Wicked is the movie currently taking the world by storm. Paired on a release weekend with the sequel to one of the most critically acclaimed films of all time, all anyone can talk about is the movie musical. Speaking of, it’s a prequel to a decades-old movie that is based on a Broadway musical that’s based on a book, so there are multiple layers of storytelling present here. It’s out now to rave reviews, but are those warranted? Light spoilers ahead.
Wicked Good Things
Visual Imagery
For decades, the mythical land of Oz has captivated audiences. It’s whimsical, fun, bright, and most of all, colorful. There’s a good reason The Wizard of Oz‘s original filmmakers decided to transition from black and white to color for Oz. While there is no other comparison, the bright colors and stunning visuals harken back to that while providing a modern, beautiful take on the land. For the most part, every shot is good from a color and cinematography standpoint. Some of the site pieces use reflections that look a little off, but it’s a minor thing.
Messaging/Plot
I am a sucker for a tragic villain, though at this point Elphaba is not even the villain in the story. I love a villain who’s not evil but just broken, and Wicked flips that on its head a little bit. The villain, although antagonist is the more accurate term, is hardly as “wicked” as suggested. In fact, she is one of the few good people in the story. It’s clever storytelling that positions the one genuinely moral character as the enemy.
The messaging here is great, too. There’s been a little bit of uproar about a black woman playing Elphaba, but the core theme of the movie fits with that casting choice. There’s discrimination against the future witch solely because of the skin color she had no control over. It’s a brilliant meta-narrative that was probably unintended due to the shocking outrage over the “race swapping” of a character that is entirely fictional and, well, green. The juxtaposition with Ariana Grande’s Galinda/Glinda (the “guh” is silent) only adds to that.
Performances
The cast here is all operating at pretty high levels with few exceptions. Bowen Yang is probably better suited to keep doing SNL skits, but most everyone else is playing at a high level. Grande and Cynthia Erivo are a powerhouse duo both musically and dramatically. Don’t be surprised if Grande, who is impressively funny in this, gets Oscar buzz for Supporting Actress. Erivo carries the emotional weight of the film with grace, and supporting performances from Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, and Michelle Yeoh are all good.
Musical Numbers
Unlike some other 2024 musicals, Wicked is unafraid to boldly be a musical. Joker: Folie a Deux tried to toe the line and ended up being neither a genuine musical nor interesting. This movie doesn’t have that problem. I wasn’t a fan of all the musical numbers and some of them paused and resumed later in interesting fashion, but none were particularly bad. Some were so good I didn’t even realize that they were knee-deep in a song until it was halfway over.
Part One
There has also been a little bit of outrage about the lack of marketing that this is one of two parts. Whatever the crew decided was the reason to keep this a little hidden, it didn’t end up mattering. The title card said part one but this movie could have been a standalone. I have not seen the musical nor read the book, so I can’t predict what happens between the end of this movie and the events of The Wizard of Oz (how exciting that is for me!), but they seemingly picked a good spot.
The narrative plot wraps up nicely, and it’s clear to see that these characters do evolve into the versions of them we know and love. How they evolve remains to be seen, at least by me and others who haven’t watched the Broadway show, but this is a perfect cutoff. That’s not always easy to do, and sometimes, part ones anger people because they have to wait a long time for the conclusion.
Fortunately, Wicked stands alone pretty well. It is, for my money’s worth, the Dune to Dune: Part Two. The sequel to Dune is one of the best movies of all time, and its predecessor does a wonderful job at setting it up. Who knows how Wicked Part Two will turn out, but I will be seated to find out.
The Truly Wicked Parts
Cast Age
Did I mention how good the cast is? That almost makes it forgivable that they’re all rather old. Perhaps time works differently in Oz, but they mostly all attend Shiz, a university. That means most of them should be 18-26, but they all mostly look well over 30. Bailey is perhaps the most egregious offender, and Grande is maybe the closest-looking to a college-age student. It’s just hard to envision these characters being at a college party, for example, when they look like they’d be kicked out of said party for being old and creepy.
Pacing
The pacing of the film is sometimes inconsistent. At times, it flows effortlessly. Only a few of the musical numbers grind the movie to a halt, which is a compliment from someone who really doesn’t seek out movie musicals to watch. But there are times when the movie starts to crawl. This also shows up in the development of certain aspects.
Most of the movie’s 2:40 runtime is spent developing the relationship between Glinda and Elphaba. That adds to the emotional weight and is arguably the most important thing, but it’s hard to really believe that Elphaba can read the Grimmier and cast powerful spells when she could hardly lift a coin the last time we saw her even attempt to use her magic. Off-screen development obviously happens, but it does break the immersion a little.
Conclusion
While Wicked doesn’t quite reach the heights I wanted or pack the emotional gut punch I expected (the sequel seems poised to break mine and others’ hearts), it does a good enough job. At times, the narrative isn’t quite enough to keep me fully immersed. I know where the story is ultimately going, and sometimes, I was too anxious to get there. Most of my issues are minuscule, and I do advise going to see this in a full theater. Perhaps a major spoiler alert, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find an empty one.
Score: 4/5
