by Anthony O'Connor
Worth: $16.50
FilmInk rates movies out of $20 — the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Cast:
Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Marissa Bode, Bowen Yang, Bronwyn James
Intro:
… an unrepentant musical … it revels in colour, magic, dance and song. It’s chockers with toe-tapping bangers that you’ll traumatise your partner and pets with by singing badly and tells a cracking yarn to boot … a triumphant musical that will likely win over all but the staunchest avoiders of the genre.
There are some people who don’t like musicals. And they’ll tell you. Often. If you think vegans like to bang on about their lifestyle choices, just wait until you meet that one bloke at the party who “can’t stand musicals”. You won’t be able to refresh your hummus without hearing an endless impromptu TED talk on the subject. ‘Fascinating stuff, Trevor, now stop restricting my access to the dips, ya prawn!’ The thing is, there are a handful of musicals that seem to break through that barrier, that even the most musical agnostic can appreciate. Productions like Hamilton, The Book of Mormon and Rent are examples, as is Wicked, the untold story of the Wicked Witch of the West – the villain from The Wizard of Oz – told from her perspective. Loosely based on the 1995 book by Gregory Maguire and adapted for the stage by Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman, Wicked has been a consistent global hit since 2003, so it’s not surprising that there’s a cinematic adaptation.
The real surprise is that it took this long.
That said, the lead up to Wicked’s release has not been ideal. A series of stunningly underwhelming trailers, the controversial casting of pint-sized pop star Ariana Grande and lead actress Cynthia Erivo’s bafflingly over-the-top reaction to some well-intentioned fan art – not to mention the fact that the musical has been split into two movies – have all combined to give the movie a patina of stink. The general wisdom has been: this movie needs to be pretty bloody good to get over the line for most people.
Hey, guess what. This movie? It’s pretty bloody good.
Wicked is the story of Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo), an intelligent young woman who is ostracised because of the colour of her skin (it’s green) and Galinda Upland (Ariana Grande), the vapid, blonde IT girl of Shiz University. The pair are natural enemies at first, but after some shenanigans they begin to build an unlikely, grudging friendship. Of course, we know Elphaba eventually becomes the Wicked Witch of the West, who Dororthy famously dispatches with a bucket of water in The Wizard of Oz, so most of the tension of the piece comes from wondering how Elphaba went from mousy to evil, and if indeed we know the true story after all.
Wicked has a lot going for it – great songs, superb supporting cast that includes Michelle Yeoh and Jeff Goldblum, sharp writing and zappy direction from Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians) – but most of its effectiveness rests on the shoulders of its two leads. Happily, Erivo and Grande are both up to the task. Erivo, in particular, delivers a stunning performance, imbuing Elphaba with the right mix of pathos and rage that makes her such a relatable tragic figure. She can also belt out a bloody tune, and her work on “Defying Gravity” in particular is impeccable. Ariana Grande also does great work. Sure, we already knew she could sing but she also has surprisingly deft comic timing and solid acting chops as well. And although she’s (frankly worryingly) skinny and tiny, she absolutely nails it in the big numbers.
A good thing too, because as previously mentioned, Wicked is the first part of two. It’s a little odd that a two hour and forty-five minute musical couldn’t be translated into a three hour or even three-and-a-half hour movie, and the entire decision smacks of studio greed. By the way, part one is 160 minutes all by itself, so it’s not exactly a brisk, streamlined flick. That said, it doesn’t feel long and although fans of the musical will notice additions, they never come off as overly indulgent or superfluous.
Wicked is an unrepentant musical, unlike a lot of recent musical-adjacent flicks that seem ashamed of the fact (looking at you, Joker: Folie à Deux), it revels in colour, magic, dance and song. It’s chockers with toe-tapping bangers that you’ll traumatise your partner and pets with by singing badly and tells a cracking yarn to boot. It probably didn’t need to be a two-parter and there’s plenty of chances to stuff up the second half (which was always weaker, even in the stage version) but as it stands, Wicked: Part I is a triumphant musical that will likely win over all but the staunchest avoiders of the genre.
It almost certainly won’t butter the parsnips of folks like Trevor, mind you. But then again, who cares what that wanker likes?
