A Simple Wish
Male fairy godmother Murray ties to help 8-year-old Anabel fulfill her "simple wish" that her cab-driver father Oliver wins the leading role in a Broadway musical. Unfortunately, Murray's magic wand is broken, and the fairies' convention is threatened by evil witches Claudia and Boots.
The film financial setback against its respectable budget of $28.0M, earning $8.3M globally (-70% loss). While initial box office returns were modest, the film has gained appreciation for its compelling narrative within the comedy genre.
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
A Simple Wish (1997) showcases carefully calibrated narrative architecture, characteristic of Michael Ritchie's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 26 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.7, the film showcases strong structural fundamentals.
Characters
Cast & narrative archetypes
Anabel Greening
Murray
Claudia
Oliver Greening
Charlie Greening
Boots
Main Cast & Characters
Anabel Greening
Played by Mara Wilson
A young girl who wishes for her struggling actor father to get his big break, becoming the charge of an incompetent fairy godfather.
Murray
Played by Martin Short
A bumbling male fairy godmother in training who accidentally gets assigned to help Anabel despite his magical mishaps.
Claudia
Played by Kathleen Turner
An evil witch and former fairy godmother who seeks to steal the powers of all fairy godmothers to control magic.
Oliver Greening
Played by Robert Pastorelli
Anabel's kind-hearted father, a struggling actor hoping for his theatrical breakthrough while raising his children.
Charlie Greening
Played by Francis Capra
Anabel's younger brother who gets caught up in the magical chaos.
Boots
Played by Teri Garr
Claudia's incompetent henchman and assistant who helps carry out her evil schemes.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Anabel is a young girl living in New York City with her struggling single father Oliver, a Broadway musical performer preparing for an important audition. She yearns for her father's success and their family to be whole again.. Structural examination shows that this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 10 minutes when Anabel makes a wish for a fairy godmother to help her father succeed, and the incompetent Murray is accidentally dispatched to grant her wish instead of a qualified fairy godmother.. At 11% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 21 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This indicates the protagonist's commitment to Anabel makes the active choice to work with Murray despite his flaws, and they agree to help her father win the audition. She commits to the magical partnership and enters a world where wishes can come true., moving from reaction to action.
At 43 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 49% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Significantly, this crucial beat Claudia successfully steals Murray's wand and begins using dark magic to take over the fairy godmother organization. What seemed like a simple wish-granting adventure becomes a high-stakes battle. The stakes are raised enormously - false defeat., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 64 minutes (74% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Murray is captured and stripped of his fairy godmother status, facing permanent banishment. Anabel's father is under Claudia's spell. All hope seems lost - Murray's incompetence has led to disaster, and Anabel is alone without magic to help her., shows the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 69 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 80% of the runtime. Anabel realizes the theme's truth: she doesn't need magic to be powerful. She synthesizes what Murray taught her about believing in yourself with her own courage and determination. She chooses to face Claudia without magic., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
A Simple Wish's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs systematic plot point analysis that identifies crucial turning points. By mapping A Simple Wish against these established plot points, we can identify how Michael Ritchie utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish A Simple Wish within the comedy genre.
Michael Ritchie's Structural Approach
Among the 9 Michael Ritchie films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 7.4, reflecting strong command of classical structure. A Simple Wish represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Michael Ritchie filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional comedy films include The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, The Bad Guys and Lake Placid. For more Michael Ritchie analyses, see The Island, The Bad News Bears and Fletch.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Anabel is a young girl living in New York City with her struggling single father Oliver, a Broadway musical performer preparing for an important audition. She yearns for her father's success and their family to be whole again.
Theme
Oliver tells Anabel that "the best magic is believing in yourself" when she expresses doubt about his upcoming audition, establishing the theme that true power comes from within, not from external magic.
Worldbuilding
We see Anabel's daily life with her father, his struggles as an actor, her relationship with neighborhood friends, and her longing for a better life. Meanwhile, in the fairy godmother world, Murray is a bumbling trainee fairy godmother struggling with his studies.
Disruption
Anabel makes a wish for a fairy godmother to help her father succeed, and the incompetent Murray is accidentally dispatched to grant her wish instead of a qualified fairy godmother.
Resistance
Murray arrives and reveals himself to Anabel. Despite his magical mishaps and incompetence, Anabel debates whether to trust him. Murray attempts small magical tasks that go comically wrong, but Anabel sees potential in getting her wish granted.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Anabel makes the active choice to work with Murray despite his flaws, and they agree to help her father win the audition. She commits to the magical partnership and enters a world where wishes can come true.
Mirror World
Murray and Anabel form a genuine friendship bond. Murray represents the mirror to Anabel's journey - both are trying to prove themselves worthy despite others' doubts. Their relationship will teach Anabel the theme: belief in oneself matters more than magic.
Premise
The "fun and games" of having a fairy godmother: Murray attempts various spells to help Oliver and Anabel, with mixed results. Meanwhile, the evil Claudia Hoffman, a former fairy godmother, learns about Murray's wand and plots to steal it to regain her powers.
Midpoint
Claudia successfully steals Murray's wand and begins using dark magic to take over the fairy godmother organization. What seemed like a simple wish-granting adventure becomes a high-stakes battle. The stakes are raised enormously - false defeat.
Opposition
Claudia grows more powerful and threatens both the human and fairy worlds. Murray is powerless without his wand. Anabel and Murray face increasingly dangerous obstacles as Claudia closes in, turning Oliver and others into her pawns.
Collapse
Murray is captured and stripped of his fairy godmother status, facing permanent banishment. Anabel's father is under Claudia's spell. All hope seems lost - Murray's incompetence has led to disaster, and Anabel is alone without magic to help her.
Crisis
Anabel experiences her dark night of the soul, believing she was foolish to trust in magic and wishes. She must confront the reality that magic cannot solve her problems - she must find the strength within herself.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Anabel realizes the theme's truth: she doesn't need magic to be powerful. She synthesizes what Murray taught her about believing in yourself with her own courage and determination. She chooses to face Claudia without magic.
Synthesis
Anabel confronts Claudia using cleverness and bravery rather than magic. She rescues Murray, and together they defeat Claudia through wit and teamwork. Oliver is freed from the spell, and Murray earns his place as a true fairy godmother through his friendship with Anabel.
Transformation
Anabel and her father are together, stronger and more confident. Oliver succeeds on his own merit, and Anabel has learned she had the power within herself all along. The final image mirrors the opening but shows a transformed, empowered girl who no longer needs wishes.