something of that nature. They're constantly reading, like, parenting magazines and, like, science-y. Psychology Today. Yeah. It made me think of the parents from Get Over It. Yeah. Because they, too, were, they had their own show, but they, too, were psychologists, whatever. And so was the mom from Freaky Friday. Yes. Oh, yeah.

[00:16:57] Maybe that's a new career to the parents. You can either be a magazine journalist or you're a psychiatrist or psychologist. Those are the avenues for you. Yeah. And then we do meet Alexia, played by Katherine Heigl, and she's just seemingly vapid, just very into looks. She doesn't care if she's late for school.

[00:17:24] She's just into fashion and her boyfriend and her Jeep. Yeah. Yeah. Well, I mean, we're, oh, first of all, the mirror that she has hanging in her closet. I used to, like, be like, I need that mirror. Yeah. Because it's, like, this big wooden mirror with, what does it say? The Ferris of the Ball or something like that? Mirror on the wall. Mirror, mirror on the wall. Thank you. And then you see her getting her stuff out of her closet.

[00:17:52] This cute lavender miniskirt with, like, a white trim. These huge white platform, like, buckled shoes. And then she has, like, this little tiny tank top with midriff. There's no way that she would have gotten away with that at, especially our school. Especially how short the skirt was. She's wearing some pantyhose, it seemed. And then she had, like, a leather jacket. Yeah. Maybe, maybe it was knee-high.

[00:18:21] It looked like her flesh color when you, when it was up close. I don't think it was knee-high. Maybe I'm thinking the blue outfit. Yeah, the blue outfit had white knee-highs for sure. And then she and her red jeans. And her frosted lavender lipstick. Yeah. Yes. And the eyeshadow. Like, it was, like, a whole look. It made me think of, like, the 17 magazines. All the makeup we were trying to get. We wanted to smell like bubblegum and we wanted to shimmer everybody.

[00:18:51] We wanted pastels on our nails. And we wanted platform shoes. Body glitter. It was a tie. I, oh, God. I used to look at women in the 90s that were still dressing like the 70s. And I'm like, when are you gonna let that shit go? And now I understand it. Yeah. Because if I could still just wear what I was wearing in high school, I probably would. Right.

[00:19:16] I feel like it's interesting, like, everything's so aesthetic now with the Gen Z generation. But I feel like it's a great time to have, like, a niche, so to speak. And, like, you know, there's nothing really that isn't cool. It's, like, what you make it almost. I feel like trends are just so fast and just whatever that it's not like everyone's doing the same thing anymore. Yeah.

[00:19:44] So I can bring this frosted lipstick to my everyday life. I'm gonna be a good friend and say, don't do that, dog. Don't do that. Well, hopefully it comes off at some point tonight. As long as you stop before you look like Mimi from Drew Carey Show. Don't get too carried away. So we can see, like, Haley is kind of envious of Alex's perfect life.

[00:20:12] A little later on, we find out that before Alex gets home, Haley and her best friend go into Alex's room and, like, try to read her diary. And, like, Haley's fawning over the picture of Alex's boyfriend and stuff. So she wants what she doesn't have. Yeah. Yeah. We see that Alex has a group of friends very similar, like we said to Mean Girls. They're very cliquish.

[00:20:41] And then also her boyfriend. He's a basketball team, apparently. I was gonna say football, but he has a Leatherman's jacket and he plays basketball. Which, fun fact, the actor that plays him is notoriously bad at basketball. So much so, they had to refilm some of the scenes. He was extremely uncoordinated.

[00:21:06] So they had to reshoot a good amount of the times that he was playing due to his lack of talent with the basketball. Damn. I think they should have saw pretty early on that he sucked and just say, you know what? We're just gonna get a back shot. Yeah. Or just dribble the ball a little bit. We don't need you actually, like, shooting a basket. Right. Yeah.

[00:21:30] It's kind of rare that they have, like, unless the movie, like, centers more so around basketball, that they have, like, the jockey boyfriend be a basketball player instead of a football player. Yeah. But I don't, yeah, I wonder why. It might be because it was cold. Like, we saw the snow outside when they were filming. So trying to do football would have been a lot. Yeah. And it also was filmed in Utah.

[00:21:58] So maybe that had something to do with it as well. Which, continuity. Like, how is she riding around in a Jeep with no top? And mini skirts. And there's snow outside. Yeah. Once I saw the Colorado plate, I was like, how practical? How cool is this Jeep like this? That was also weird that, like, I don't think they ever really tell us where this is supposed to take place.

