By Katie Sterling
Never before has there been a media campaign of this caliber. Truly, everywhere you look you see the pink…you see the green… Given the ludicrous amount of brand partnerships, it’s almost surprising there hasn’t been a late-night sketch about it. So, in all honesty, does this over-the-top marketing campaign reflect the excellence of the film itself? Wicked, while obviously quite popular to say the least, is a film that entertains but doesn’t quite soar to the heights you imagine it would.
It’s long been argued that transforming a musical onto the big screen is a tricky project since most of the time, the audience that will actually pay to see it is quite niche. In approaching this adaption, director Jon Chu clearly went with the mantra, “More is more.” Big name celebrities, over-the-top sets, elaborate costumes, a two hour and forty-five-minute run time…and this is only part one! While watching the film, you can’t help but feel that you’re inhabiting both main characters – giddy as Glinda during some of the musical numbers, but also a little short-tempered like Elphaba, wanting to just get on with the narrative a little faster.
The movie begins as the musical does with the land of Oz celebrating the fact that the Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), is dead. Glinda the Good (Ariana Grande) floats down in her pink bubble, and after being prompted from a Munchkin, begins to recount the time of when the two of them were students at Shiz University. “Are people really born wicked? Or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?” With this question, the plot reverts back in time and audiences are shown how the events of years past have led them to where they are today.
Arriving at the magical University of Shiz, Elphaba and Galinda (so-named at the time) couldn’t be more opposite – in their appearance, in their attitudes and in the way they treat others. All Galinda wants to achieve at school is maintaining her popularity and studying sorcery under the tutelage of Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh). Unsurprisingly, it’s Elphaba who holds true power but doesn’t quite know how to control it and thus, gains Madame Morrible as a mentor. Galinda and Elphaba are natural enemies, but after a slew of events, the ice melts between them and they become friends. However, the next hurdle thrown at them will forever change their friendship and their legacies.
Elphaba gets an invitation from The Wizard (Jeff Golblum) to visit him in Oz and showcase what she has been learning at school. Things, well, take a turn and the movie reaches its climax and most anticipated song of the roster. Given that this is only part one of the musical, audiences are left on a cliffhanger as to how upcoming events will unfold and forever brand one of them as good and one of them as wicked.
While chockful of characters, this is a story about Elphaba, a smart young woman with supernatural powers who has been cast aside and mocked due to the green color of her skin. Wicked is a not-so-subtle tale of nature vs nurture and how the people you surround yourself with can have major influences on who you are and how you are perceived. Enemy turned friend, Glinda is a bubblegum pink package wrapped in more pink, but is she really as good as her title suggests?
Cynthia Erivo absolutely steals the show as Elphaba, portraying the many facets of this complicated character with grace and strength. Ariana Grande is…fine. At times she really embraces the character, but at times the over-the-top portrayal simply falls flat. Again, this movie has a LOT going on and naturally, not everything will land as intended. But, most importantly for fans of the musical, the song and dance numbers will no doubt delight. Intricately choreographed and bursting at the seams in every way imaginable, even novices may find it hard not to sing along. (Don’t worry, sing-along screenings will start airing in theaters in December.)
Overall, who is to say if casting had been slightly different or if scenes had been shortened, the movie would have hit a bit differently. Or simply, will there always just be a disconnect in adapting stage to screen?
Not to burst anyone’s pink bubble, but this reviewer walked away from Wicked thinking it was good, not great…
Was it too overly hyped? Will people care as much when the second part is finally released this same time next year? Most people will no doubt feel totally enchanted after seeing the movie, but for the select few, it feels as if Wicked’s whimsy is a bit too exhausting.
