I'm not sure how to set this one up... Three Wishes tells the tale of a family with a lot of problems who meet Dalton from Road House who makes everything better.

Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio plays Jeanne Holman, the hot, widowed mom of her of two sons, awful baseball player and longs to have a dad like everyone else, Tom (Jurassic Park's Joseph Mazello) and cancerous little brother who is afraid of everything, Gunny (Who the hell cares) in a 1955 American small town. On their way to a memorial day picnic they stop to pay their respects to America's fallen soldiers, including Mr. Holman who's plane was shot down over Korea and his body never recovered. Heading home, Jeanne accidentally hits Jack the hitchhiker (Patrick Swayze) and breaks his leg. Offering her sympathy, she invites he and his dog to stay with them until his leg heels.

While living with them, Jack sunbathes in the nude, practices meditation, brews his own sun tea, and does a lot of other things the Holman's nosy neighbors approve of no more than they do Mrs. Holman letting a stranger live with her. As the film progresses Jack teaches Jeanne she doesn't have to worry about finding a new father for the boys because she's doing a fine job raising them herself, he teaches Gunny not to be afraid of everything, and teaches Tom and his lousy team how to play baseball.

Eventually his leg heels and he decides to take his leave, much to the dismay of Tom who has grown to see him as a father figure. Jack tells Tom that every time you lose something you get something in return. "You're a bum!", yells an angry, tearful Tom who runs off without saying goodbye to what he would have liked to be his new dad. Then Mr. Holman shows up because the People's Republic of China has released fifteen American prisoners of war... also Gunny's cancer goes away. Jack probably had something to do with that. The Holman family is reunited and everyone's happy!

The above synopsis is a very abridged version of the plot.
The film begins with a present day framing device where we see Tom as an adult (Michael O'Keefe) with a family of his own learning almost hitting a dog that looks like Jacks. We'll get back to this in a moment.

The story (and name) of the film stem from the way Jack offers, not just guidance, but wishes to the Holmans. Gunny wishes he could fly into the air and see the fireworks on Fourth of July (I.E. Not be scared), Jeanne wants her boys to be well taken care of, and Tom wishes for nothing as making Jack stay was not an option. A big problem is that these wishes were very literal... Gunny does in fact fly through the air to see the fireworks. Not making that up. He flies.

The dog that travels with Jack is, as he tells Gunny during a bedtime story, a Genie that travels the world granting wishes to kind people. Now, the dog being a Genie and Gunny's flight could easily just be a case of, "Hey! Jack's just telling the kid a cool story and the flight was Gunny's youthful imagination.", but after Mr. Holman returns we come back to present day where adult Tom stops to see if the dog is okay, not only is it okay but it's being escorted by Jack who has not aged a bit and tells Tom that he made his wish for him, to be happy with whatever he gets.
Yeah, Jack and the dog were magic... and it wasn't even a Disney movie.

Honestly, it wasn't that bad of a movie. With just a little bit of work and the complete removal of adult Tom it could have been good. Still, if you're in the mood for a sentimental family film and enjoy movies like Angels in the Outfield or The Preachers Wife, you might get a kick out of this one.


Final score:
Two old Sega games, a can, and a toy robot with a missing leg








Dumpster worthy?:
Not really. If you find it in the dumpster, grab it. Unless there's something gross near it.