[00:22:26] But that is the only sign that we have that it's in Colorado. Yeah. Is because of the license plate she has. But I think it's just how dedicated Alex was to her fashion. Because her sister would wear, like, long sleeves. She always looked warm. Except for the leather outfit situation. As Cardi B said, hoes never get cold. Alexia was on that shit. She was like, cold wear?

[00:22:55] Do you see these legs? And we do see at school, Haley has a science project that she's hoping to be able to take to nationals, it seems like. And then I did not really understand what Alexia was doing. Because, like, she did not have a great GPA.

[00:23:17] But she was trying to sweet talk the very militant principal into writing her a letter of recommendation to a college. She was pulling a share on negotiation. She was reheating shares nachos up for the five billionth time in this movie. Yeah, her, like, negotiation skills of, or, like, you know, trying to sweet talk her way into better grades. Like, that definitely gave that vibe from Alexia.

[00:23:47] And I think that's her whole thing. Like, one of the reasons I feel like she's been probably okay with not getting good grades is the fact that her other skills, her transferable skills, is that she's able to sweet talk people into doing what she wants, getting what she wants, and that she's extremely pretty.

[00:24:09] And I'm sure in her family dynamic, because all the attention was always on Haley for her grades, it was almost like she probably felt discouraged to even try to compete. So, I could see that line for her in her mind. But I love that the principal's like, she doesn't know that Alex has bad grades.

[00:24:31] And she butters her up, and she's like, let me just type real quick and see what this two-point-something-great average. And she's like, what exactly do you want me to say in this letter, per se? It was like in just one of them days when she was looking at the credit score. The credit score. Yeah. It's like, oh my god, I've never seen a GPA below low. Like, sorry, it could not be me. But...

[00:25:00] So we see the girls really don't have any common ground. And the parents are kind of like, okay, we learned this approach where we just don't say shit to them. And they work it out themselves. Which is, it's wild business because Alexia, Alex is just wearing whatever she wants, right? The clothes she's wearing.

[00:25:29] And the mom, before they come to this conclusion, is like literally running after her like, honey, we should say something. And I'm just like, why y'all act like you don't have the power in your house? And this is a brand new problem based on all the shit in her closet. Yeah. Yeah. But yeah, they do take this approach that they're like, oh, if we just leave them alone, everything will be fine. That, it does turn out well.

[00:25:59] Their book is going to sell and it's going to lead a bunch of parents down a horrible road because they have no idea that the children have swapped bodies. Yeah. Yeah. And learn lessons not from their great parenting strategies, but because they just wanted to become themselves again. Yeah. This movie is that typical, like, you know, walk a mile in somebody else's shoes, so to speak. And like, or the grass is greener on the other side.

[00:26:28] But both of them think each other has it better off, which too was surprising towards the end because Haley as Alexia doesn't realize she wasn't the one who like only made the wish. And Alexia tells her like, I wished as well. And that's how they finally realize how they can get back to being themselves.

[00:26:52] But yeah, that was, I think that was a nice twist because it's like, yeah, like, you know, I'm pretty and all that stuff. But like, you know, you're smart and I'm envious of that too. And yeah. I like that too, that different perspective. And, but like, I think the question that plagued me the most with this movie always is how many shooting stars are there?

[00:27:18] Those girls waiting on shooting stars, like it was an everyday occurrence, like when the moon comes out at night, like, yeah, I don't think those happen very often. You do. You just have to be dedicated to watching the sky. It's almost like there was a forecast, like they were like, oh, it's great to stargaze. So that means that shooting stars are going to happen. Like, that's not always a guarantee. You can look at the stars all night and not see a damn thing. Right.

[00:27:46] But, but they were in a good, like if they were in Colorado or Utah, that would probably be easier to see than like in a bigger city. Yeah. According to the Googles, you can usually see a few to several dozen shooting stars per hour on any given night. Interesting. Look at us learning. However, the frequency varies depending on location, weather and time of the year. All right. Well, there we go. This movie had more scientific evidence than most.

[00:28:17] Myth busted. Also, I feel like science fairs were going to play a bigger part in my life than they actually did. I don't did. I don't remember doing a science fair in high school at all. And I, I had more science credits when I graduated high school than English and math put together. Wow. Because a bitch was going to science camp during the summer. Right. And I took like advanced science classes.

[00:28:44] I would have like two science classes a year. Because I was nerdy like that. Never. Because Jackie, did you have to take chemistry? Oh. Oh. Yeah. I took chemistry. And I did, I did bio two honors. I did. Yeah. Earth science, biology, chemistry. Then I took marine science with Miss Bird. No.

