By Trudi-Rose Edwards
Movie musical adaptations are always a bit of a shot in the dark, some surpass the original material (think Grease, The Sound of Music, Chicago), some plod along inoffensively (this year’s The Color Purple or 2005’s Rent), and others stir up some controversy amongst the musical theatre community (is Hugh Jackman’s vibrato actually worse that Russell Crowe’s singing in Les Mis? Was Johnny Depp miscast as Sweeney Todd?) Only a few really manage to flop (*cough* Cats *cough*).
Wicked has enjoyed over 20 years on Broadway and almost as many on the West End – its enormous fan base has resulted in it becoming one of the best-known and most loved productions of the 21st century. So there was always going to be a lot of pressure on director Jon M Chu (whose 2021 screen adaption of In the Heights falls neatly into the ‘inoffensive’ category of musical adaptation) to translate the magic from stage onto screen – and he certainly succeeded.
The movie brilliantly captures everything good about the stage production and faithfully commits it to the screen – amping things up just a little with the famous Hollywood magic; orchestrations that hit you in the face; the bright colours of Oz (the musical version leans more into purples, greens and blacks); a cast jam-packed with talent; and visuals that were previously left to the audience’s imagination. It also fixes some of the stage version’s flaws, plastering over plot holes and fleshing out characters with an extended screen time (it should be pointed out that this movie is only Act 1 of the musical with Act 2 following in 2025 (boo, hiss)).
For those unfamiliar with the plot, Wicked is the untold story of The Wizard of Oz’s supporting cast – the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good. It’s like a Marvel villain’s origin story but good.
Opening where Dorothy and co left off, we’re in Munchkinland where Glinda the Good (played by Ariana Grande, more on her later) brings good news – the Wicked Witch of the West is dead, thanks to Dorothy and her bucket of water. Cue munchkin celebrations and a burning effigy of the witch (surprisingly dark for such a cheery community) – but wait, why does Glinda the Good look so…unenthused? So sad?
“Glinda, is it true you were her friend?” asks a cutesy child. And thus begins the flashback to the day Glinda meets Elphaba (because nobody is christened Wicked Witch of the West) at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Shiz University.
The green skinned Elphaba (played by Broadway and West End veteran Cynthia Erivo) is maligned by practically everyone she meets (not least her own father) but possesses a great, uncontrolled magical prowess that doesn’t go unnoticed by teacher Madame Morrible (played with a quiet authority, in marked contrast to the stage version, by Michelle Yeoh).
Morrible’s preferential treatment of Elphaba irks the fabulously bratty Glinda whose dream is to attend Morrible’s exclusive seminars to study sorcery (despite her total lack of magical aptitude). And when the two wannabe witches are forced to room together they find themselves succumbing to a rivalry unlike anything either has felt before (wonderfully highlighted in the camp number What is this Feeling?).
The rest will remain spoiler-free – do they become friends? Just how ‘good’ is Glinda? How does bookish Elphaba become the infamous Wicked Witch?
With a two hour and 40 minute run-time you’d be forgiven for thinking splitting the musical into two movies is nothing more than a money grabbing scheme dreamt up by the studio execs. But the pacing of the film means it flies by. The plot is tight and spends its time in the right places; establishing key relationships and cementing the dark undercurrent that runs through Oz – that animals are suddenly losing their ability to speak (and sing) and are vanishing without trace.
The main spectacles of course, are the musical numbers. Highlights include the opening number No One Mourns the Wicked, the aforementioned What is this Feeling?, Miss Grande’s preppy rendition of Popular (a tune that can so easily fall into nauseating when done wrong) and, of course, the showstopping Act 1 finale (or just, finale in this case) Defying Gravity.
Tony-award winning Cynthia Erivo’s vocals are outstanding as expected, as are those of Olivier award winner, Jonathan Bailey who plays Prince Fiyero the sadly predictable love interest. (Bailey is great in the role, I just have my own issues with a musical that revolves around the relationship of two independent female characters needing a love interest, but that’s another story).
But the real standout is Ariana Grande. Given the whiff of snobbery in the musical theatre community, it was no surprise that some people were less than impressed to see a pop sensation cast in one of Broadway’s most loved roles. But she delivers a showstopping performance that not only hits the technical heights (and by heights, I mean heights; some notes are so high surely only dogs can hear them) but also runs the gamut of emotions, from ditzy and spoilt to kind and supportive.
It goes to show that you don’t have to have made your name treading the boards to excel in a theatrical role – something Nicole Scherzinger has also proven of late in Sunset Boulevard. There aren’t enough plaudits for Grande’s performance – as well as Erivo, who has a less showy role (acting-wise, not vocally). But with Wicked’s second act – in typical musical theatre style – being markedly darker than its first, the second movie will truly test the cast and creatives.
Will the movie Wicked surpass the 20 year endurance of its stage counterpart? Who knows, splitting it into two movies is great for business but perhaps not so great for audience fatigue; one thing’s for certain; pink and green should definitely be seen!
In cinemas now
Photos copyright of Universal Pictures