Wicked
We’re off to see the wizard, the tedious wizard of Oz
Cynthia Erivo shines in this bloated adaptation of the Broadway hit.
We all know the story of Dorothy Gale, the plucky little girl from Kansas who traveled to the magical land of Oz. There, she freed the people from the tyranny of the Wicked Witch of the West with a little help from Glinda the Good.
Only that’s not the real story.
The Wicked Witch was once only Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), a little girl born green and ostracized by her family and peers. Even though she does everything she can to be a perfect daughter, doting sister, and exceptional student, she’s just seen as a freak and a family embarrassment.
It doesn’t help that she has magic powers that come out when she’s upset.
Content to live in obscurity, Elphaba is shocked when she’s sent to Shiz, the best university in Oz. She’s not supposed to be a student, she’s supposed to simply be a minder for her sister Nessarose (Marissa Bode), who is the darling of her family. But soon Elphaba’s natural affinity for magic gets her noticed by the school and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum).
Even though things are looking up, there’s one problem: Elphaba has an annoying roommate, Galinda (Ariana Grande).
Galinda is the most popular girl in any room. She’s also a nasty, vapid little creature who throws tantrums when she doesn’t get her way. Galinda has always dreamed of being a great witch, but isn’t particularly good at magic. She immediately hates Elphaba and is jealous of her talents. She makes it her mission to destroy her.
But there’s more than just petty rivalries ruining the world of Oz. There’s a movement to banish talking animals (once equal members of society) and force them into servitude. Elphaba, familiar with how unfairly society treats those who are different, immediately sides with the animals and hopes to talk sense to the wizard.
Can Elphaba help the oppressed of Oz? Is Galinda a true friend? Why is this movie nearly three hours?
Based on the smash hit Broadway play, Wicked is the first part of two planned movies. Coming in at two hours and forty minutes, it covers up to the intermission of the musical. This means that both movies combined will be longer than their source material. What do we do with all this excess time? Certainly not flesh out any of the characters aside from Elphaba. There’s plenty of brightly colored CGI landscapes (and a few neat practical sets), but there’s very little emotional heft to this movie.
Director Jon Chu does an admirable job crafting the world of Oz. It looks like a beautiful pastel extension of the world we explored in the 1939 classic film. He also knows how to shoot a musical number with sweep and scale. But while the visuals are neat and the students at Shiz sure know how to dance, there’s a problem with pacing. After a while, it gets tedious and the worlds all look the same. I found myself wondering when Dorothy would show up so we could wrap up this storyline.
The other thing that makes Wicked a tedious watch is Grande, who is doing her very best Kristin Chenoweth impression. She squeaks and flips her hair like a champ, and certainly has the vocal prowess to hit all the right notes in her songs, but the entire performance feels hollow and stiff. Galinda is a complicated figure in Wicked because her redemption arc (even in the Broadway version) is paper-thin. At heart, Galinda is a coward and not a great friend, but it doesn’t help that she’s now acting like she’s never experienced human emotion.
Though Galinda grates, Erivo swoops in to save the whole movie. It’s almost worth a 2+ hour wait to hear her belt out Defying Gravity. She imbues Elphaba with a steely kindness, she’s willing to fight for those who can’t, and she won’t compromise herself or her friends to accomplish her goals. It helps that Erivo can infuse her songs with stunning emotion and empathy.
But I was left to wonder what Wicked 2 was going to offer as a showstopper. There are plenty of nice songs in the second half (For Good is certainly sweet), but Defying Gravity and the bare defiance of the song are the most memorable part of the show. Now that Erivo had her grand moment in the finale of the film, what will Wicked 2 leave us with? Certainly nothing as striking as Elphaba’s initial rebellion. That leads me to fear the sequel will be even more drawn-out and tedious than this film.
Look, Wicked is going to be a crowd-pleaser. The musical has a devout fanbase, as do both Erivo and Grande. But if you’re not a fan of the musical or those ladies, this trudge down the yellow brick road will feel long despite the candy colors.
Verdict: A brilliant lead performance saves an overlong, overwrought musical.
Wicked is rated PG and is available in theaters November 22