[00:29:12] What was her name? She got googly eyes. I'm just Heather. So anyway, back to Wish Upon a Star. So one night, Haley wishes on a shooting star to trade lives with Alex, imagining all of the perks of being her older sister. So the next morning they wake up. Apparently they both walk to the bathroom with their eyes closed. I, I, I think they're just still like, they still have sleep in their eyes.

[00:29:40] But can we talk about, like, I know Jackie, I should not be talking. But Haley's gum situation is ridiculous. Because what do you mean you're putting gum fucking everywhere? On wicker furniture? Yeah. And that, and also that gum still being wet the next morning? I don't think so. Yeah, no, that's not realistic. Didn't know that from experience. I'm a gumologist. And I'll tell you right now, sweetheart.

[00:30:09] It is not still wet. I thought the gum was going to play a bigger arc. Like her parents were going to figure out that they were in each other's bodies because all of a sudden Alexia is chewing all the gum or something. But it was just a treat that never went anywhere. Right. And just her sister yelling at her that she's going to get cavities. Yeah. But for the parents to realize what's going on would so go against the parents of the 90s and 2000s movies.

[00:30:37] Because they're not paying attention. They're working. They're deep in psychology too. Right. Parenting magazines at the dinner breakfast table or whatever. Also, we get a lot of 90s anti-fatness stuff going on because Alex has a very, she's very cognizant about eating and lack thereof. So she's on a diet, diet culture.

[00:31:04] And literally at one point she's like, I am only eating fruits and vegetables and juicing, which not good. Yeah. I think, I mean, it's so like, it's so casual back then. But I think it's interesting watching like the fact that when she's Haley, she's like just stuffing her face. And like there was one point where she's like eating spaghetti or something.

[00:31:33] And she's like tearing it up. And I had to be like, why is she so hungry? But then I was like, oh, it's because she typically is starving and dieting so much that she doesn't enjoy food really. She's just so conscious about it. And then too, like the fact that like their friend group have, you know, those rules where it's like, oh, we only eat this or drink. We bring each other sodas and stuff and are helping each other. They're like, oh, yeah. They're like a scale in their locker.

[00:32:03] Yeah. Yeah. Things we went over our heads were just normal to us growing up. But now like rewatching and I'm like, oh. Yeah. Rough. So once they've swapped, they first like Alexi is not happy. She's like, put us back. She's like pretending it's a birthday and like make a wish, throwing pennies in the well, which is the toilet.

[00:32:32] She is trying whatever she can to get their body switched back. And it's just not happening. And Haley's like, I wished upon a star. That's how you have to swap us back is to find another shooting star. And then but Haley's enjoying herself. She gets to like get all cute. She gets to go and like hang out with the cool kids and talk to the boyfriend. So she's like, she's good.

[00:32:57] Whereas Alexia is so out of water because she's like in these advanced science classes and had to take a test for Haley. And she doesn't know anything about constellations. So there was a little bit of, well, just fake, fake like you're sick. And I get out of the, the, the test. But Haley was living her best life as Alexia that first day.

[00:33:25] I, and this is like another iconic outfit. It's a blue and white skirt with a white button down and a blue pleather kind of like vest, zipper vest. Yeah. And I think she's wearing, oh, knee highs. Is it white platform shoes again? Or yeah, I don't remember what color. Yeah. She's got the cute little white backpack.

[00:33:50] I went to look up to see who the costume designer was for this movie. It is Rosemary E. Bengal, I think. Or is it Jen? Yeah. And she also was the costume designer for, oh, I thought I, guess I didn't, didn't save it. For some other DCOMs.

[00:34:19] I think the Luck of the Irish was one, the Paper Brigade. Oh. Oh, I love the Paper Brigade. I don't remember watching that one. Oh my God. That tree house in that movie. Like, oh my God. Yeah. If you ever do that movie. I'm trying to see what the other one, the other two were that she did. Oh, sorry. She went on blue platforms in this outfit. Oh, okay.

[00:34:48] Let me redo this. So I looked up the costume designer and it's actually, her name is Lon Cole. And she was also the costume designer for Dumb and Dumber. Halloween 4, Halloween 5, and then a few other Disney Channel movies like the Paper Brigade,

[00:35:09] like I said, and the Luck of the Irish, Hounded, Double Teamed, and I think one called The Proof Point. I love that movie. Well, good job to her for, you know, stealing Clueless's blueprint. But these are still, like, very different and still, like, very memorable coveted outfits. And I want to say there's a girl on TikTok.

