Wicked – Film Review

Once in a while, a movie will turn out to be a pleasant surprise, and this year it’s the big screen version of a beloved Broadway musical that I initially had zero interest in seeing.

Before the positive reviews started popping up everywhere, I was all primed to avoid Wicked like the plague. Even though I read Gregory Maguire’s novel (and found it a fascinating, shambolic failure overall), I never got to see the world-conquering stage musical. The movie trailer looked like garish CGI vomit, and I’ve never been a fan of Ariana Grande. Worst of all, the film was taking an unwieldy two hours and forty minutes to tell half of the story, with Part II still to come. It had a whiff of Peter Jackson’s ill-conceived Hobbit trilogy; how was this thing not heading for a bloated, obnoxious disaster?

Once I decided to check out the movie after all, my cynicism and reservations melted away almost instantly, because Wicked turned out to be the best kind of all-singing, all-dancing, razzle-dazzle entertainment, with real heart and emotion as well as eye candy. To get the negatives out of the way, the film zips along like a witch on a broomstick, but it does feel long. Some of the scenes could have been tightened and trimmed just a little bit. I also found Wicked short on memorable tunes save for the chorus of Defying Gravity, and the special effects are rough in places; the flying monkeys look hideous but maybe not in the way the filmmakers intended.

From what I’ve seen so far, the film and the stage show are only loosely based on the 1995 novel, which served as an alternative backstory for the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz. The broad strokes still felt the same, focusing on the early years of two young women: Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), shunned and ostracised for her green skin, and the quintessential popular girl Galinda (Ariana Grande), bubbly, vain and swimming in pink. In time, they’re of course destined to become the feared Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good.

Elphaba and Galinda are both new arrivals at the Shiz University, though the former is only there to help her younger wheelchair-bound sister Nessarose (Marissa Bode) settle in. However, Elphaba’s natural magical powers attract the attention of the icy, haughty Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh), who offers her exclusive one-on-one tutoring, and hints that the Wizard of Oz himself could grant Elphaba’s heart’s desire if she makes good on her potential. Galinda, who had fancied being tutored herself, is doubly chagrined when a misunderstanding leads to her sharing a room with Elphaba. Their mutual animosity slowly gives way to genuine friendship, soon to be tested by the romantic entanglements and sinister social changes involving the rights of talking animals.

Wicked is the sort of glorious big-budget spectacle where every dollar spent is up there on the big screen, with lavish sets, breathtaking vistas, imaginative production design and eye-popping costumes. Who would have thought that candyfloss pink and vivid green could look so good together? I certainly didn’t from the look of that first trailer, however I have to admit that the end product is nothing short of outstanding. Director Jon M. Chu, who did a splendid job with Crazy Rich Asians, knows his way around dazzling, complex song-and-dance numbers without getting lost in them, directing with energy, verve and precision. I’m never going to to pop the Wicked soundtrack on or hum the songs, but they sure do excel on visuals and presentation.

It also helps that both lead actresses give knockout performances, bringing vocal power and emotional heft to these iconic roles. Erivo’s Elphaba is a defiant, sarcastic outsider, but her eyes do much to convey the weight of rejection and loneliness. She of course can also hit those notes from Defying Gravity. Though Ariana Grande’s vocal style might not be my thing, her singing prowess was never in doubt; what surprised me was her gift for physical comedy (those flouncy hair flicks!) and the amount of nuance she brought to the role of Galinda. Despite her ditzy, self-centred disposition, it’s impossible not to like her. Best of all is the strong chemistry and connection between Elphaba and Galinda that is the movie’s beating heart. I have no idea how the musical resolves their story, but I’m hooked.

Of the supporting cast, Jeff Goldblum is having a ball being, well, Jeff Goldblum, playing the fraudulent Wizard. Neither he nor Michelle Yeoh can match the leads in singing department, but no matter, their presence is welcome. Jonathan Bailey is a charmer as Prince Fiyero, a heartthrob who might not be as glib and superficial as he presents himself to be, and Peter Dinklage lends his distinctive, resonant voice to Dr. Dillamond, the last animal teacher at Shiz whose job and freedom is increasingly endangered.

When I first read the book, I figured that the musical would do a much better job, adapting the core ideas while also re-working characters and plot into something that actually functions as a story. I still didn’t expect to enjoy this movie quite as much, and it did leave me wanting to spend more time in this re-imagined land of Oz.