The Gist
Elphaba, a young woman ridiculed for her green skin, and Galinda, a popular girl, become friends at Shiz University in the Land of Oz. After an encounter with the Wonderful Wizard of Oz, their friendship reaches a crossroads.
The Review
The classic The Wizard Of Oz has always held a special place in my heart. Alongside The Sound Of Music it is one of the earliest films that I can remember my Mother letting me watch as a child when it used to screen on TV.
We had a little family ritual whenever it was on – a favourite dish would be cooked for dinner and then we would all retreat to blankets on the sofa as Judy Garland begun her journey to the magical land of Oz.
It was for that reason that I was genuinely excited about Wicked: Part One hitting cinemas – after all I was even a fan of the much maligned Oz: The Great And Powerful which I still believe should be held in higher regard.
But I have to admit that is why I have left kind of torn about Wicked: Part One. On one hand I do think it looks amazing but I just can’t get over what screenwriters Winnie Holzman (Roadies) and Dana Fox (Cruella) have done to one of my favourite cinematic characters.
The plot begins immediately after Dorothy has killed The Wicked Witch Of The West – here known by her real name Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo – Widows). Glinda The Good Witch (Ariana Grande – Don’t Look Up) has arrived in a nearby town where the villagers are celebrating the death of their oppressor.
As Glinda is about to depart she is asked a confronting question – is it true that you and the Wicked West were once good friends?
From there Glinda begins her story – back to a time when she was a University student known as Galinda. She is there determined to study to become a witch under the legendary Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh – Everything Everywhere All At Once). But to her surprise Morrible has no interest in training her – instead she is interested in the outcast that has an obvious magic ability – Elphaba.
From there at times they clash, especially when it comes to the affections of the dishy Prince Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey – Bridgerton), and then banding together when Glinda begins to realise that the persecution of creatures like Dr. Dillamond (Peter Dinklage – Game Of Thrones) goes against what she expects from the perfect world,
It is when Wicked: Part One is exploring themes like persecution that it is at its best. The bullying that Elphaba endures is what turns one of the cinemas greatest villains into a character that the audience can have empathy for, while the persecution that the creatures of Oz are going through has a strong connection to the current political environment that we all find ourselves living in.
What is difficult to embrace with the film though is the fact that Ariana Grande has been instructed to make her version of Glinda feel like a cheap Mean Girls rip-off – complete with such over-exaggerated hair tosses that they wouldn’t be out of place in a parody film like Not Another Teen Movie.
So annoying is this version of Glinda as a character that I actually found myself thinking just how much I was enjoying the scenes that she wasn’t in – in fact one of the strongest scenes of the entire movie is when Fiyero and Elphaba have their deep discussion in the forest as they rescue the lion cub.
To be brutally the honest the first three quarters of this film has a lot of unnecessary scenes and forgettable song and dance routines and really only comes into its own once Glinda and Elphaba make their way to see The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz (Jeff Goldblum – Jurassic Park). Even Glinda becomes a much more likable character at that time.
Now I know that some people will pick up on what I just said about forgettable dance and song numbers and say “but it is supposed to be a musical.” And, that is true but even a musical must have tracks that the audience are going to remember long after the credits role. Wonka is a great modern-day reminder of that – more than a year later I still find myself humming some of the musical numbers from it – whereas it is less than a week since I saw Wicked: Part One and I can only remember one track from it. Ironically that is from the powerful finale which I wish the rest of the film could have been like.
The only winners from Wicked: Part One are the director Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians), his cinematographer Alice Brooks (In The Heights) and of course Cynthia Eviro. Like they did with In The Heights Brooks and Chu make Wicked: Part One a visual delight for the audience’s eyes to feast on while Eviro is remarkable in her role – and they are the things I will remember about this film for a long time to come.
The Verdict
Wicked: Part One does do some things right but its need to try and appeal to a younger audience does trip it up at times. The over-acting style that Ariana Grande has obviously been instructed to implement with the film is annoying and will be enough to turn of some true Wizard Of Oz fans as they watch one of their favourite characters butchered. Still the last quarter of the film does offer a glimmer of hope for Part Two so let’s hope the next trip over the rainbow has a little more promise.
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