[00:35:37] I forget her name, but I followed her. And I want to say she recreated this outfit. And she also did, like, the dress from My President's Daughter, the, like, pink, pink one. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So she really pulled it off. But this is, like, again, a timeless 90s, like, I think this should be a costume that more people try to, like, you know, do and, like, kind of, like, oh, if you know, you know. Yeah. Right.

[00:36:05] I think also the difference between Clueless and this one, it's that it felt very much like an everyday 90s girl wearing it versus, like, some of the stuff Cher would wear. Nobody was affording that until after the movie came out and they were producing it like crazy. Yeah. Yeah. Cher taught us some fashion, like, Aliyah and Calvin Klein and stuff like that. And I was like, what's an Aliyah?

[00:36:33] It's, like, a very important designer. Like, Alexia at best was, like, hitting up her local wet seal at the mall and stuff like that. She was at the 579. Yeah. But turning out a look. Never mind. Yeah. With Aliyah, I remember watching the documentary on the supermodels and they were talking about Naomi Campbell's trajectory and how she was taken in by the guy who was the designer for Aliyah. And I was like, oh, I know what that is.

[00:37:05] Yeah. No, the zeitgeist with Clueless is definitely a little more broader than Wish Upon a Star. But, yeah, very accessible. Yes. So, now we see, like you said, Jackie, Haley was having a time. Well, Alex was having a time as Haley eating all the ice cream. Now, was it Ho-Hos or Swiss Rolls? I don't know. But I saw one, something similar. It was a Swiss Roll.

[00:37:35] Yeah, the box was on the counter. And it looked like a bear got to it. Like, it wasn't just open. Like, it was corn open. It was open. Because Alexia, as Haley, faints and pretends like she's sick to get out of the science test. So, when her mom picks her up, she's like, can we get snacks and go to Blockbuster? So, there was a Blockbuster shout out in this movie. I love it.

[00:38:00] And then, yeah, you just see her like gorging herself on the couch, living her best life. But then, eventually, her best friend comes over. I'm like, if you're sick, why do you get a friend over? And why are you answering the door for the neighborhood kid with the bad haircut? Question. Why couldn't we have gotten a cuter kid? I'm sorry. No hate to that man. But he was not a handsome kid.

[00:38:28] Like, I did do an IMDB deep dive to see, did he get better with age? Where is he now? What caught my eye is that he was on an episode of Veronica Mars, Jackie. So, now I have to like go back and see that. Yeah. He was definitely eating Breck and Myers nachos. Like, that's what I got from that casting. Was like trying to cast a Travis from Clueless, almost.

[00:38:57] Where he's like the skater kid to Haley's kind of grungy sky, you know. Yes. Okay, that's a different perspective. I didn't think about that. I just was like, he got to know somebody. Because what is this? What do we do? It was like the hair. Nepo child extra. He comes and brings cookies over to Haley, aka Alex.

[00:39:25] And she takes a cookie. She's like, peace out, bud. And he's just so, like, confused. Because she doesn't know that she doesn't, like, that Haley's never met this person before. Yeah. Because he's new. You kind of see scenes of him moving in next door in the beginning. So, he's just like, what the fuck? Okay. So.

[00:39:49] And then, meanwhile, back at school, Haley, as Alex, is starting to struggle, really during lunch, with, like, all of these social rules that Alex and her friends have in place. But then, somehow, like, loops her, Haley's best friend into, like, sitting with them and introducing them and, like, hey, be cool to her and stuff.

[00:40:15] So, it's like, it gets in this muddy water of, like, in the next couple of days is like, oh, let's not hang out with them. But, like, she's already introduced the best friend. So, it's like, sorry, I'm in a mistake. Right. Because she knows how much her best friend, like, has always wondered what it was like to eat with them and what they would talk about and stuff like that.

[00:40:40] And during this, like, interaction as well, she finds out that her and her boy, she broke up with her boyfriend because of these stupid ass rules that she has. Yeah, she broke up with Kyle and so now she's, like, panicked as Haley. What's the point of that rule? Like, to not get too attached? To not have to bone? I don't know what the point of that rule is. They want to taste all the flavors at the ice cream shop.

[00:41:11] That's what the rule? I don't know. They probably read it in some Cosmo magazine or something stupid. Right. So, she goes, tries to, you know, she tries to beg with Kyle or whatever and then he just says, like, you know, I'll drive you home from school. Which, by the way, Haley, aka Alex, drives them to school and I don't know why it would have been bad for her to drive because, yes, she's a little bit shorter.

