Score: 3.5/5
Wicked has promoted itself as the blockbuster event of the year, but does it live up to its own ambitions?
Adapted from the stage musical of the same name, Wicked serves as a prequel to the technicolour classic The Wizard of Oz. It tells the untold story of the Wicked Witch of the West — known as Elphaba Thropp — played by Cynthia Erivo, and Glinda the Good played by Ariana Grande.
The cinematic adaptation is split into two parts, with part two set to release at the end of 2025. Both films were directed by Jon M. Chu, who’s known for his previous work adapting In the Heights from stage to screen. Plans for a Wicked movie date back as early as 2012, but its cast and crew changed several times throughout the 2010s as studios continued to push the project back. In 2021, Chu joined production as director; filming for both parts began in December 2022 and concluded in January 2024.
Without a doubt, the time and effort paid off. Wicked is by no means a perfect film, but it’s wholly deserving of the praise it has and will continue to receive.
For one, it’s paced excellently. Speaking from a personal perspective, a runtime of two hours and forty minutes is something I would typically have to psych myself up for, but I hardly felt the length at all. This may be in part because it is good ole, genuine big-studio entertainment, allowing you to kick back and let the storyline do the legwork, but it’s also because Chu keeps scenes and plot points moving at a steady pace.
The musical sequences are generally good. There are a few moments that feel meandering, but the actors put on an energetic show regardless. Jonathan Bailey as Prince Fiyero charms both the characters and the audience in “Dancing Through Life,” a musical number set in Shiz University’s library, a sequence that has some of the most interesting camerawork in the film. Glinda’s iconic number “Popular” is done exquisitely with Erivo and Grande’s chemistry bouncing off each other, the lighting fittingly amplified to an oversaturated shade of pink.
Of course, how could one not mention “Defying Gravity” when discussing anything related to Wicked? Erivo exerts her entire being into the number, with Chu drawing out the scene to make the song’s climax even more cathartic than it already is — a feat not easily done. There’s not much else that can be said about such an iconic song; it’s something best experienced first-hand.
Ariana Grande arguably steals the movie in a standout acting performance. She nails the rhythm of every scene she’s in with her attention to comedic timing, radiating charisma through the screen as what could be described as a living cartoon. Likewise, she keeps up with Erivo in more dramatic moments despite playing the more comedic role of the two leads, demonstrating an impressive range.
Her approach to Glinda undeniably draws inspiration from Kristin Chenowith’s performance in the original Broadway production, but Grande uses her skillset to make the character her own. It’s challenging for pop stars to separate themselves from their public image and enter acting roles, but Grande does it effortlessly in a way comparable to Cher in Moonstruck.
All this is certainly not to diminish the stellar performance Cynthia Erivo delivers as the story’s protagonist Elphaba Thropp, especially with her towering vocal skills and acting chops. Her understanding of the character is apparent as she commits to every emotional shift and challenge Elphaba faces throughout the course of the film, ranging from cynicism, aloofness, innocence, joy and heartbreak. The role has no easy shoes to fill, especially considering Idina Menzel’s legacy, but Erivo paves an entirely new path for the character. It’s evident in the performance’s quality that she dedicated her soul to understanding the character and the responsibility that came with the legendary role.
Nonetheless, the flaws in Wicked aren’t exactly hidden, and the film suffers from these noticeable drawbacks.
For what’s intended as a backstory, the world of Oz feels considerably underdeveloped in this film. It lacks a certain sparkle necessary to pull you in and fully believe in the fantastical elements of Oz. The performances may charm you into the story and the lives of its characters, but the worldbuilding by itself feels skeletal.
The gifted powers Elphaba possess don’t feel nearly as monumental as they’re said to be because the presence of magic in Oz is left largely unexplored. The Wizard of Oz subverted this by playing into the dreamlike oddities of the world, but Wicked introduces governments, jobs and academics, posing questions about how the world is structured in the process that are never addressed.
The film’s lighting choices are among its more glaring flaws, washing out the vibrant colours of the Emerald City with overblown backlighting and lens flares that diminish details in the set design. This issue is also apparent during the first and second act at Shiz University, where the colours are so muted that certain scenes feel like behind-the-scenes footage as opposed to a finished product.
Chu stated in an interview that the choice to depict Oz with realistic light and colour related to his desire to make the lead characters’ stakes feel “more real” and less “dreamlike.”
Yet his argument is easily refuted by the success of recent examples doing the exact opposite. Greta Gerwig’s blockbuster titan Barbie built an entire Barbieland set that played into oversaturation and surrealism. It proudly subverted traditional logic, but that didn’t impact the stakes of the story or the touching emotional moments that reached the hearts of audiences worldwide. A $1.4 billion box office total doesn’t come from a film that doesn’t do something right with audiences.
Drawbacks aside, it’s hard to not be enchanted by Wicked. It’s bound to promise an entertaining time at the cinema and is an overall likeable, joyous film. It’s charming and full of charisma, courtesy of the alluring performances and musical numbers, and all in all holds its own in the catalogue of film-adapted musicals.