Wicked Part I movie review

MOVIE TITLE: Wicked Part I

The bewitching, musical extravaganza movie is FINALLY here! It hits theaters on November 22, 2024.

RATING: PG

LENGTH: 2 hours 40 minutes

MOVIE REVIEW MOM GRADE: A

SPONSOR of Today’s movie review:

Sing along to the soundtrack of the original 2003 Broadway Cast starring Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth!

Link: https://amzn.to/3Z4xfG3

IN A NUTSHELL:

(clap, clap…LISTEN!”) This is part 1 of the movie adaptation of the HUGELY popular Broadway musical Wicked. The story is about Elphaba, a misunderstood young woman because of her green skin, and Glinda, a popular girl at school, who become friends at Shiz University in the Land of Oz. After an encounter with the Wonderful Wizard of Oz, their friendship reaches a crossroads.

It’s the origin story of how Elphaba becomes the Wicked Witch of the West. The film was directed by Jon M. Chu. Writing credits go to Winnie Holzman, Dana Fox, and Gregory Maguire.

Already, the movie has been nominated for and won several awards. No doubt more will come! Heartland Film awarded it “Truly Moving Picture Award”. Well deserved. You WILL laugh. You WILL cry!

Fans of the Broadway musical will be happy to hear that Director Jon M. Chu has stayed true to the Broadway show, but tweaked it to make it even better, which is hard to believe. When I was a little girl, I loved watching the Wizard of Oz on TV, although I ran out of the room every time the Wicked Witch was on the screen because she scared me so much! She was played so convincingly by Margaret Hamilton and had the creepiest laugh. The director describes this movie as immersive and it truly is.

People LOVED the Broadway musical, so expectations are very high! Did you know it was Ben Platt’s dad who produced Wicked? I adore him Ben Platt’s music and loved him in Dear Evan Hansen (on stage and in the movie).

THINGS I LIKED:

Cynthia Erivo is really great. She looks terrific. I loved her in the movie Harriet, so it’s fun to see her in this. The witch’s black hat and glasses certainly give us what we expected, yet with an entirely new twist. Fun Fact #1: Elphaba gets her name from the initials of the author of the book Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum…L-F-B.
Ariana Grande is completely adorable and has mastered the cute “toss toss” of Galinda, which always got a laugh from the audience when she did it. She just lit up the “stage” any time she’s on it.
The two of them sang live on set. Cynthia Erivo is actually singing “Defying Gravity” while flying!
The music is, of course, FANTASTIC. I recently watched a video about how the musical score has Easter Eggs that fans of the Judy Garland movie The Wizard of Oz had in its melodies. There are plenty of visual and spoken Easter Eggs too.
It’s wonderful to see Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, and Jonathan Bailey. They’re all fantastic and all sing!
Speaking of Jonathan Bailey, he actually did all of that dancing and footwork in the musical number “Dancing Through Life.”
Additional standouts in the film are Ethan Slater, Marissa Bode, Bowen Yang, Keala Settle (I adored her in The Greatest Showman), and Peter Dinklage (did you recognize his voice as Dr. Dillamond the goat?)
Notice the unique logo for Universal Pictures! The pink globe represents Glinda, and the green name of the company represents Elphaba.
Fun fact #2: They actually planted 9 MILLION tulips for one of the scenes!
Paul Tazewell did an absolutely incredible job as the imaginative costume designer, showcasing masterpieces that illustrate the characters’ personalities. He was inspired by mushrooms to create Elphaba’s grounded designs, while Glinda’s dresses are light and bubbly. Rather than create a blue dress for Glinda, like the Broadway production’s color, he reflected back to Glinda’s pink dress from the original movie The Wizard of Oz. The ruby slippers have changed color over the years in various productions, but the new crystal slippers for Nessarose with the tornado design is brilliant.
Just like the Broadway stage production, there is a lot of humor blended perfectly with touching moments.
I loved loved the cameos! I won’t tell you all of them (no spoiler for the best ones!) but I had just watched an interview with the writers of the screenplay and musical composer Stephen Schwartz, so it was super fun seeing them on screen! (You have to look fast to see them.)
Really good visual and special effects.
Absolutely gorgeous and creative set designs. Everything was stunning. I especially loved the imaginative library. The cast is large but the crew and everyone behind the scenes is enormous! Kudos to everyone for pulling off one of the best and biggest movies of the year!

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

Fans of the Wicked musical have complained that the stage production is being split into two movies. The good news is that the first part will end on a high note so that the audience is satisfied. Part 2 is supposed come out in 2025.
Some people have been surprised that pop-star Ariana Grande was selected to play Glinda, the Good Witch. She actually got her start on Broadway!
The P.R. team has been put through the ringer with the film’s production. Ariana Grande has been going through scandalous marital problems, Cynthia Erivo went on an embarassing rant about a fan’s artwork, and the box for the figurine toys includes the incorrect website that accidentally points kids who purchase the dolls to a porn site. EEK! Despite all that, people still adore Wicked and are rooting for the success of this movie.
No new songs were written for Part 1; however, composer Stephen Schwartz promises some for Part 2.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Young kids might really like this!
No profanity
Some people and animals are in dangerous situations
We see some animals in cages
Witchcraft

THEMES:

Don’t accept others’ limits on you
Judging others
Friendship
Acceptance and belonging
Good vs. evil
Self-doubt vs. self-confidence
Untapped potential

FUNNY LINES:

“You. Come with me.” – Madame Morrible “Of course.” – Glinda (Ariana Grande) “Not you….YOU! (pointing to Elphaba) – Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh)
“Ew!” – ShenShen (Bronwyn James) “I know. It’s my granny’s. I’d give it away, but I don’t hate anyone that much.” – Glinda (Ariana Grande)
“I see that the responsibility to corrupt my fellow students falls to me.” – Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey)
“You pretend to be shallow and self-absorbed.” – Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) “Excuse me. There is no pretense here. I happen to be genuinely self-absorbed and deeply shallow.” – Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey)
“We have nothing but the highest hope for…some of you.” – Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh)
“Well, it seems the artichoke is steamed.” – Glinda (Ariana Grande)
“I don’t know why you can’t just teach us history instead of harping on the past.” – Glinda (Ariana Grande)
“Look! It’s tomorrow!” – Glinda (Ariana Grande)

INTERESTING LINES:

“Some of us are just different.” – Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo)
“Don’t be afraid.” – Glinda (Ariana Grande)
“The best way to bring folks together is to give them a real good enemy.” – The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum)
“Are people born wicked or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?” – Glinda (Ariana Grande)
“Once you learn to harness your emotions, they sky is the limit.” – Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh)
“It’s time to trust my instincts, close my eyes, and leap.” – Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo)
“You’ll find that if you keep it discouraging, you can keep anyone silent.” – Dr. Dillamond (Peter Dinklage)