[00:41:40] But, like, it still would have worked, right? I think, no, I think the idea was, like... I think she's not 16. Yeah. Alexia is, like, old enough to have her license where I think Haley was supposed to be, like, a freshman. Right. But the thing was that the reason that was even caught on the radar of the principal is because the way that she, like, kind of drove into the parking space kind of crazy, like she couldn't drive.

[00:42:10] Mm-hmm. But it was really... Yeah, Alexia. That's usually how she drove. Oh, so, okay. She's just a bad driver. Okay. Yeah. So, she's, like, sharing that way as well. Yeah. Okay. In a Jeep. Don't care. Ken was upset because, like, when Haley's trying to drive as Alexia herself and Kyle home, the Jeep is a manual transmission, and obviously she doesn't know how to work it.

[00:42:40] And Ken's, like, I watched the other girl put it into drive at the column earlier when it was an automatic Jeep, and now they're trying to tell me that this is a manual Jeep. He was very upset. Oh, boy. I didn't even notice. Yeah. I couldn't drive the manual. I wrote that down. I was, like, ooh, how many of us could actually drive this Jeep? Yeah, he can. Not me. I'm, like, mm, passenger princess.

[00:43:09] So, she does pick up Kyle. So, Kyle gets in the car, and he's, like, what the fuck? He's, like, I think I'm gonna drive. Yeah. Because, bitch, you gonna kill us. For real. So, they get back together. And, but, like, before she drops Kyle off, she, they have a good old-fashioned makeout sesh, and he starts canoodling on her neck. So, she comes home.

[00:43:35] They're at, they're having dinner, and Alex and Hayley's body is, like, bitch, where you been? Yeah. And, like, all afternoon, where you been? And she's, like, oh, nothing, blah, blah, blah. But then, of course, she spots the hickey, and she's, like, I need to see you. And she's, like, is that a fucking hickey? And she's, like, is that what that's called? Oh, my God.

[00:44:03] There's so much, like, because how are you doing that in my body? Like, I don't know. That's where it might be a little weird to switch with somebody because it's just, like, okay, yes, you have my body, but it is on loan. Like, do not be out here putting numbers on me and, like, all kinds of stuff. So, now she's, like, freaking out because you're, like, you hoeing out my body without my permission.

[00:44:30] But it's also, like, a really good way for them to show that the sisters do not talk to each other about stuff. Which reminds me of the Stratford sisters a lot of, like, not just the miscommunication because they both are assuming a lot of things are happening. And later on in the movie we find out that Alex is a virgin and she blurts that out, like, what are you going to do next? Lose my virginity.

[00:44:57] And this is, like, a huge surprise to Haley because she has assumed at this point that her and Kyle have done it. And same thing with the Stratford sisters. Like, having that tension between the two of them, they don't talk about, like, things. And for an older sister, younger sister, it kind of sucks because she could help, you know, her with that.

[00:45:25] So, I thought that was interesting. And then it's all a lot more between the two of them because... The things that have... The outfit that is worn the next day. First of all, the parents are so at fault for this shit because you let that girl go out. Even though Halloween, yes, is an excuse, as we learn from being girls, for everyone to dress like a slut.

[00:45:52] But that dominatrix situation, she even had the whip for guys. Yeah. That's crazy. And you're shocked that Haley thinks that you've already lost your virginity when that was your Halloween costume? I don't even think in high school I knew what a dominatrix outfit was. Oh, I did because I watched real sex on HBO.

[00:46:22] Well, now that we're spilling our secrets, yeah. I don't think I saw that on real sex, though. But, yeah, I think I knew by then what a dominatrix was and stuff. But I would not think a friend would wear something like that for Halloween. No. It was, like, it was not a costume. Like, she went straight to the sex shop. To a sex shop, yeah. And bought the leathers.

[00:46:49] The closest thing I could recall in media from that age seeing was Rosie O'Donnell's character. Yes. In another stakeout. Yes. Yes. She wore something like that. Right? No. Exit to Eden? Exit to Eden. Yes, that's what it was. Yeah. Speaking of the OC, Summer, when she was Little Miss Vixen and she dressed up. Well, she dressed up as Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman, yeah.

