What does it mean to be Wicked? (Wicked Part 1, in Review)

     Hey there friends. It's good to see me, isn't it? It has been a little while since I wrote anything about a movie that I've seen recently, but I just watched the new Wicked movie over Thanksgiving break, and I thought I'd write a little ditty about it while it's still fresh in my mind. I'll do my best to keep away from spoilers in this writing, but the show has also been running on and off broadway for 20 years now, so I'm not sure exactly how secretive I need to be here. This movie is also doing very well in theaters, so chances are that most have already seen it, but I thought it would be worth a shot! Let's begin, and as the movie suggests, we'll start at the end.

Which Witch is Which?

    Wicked is the story of Elphaba, or the Wicked Witch of the West, and Galinda, better known as Glinda, the Good Witch, as they first met at Shiz University, and shows exactly how things came to be in The Wizard of Oz. It's an odd premise for a musical, since it requires some knowledge of that older movie musical, though that story is so entrenched in the public zeitgeist that it's expected that most people already know most of the story. As such, the show begins with the proclamation of the Wicked Witch's death, as it's being celebrated by the people of Munchkinland. Glinda comes and delivers the news in song as the Munchkins cheer and then go into their song about how everything is so much better. Right away, we see a lot of Elphaba's past, including some bits added to the movie. We see her mother and father, her mother cheating with a guy with green elixir, which leads to Elphaba being born with green skin. Additions to the movie included her nurse that was a bear, and some of her growing up with her sister, Nessa Rose. It's a really great way to introduce the concept of the Wizard, as well as Elphaba's fascination with him when she reads her sister a story about him, even hinting at the concept of granting one's greatest desire. The munchkins ask Glinda if it's true that she was friends with the wicked witch, and she confesses that it is, but it was a long time ago, which is where the true story begins. Galinda and Elphaba meet up at Shiz University and against all odds, end up rooming together and eventually becoming friends. I don't want to say too much about the plot of this movie, but it would be wrong for me to not talk about some other factors.

    The cinematography of this movie was pretty incredible, and the scenery was also top notch. The sets were all apparently made for this movie, so the actors were able to actually interact with the over the top set pieces, which seems like it must have been the coolest experience. Special shout out to the spinning wheel from the "Dancing Through Life" sequence. Not only did that thing make me pretty dizzy to watch, I'm sure the cast had a lot of fun trying to figure out how to maneuver through that while it was moving like that. They even dug out the river that the students used to arrive at Shiz, which is pretty crazy for me to even think about, but I'm sure it was less impressive than it looked in the movie. The Ozdust Ballroom, which is shown in the movie to have fish and other creatures swimming around it, looked incredible. I saw a behind the scenes video in that actual room, and it didn't have water around it, I think there were just projectors involved and CG work, but the structure of the room was just really cool. The production team clearly cut no corners in this movie, and I would love to see this set preserved and used for something else in the future, even if it was converted to a museum. Obviously, it can't be as completely solid as it appears in the film, but I would be so interested to walk around and see the actual set.

    All of the setwork in the world would go to waste, of course, if it wasn't for the impressive talent behind all of these performances. Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande both killed it as Elphaba and Galinda (later Glinda) respectively. The performances are wildly entertaining, and especially in the first act, which is what this movie is based on, it seemed like Ariana was having an incredibly fun time, making a lot of choices to differentiate her from some other portrayals of the character. I especially loved all of the times she struck a pose by sticking her leg way out, it was a very silly touch, and one extremely fitting for her character. Elphaba, on the other hand, was played as a much more dynamic performance, starting as very closed off, and over time eventually becoming something of a triumphant hero to the students that had once shut her out. It was a very different performance from both of them, and I think it's just because with the show on stage, they have to really exaggerate to convey what it is that they're doing for the whole crowd, as opposed to a movie, where every facial expression can be seen no matter how far away you are from the stage. The supporting cast was pretty fantastic as well. Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, the carefree prince "without a brain," Ethan Slater as Boq, the boy from Munchkinland who only has eyes for Galinda, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, the main professor of Magic at Shiz, all of them are great. Not to mention Mr. Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard himself, who is really only there for a few minutes, but still does a great job with what he's given. Slap on some top notch cameos that had me nearly bouncing in my seat, and you have one of the best cast lists that I've seen in a movie in a long time.

    The movie's runtime was the main point of concern for me, since it runs for 2 hours and 45 minutes, which is close to the average runtime of the entire show. What all did they add to this first act to make it nearly the runtime of the entire broadway performance? I'm really not sure. There were little things here and there to stretch out the songs, and a lot of world building that helped to build connections between this and Wizard of Oz, but it really didn't feel like they were adding all that much to it, and the time flew by pretty quickly! My parents went with me to see it, and they were shocked when they realized that "Defying Gravity" was starting, since that heralds the end of the first act. My mom genuinely thought she had only been sitting there for a little over an hour and the movie was already wrapping up. They did a really great job with that, and I wish I had a better answer to exactly where that time went, because it felt natural.

    I'd better wrap this up before this review actually takes more time to read than for you to just go see the movie for yourself. I really liked this movie, and while I'm still not crazy about the decision of splitting it into two movies, after seeing the first one fill the run time so well, I am excited to see how the second half brings the story home. If nothing else, this gives the world a version of Wicked that they can watch without having to wait for a company near them to put it on, and that's the one thing that is always good about Movie Musicals, even if they don't always work out as well as they should. I have to give big props to Jon M. Chu, previously the director of Crazy Rich Asians and In the Heights (another great movie musical) before doing this. His vision of the movie really shines and gives a great perspective for us, as viewers, to see the story for ourselves while still playing so cleanly and closely to Stephen Schwartz's original creation. Let's just hope they stick the landing for Part 2, but until then, like Elphaba says, "no wizard that there is or was is ever gonna bring me down."

    Thanks for reading my thoughts on the Wicked movie, friends! Though it's only part one, I hope you all enjoyed it if you went to see it, and if you're planning on seeing it, let me know what you think once you do! Like I said, a nearly 3 hour movie can be a tough pill to swallow, but this experience was a great one, and one that moved really fast. I hope you're all doing well and thanks again for all the support. Until next time, I'm Jonathan, a Self-Proclaimed sentimental man, and I'll talk to you again soon! Imagine that I wrapped this post out with the riff at the end of "Defying Gravity," if you don't mind. What a fantastic ending, am I right?

Works Cited

Erivo, Cynthia, Stephen Schwartz. "Defying Gravity." Wicked, Universal Pictures. 2024. film.