[00:47:14] But as Little Miss Vixen, she had a whip and she had, like, a corset, like, kind of leather thing going on there. So, I was pretty as close as I got, I think, to something similar. But, yeah. Yeah, that outfit was wild. But it did, when she got to school, Aunt Haley, aka Alex, did a full-on table dance in the cafeteria. Yeah.

[00:47:43] Which puts her in the Hall of Fame of other table dancers like Kat Stratford at the party. Bogey Loinstein's party. Bogey's party. And also, I would say maybe a coyote ugly situation would go in the Hall of Fame. I don't know if any other table dances. The girl from Bring It On during the auditions where the guy is, like, leaning back. The twat. The girl twat was hanging out to Cherry Pie.

[00:48:12] My brain immediately goes to, like, Jerry O'Connell in Scream 2, but that's a different kind of table dance. Yeah. Very cleaner cut table dance. Yeah. Also, we're skipping the fact that the way Haley decides to embarrass Alexia as Alexia is to outfit repeat. And she wears the same outfit from the day before and, like, totally looks a mess. And admits that she didn't bathe. Yeah.

[00:48:40] You know how that triggered me? She didn't brush her hair. Did she brush her teeth? Who knows? They had, like, the prom or whatever dance pictures. Pictures for the newspaper. She's making faces. I'm like, oh, that picture's gonna fucking live forever in the yearbook. Right? It was in the newspaper. Yes. Oh, man. Yeah. And Kyle doesn't seem to give a shit. He don't even notice that. Hey, baby.

[00:49:08] Hey, you wearing the same clothes from yesterday? Well, he's actually more attracted to her because she, like, isn't wearing makeup because I'm assuming Haley probably doesn't understand how to do makeup. Right. So she, like, forgoes that. And he's like, wow, you look, like, so beautiful, natural, and, like, without all this makeup and stuff. And, of course, she's like, oh, yeah. Mission accomplished. Right.

[00:49:39] But they do start to realize that, like, each other's lives are not a cakewalk. Like, they're, they each have their own challenges. Um, Haley realizes, as Alexia, like, the kind of mean girl space that, that Alexia is kind of, she created, but has kind of painted herself into a corner with. Yeah. Where she feels like she can't get out.

[00:50:07] And then Alexia's Haley just realizing Haley is just not comfortable in her own skin and, like, not willing to go and, like, put herself out there to, like, have a relationship or anything like that. So then they start to kind of help each other in that way. Haley, as Alexia talks to the friends, is like, hey, why don't we just get rid of these rules? Like, we need these.

[00:50:33] And conversely, Alexia's Haley is, like, starts befriending boys and kind of making Haley more cool, it seems. Yeah. Yeah. But the catalyst for this isn't that they just saw each other's stuff. They got in fucking trouble. Yeah. They're in the principal's office. Not Alex. Alex goes to the bathroom and writes, Alexia Whedon is a wench. Yeah. On the freaking tile.

[00:51:02] It's crazy, though, because they're still writing it as their own selves. Right. So it's like Haley writes, Haley Whedon is a wench, but it's Alexia in Haley's body. So I was like, wait, why are you writing that about yourself? Yourself, yeah. Oh, wait. Yeah.

[00:51:45] Oh, man. And she has to go and apologize to get Haley back into the science fair. Because she not only dresses like a dominatrix, comes to the class with her headphones and damn near cussed out her teacher. Yeah. That teacher was so patient with her bitch ass. Because I would have been like, you go to the principal's office now. And she had to make up the test, like do an oral exam. And she's just like, I don't know. Right.

[00:52:15] So bad. And this is also where the parents think like they've actually cracked a code. Yeah. Look at them getting along. I love when the parents are called into the principal's office and they're like, you do whatever you want to do, but it can't come from us. I'm like, this is me and every parent teacher meeting fucking ever.

[00:52:45] The parents too. Like, I also like that the principal now has empathy for the girls because she's like, look at these fucked up parents not doing anything for these kids. But she also witnesses the kids like being kind to each other and stepping up. So that was really cool to see. But then Haley and Alexia decide to stay up all night. They're studying, they're doing all stuff, but they're trying to wait so that they can

[00:53:13] look at the stars and wish or whatever. So there's scenes where they are sleeping outside having kind of like a little sleepover, which is super cute. And then they fall asleep on the couch another, I think it's a different night and their parents bring them to bed. But Haley as Alexia wakes up and sees the star wishes upon it, wakes up the next day, but she's still in Alex's body. So she's really, really sad and torn up.

[00:53:42] Like, oh my God, I'm going to be stuck in this body. As much as I thought the grass was greener, I want to be in my body. I want to present at the science fair. Like, I don't want this anymore. And she's devastated because she thinks that like they can't turn back. Yeah. And it takes her a little bit before she tells Alex what's going on. And in the meantime, like you said, Alexia as Haley has to present her findings at the science fair and like not.

[00:54:11] And then at this point, like Alexia is really invested and is like, has learned what the project is and is able to present it. And so she, she does make it to nationals. So she's really excited. And then that evening is... Do we find out though? Cause they don't, they say that they won't know till the next day, which is after the dance. So I don't know if we ever find out if she made it or not.

[00:54:40] Cause I was always curious. I'm like, did she get to nationals? I think it's alluded to like she did really well. Like she, especially since it wasn't really her project. No one knows that. But yeah, the fact that she was able to, cause she couldn't find her note cards. Right. Yeah. Yeah. And she just started telling a story essentially. Yeah. And I thought it was sweet. Cause also Haley does Alex's college interview and they ask her who her role model is.

[00:55:10] And she's, she literally says myself essentially like my sister, but I thought that was sweet too. So there's like a chance she's, she did well with that as well. That. And then I thought it was cool too, that the kid next door, Simon winds up crushing on Haley as Alexia and he kisses her. And then he's like, well, like, you know, we have more in common. Like at first I thought Haley was cute.

[00:55:40] And then Alexia is like, oh no, like you, because she knows that like they're going to switch back. And she's like, wait, you think I'm cute? But she's like, oh, well you should get to know her more because we're a lot more similar. And I think that was, that was cute too, in a way for her to hear that someone was attracted to her, not as Alexia and just her body out there without her. Yeah. Cause she does say like, you're attracted to me physically.

[00:56:09] That's why you like me. He's like, no, actually I liked your sister. Yeah. Oh, okay. It's what's inside that matters. I'm like, I bet you're making on that too. So now we're at the dance because Haley as Alex goes to the pep rally, I guess, to announce the winter festival. Queens. Queens or whatever. Yeah.

[00:56:38] Also at the school, they only have Queens. It seems like there's no King. Yeah. Love that for us. Let's not waste our time here. And that's when Haley, Alex as Haley is doing the science fair presentation. Then they go and they get dressed. And at their school swimming pool, they meet up. And this is when Haley as Alex confesses that she tried to wish upon a star and it didn't happen.

[00:57:05] And that's when Alex, Haley as Alex, Jesus, Alex says, okay, truth. At the time, I wish that I was you because I was kind of like you were saying, envious that of your life and how smart you are and stuff. So that was super sweet. So they're like, oh, that means we have time. So they go out and of course, magically, there's the shooting star. Well, and it's like, they're sitting there and they're like watching different quadrants of the sky.

[00:57:37] We have all seen a shooting star. And by the time I've never seen one, you've never seen a shooting star. It's like a blink. Yeah. Like by the time you register, it's a shooting star. It's gone. Right. It happens super quick. There is no time to be like, oh, look, there's one. Let's make a wish. I wish I was the opposite. Yeah. I was like, you should probably be looking in the same direction.

[00:58:08] But they switch like automatically. Yeah. You know, usually it's always funny because when people do these body swaps, the initial swap is usually like overnight. But when they swap back, it's like instantaneous a lot of times. Yeah. Yeah. And it's like, dang. Like, I don't know. I think it's the buildup and like the whole like, oh, I'm going to wake up and like, oh my God, it's I'm not who I write. I don't see myself.

[00:58:36] I think it's that buildup or that trope in terms of doing the overnight versus like immediate. Yeah. I mean, they were both outside. So could you imagine like she's like sitting watching the stars and she's in the hot tub and they immediately switch when they. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That would have been that would have been a mess. And then we are back at the dance. And we find out that Alex won.

[00:59:05] Surprise, surprise, surprise. Surprise. What?

[00:59:35] Like, I agree. You know, I love the songs. And then I do love this end scene because one Haley, Simon finds Haley finds Simon and they, you know, are able to connect and they're dancing. And her outfit is so adorable. Love her red, her red dress. And then her sister gives her her tiara. Yeah. And then they like hold hands and have like a whole moment.

[01:00:05] It's so sweet. It's almost Romy and Michelle-esque. Like, yeah. Funny enough, Katherine Heigl was in, I don't like to talk about it, but she in ABC family prequel of Romy and Michelle high school reunion. I didn't know there was a prequel. Yes. Yes. Oh, my God. Yeah. Blink once if you've seen it. I'm going to have to find that now.

[01:00:35] I'm scared. Because usually it's probably not that great. But, yeah. The movie fades. The two sisters are just longingly looking at each other so happy, lovingly. And that's it. That is Wish Upon a Stone. We did it. We did it. Do you think they ever, like, once they got older, like, talk about this? Like, remember that? Like, how long did they switch to? Like, remember that week we switched bodies?

[01:01:05] Probably. I will, like, never stop talking about it. I'm like, oh, my God. Remember that time? It's just because. For magic. Magic. Yeah. That's, it's so crazy. Like, that would mentally fuck with me. Because then I'd be like, okay, well, then clearly there's magic in the world. So what else can I do? Or can I wish for something else? I'd be wishing on a fucking star every day. Right. That's hilarious. Oh, my God. All right.

[01:01:34] What other fun facts did we miss? The real Hunter-Hyde basketball team played the opposing team, the Wolverines, in the basketball game. Oh, okay. Danielle Harris said in a 2017 interview that this is one of her favorite roles because it's one of the only comedic roles she's ever done. And she still watches it whenever it comes on. I love that. She did such a great. Both actresses did a fantastic job.

[01:02:03] Like, I was like, this is so well acted, especially for being, like, a low-budge Disney Channel movie. Like, I'm like, no notes. Yeah. And it's not, like, cheesy or, like, too, like, you know, where there's some 80s movies, you know, that you're just like, like, I love you, but damn, like, you know, lower the cheese-ick factor a little bit. Like, it's a little cringy.

[01:02:32] And there was no cringe here. I think everything aged well, like, for the most part. Except the table dance hurt, and, like, when you think of their age. Okay, maybe she was about 18 when she would film this if Catherine was 17. It's still weird. I don't know. That's the only thing. But everything else, you're right. And Danielle Harris was quite nervous about shooting the table dance scene, which actually does not appear in most TV versions of the movie.

[01:03:02] So she asked if she could choose the people who were sitting at the table, and she ended up picking the boys who would be most uncomfortable watching her to make herself more comfortable while performing. Oh, I wonder how she figured that out. Like, do you think I'm cute? Okay, no, you can't sit. Yeah. Well, and then we had that guy at the balcony, like, gyrating. And I was like, boy, what are you doing? None of those people had rhythm.

[01:03:32] There was, like, every person they showed on screen was like, It's Colorado. Like, what was that? I was like, oh, my God, is he having a seizure? What is happening? Yikes. It was bad. It was really bad. As we said, this movie was shot in Utah. It was filmed at Hunter High School, and they filmed from 95 to about early 1996. And I think that's it. I think that's it.

[01:04:00] If you have commentary or thoughts on this movie, or you loved it like we do there, that's the only option. You loved this movie? Hit us up at NoMoreLateFees on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, YouTube threads, Blue Sky. And let's get into our present-day ratings. We'll start with you, Bria. Now, after re-watching it years later, how do you feel? You know what? I'm going single day rental. No. Would buy. Would buy again.

[01:04:29] I need to get the DVD that Danielle has or buy it from Prime. Especially these days. I know. The media space being like, are we going to have things anymore? So, I would put this in my vault of things that I would like to still be able to watch again. Facts. Jackie? I'm sticking with my five-day rental. I enjoyed it on the re-watch. She's not seeking it out again.

[01:05:00] I mean, since I have the DVD still, I would buy it again. It didn't have a lot of special features. Like, literally, listen to what the special features are. Digitally mastered audio and video. Full screen presentation. Subtitles. Filmographies. Interactive menus. Scene selections. So, we weren't getting much. There's no bonuses. But it's still worth.

[01:05:29] And if you go to our Amazon store, it's in there. If you have any comments about Wish Upon a Star, hit us up at our quick job. 909-601-6653. Twot us at the Twitters. Hem us at the Threads. Butterfly in the Sky at Blue Sky. And you can be featured on a future episode. And it's Stephanie's birthday, Danielle. Oh, awesome. It's Stephanie. Happy birthday to Stephanie.

[01:05:58] We absolutely adore you. Happy birthday, Stephanie. Happy birthday, Stephanie. We love you. And thank you for supporting the podcast. And don't miss next week's episode as Nick is back and we're covering Heartbreakers. So much to Bria for joining us. It was a pleasure, as always. As always. Thank you. Thank you for having me.

[01:06:23] And if we're ever in a pinch, if someone gets sick, then we have our designated hitter lined up. Yes. Thank you. Thank you. And as always, be kind and rewind.