Because there has been so much rumor and speculation, let me tell you (half of) the whole story...

I haven't gotten in-depth on Wicked on here yet, despite having a lot of thoughts on it, so I figured that I may as well do it now. (tw: politics)

Intro:

I first heard of Wicked, the Broadway musical, when I was in elementary school. I saw the iconic poster in a room where I'd go for special aid. I didn't really think much of it, even though I was familiar with the story of The Wizard of Oz. I just went, "That sure is something that exists!" like I did with a couple of other media that I'd eventually watch when I grew older.

Flash forward to years later, I'm a teenager. I'm into Marvel/DC, anime, and musicals, and I decided to give several musical theater cast recordings a listen. Including, of course, Wicked. At first, I didn't think it was all that. The opening number, No One Mourns The Wicked, was really good, but none of the other songs really lived up to it. (Except Defying Gravity and No Good Deed) And then I heard that the musical is being adapted for film and that the film would be split into two parts. I hadn't seen the stage musical, so I couldn't say for sure if this was a good decision or not. But I did enjoy the director Jon M. Chu's previous musical adaptation, In The Heights, so him in the director's seat was a good sign for me. Although, for some reason, I'm skeptical about casting Ariana Grande as Glinda, even though I have nothing personal against her.

Flash forward to late November 2024. Trump's coming back, and I'm super anxious about the future. I try to find various means of escape, such as daydreaming (which has always been my main method of escapism), writing (my second form of escapism, but I don't write as often as I should because I have a hard time putting my imagination on paper), and watching stuff. I was also suffering from a really bad case of brain fog.

Then Wicked the Movie (Part One) comes out. Since it looked good, but not great, from the ments, I decided to go out and see it. Especially because I needed to get out of my house. And surprisingly, I enjoyed it. Much more than I thought I would.

Now, with what led me to Wicked out of the way, let's take a look at the components of the film and what I thought of them.

Allegory and Themes:

Wicked, as you probably already know, is an allegorical critique of discrimination, fascism, and propaganda. This is seen in Elphaba's ostracization and the Wizard's suppression of animal rights. This aspect of the movie really popped out to me, when I first watched it in theater, because what the Wizard was doing to that animals, to me, paralleled what Trump was/is planning to do with queer people and people of color. And Elphaba, seeing the problems in Ozian society and ultimately deciding to take a stand really struck a chord with me. It's saying that anyone who's been pushed down, treated unfairly, marginalized, or simply doesn't feel like they belong doesn't deserve any of that. You have to fight for what's right for yourself and others. Don't let anyone, corrupt politician or otherwise, bring you down. Because you deserve the chance to fly! I loved how the film handled these themes, both because it toned down my anxieties for the then coming year and a little because I myself have struggled with fitting in.

Music:

Now, as I said before, most of the music didn't do it for me when I listened to the cast recording. But hearing the songs in the movie changed my mind about it. I like the songs in the movie better than on the cast recording. I don't know if it's because of the way songs are arranged or because I was hearing them in their proper context. Could be a bit of both.

No One Mourns The Wicked is definitely one of my favorite opening numbers, and it was a delight to see it realized on the big screen! The Wizard and I is a really good I Want song, although quite tragic given what will happen in the second part and the original Oz story. I loved the What Is This Feeling number! We need more unashamed scenes like this in movie musicals! Dancing Through Life is okay, but not bad. Popular was really cute. I'm Not That Girl was really beautiful.

And then there's Defying Gravity. When I saw this in the cinema, I fully understood the hype behind that song. This song was also beautifully realized. I can feel what Elphaba is feeling every time I watch her finally get control of the broom and take flight. And sweet Lord, that high note!

Acting:

Now, as I said before, I was skeptical about Ariana Grande as Glinda. I didn't think that she would be terrible in the role; I thought that they could've chosen someone better. But I was wrong. She was great! She plays quirky, whimsical characters like Glinda so well; we know this from Victorious. I don't know why I doubted her in the first place. Cynthia Erivo was also great as Elphaba. She and Ariana had amazing chemistry! I love Elphaba and Glinda's friendship, it was so wholesome. (I definitely agree that their relationship is queer coded) Everyone is also good. Although Michelle Yeoh's singing voice isn't great, that's fine, it didn't ruin her performance for me.

Cinematography and some nitpicks:

The cinematography and production design are both very well done. But I, like most, am not a fan of the lighting or color-grading. The movie's look isn't atrocious, it just doesn't look as vibrant or colorful as it should have been. Although the musical numbers were well-staged and performed for the most part, I didn't really appreciate the pauses between them. They stagnated the momentum for me. And another, kinda dumb, nitpick I have is the end card being "To Be Continued". Like, I know that this movie is a two-parter, but that just feels really generic to me. I would've preferred "Intermission" or "End of Act/Part One". Either of those would have been nice ways to pay homage to the movie's Broadway roots. Also, the pacing was good. The movie didn't feel too long or too short. The story felt more or less complete despite ending on a cliffhanger.

Conclusion and some predictions for For Good:

So TL;DR, Wicked was surprisingly really good despite some flaws. It has amazing music, characters, and social commentary, and I'm looking forward to Part Two!

And speaking of Part Two, I think in order to justify splitting the movie into two parts (and giving Part Two a proper subtitle), it will be fundamentally a different story from the first part or a different phase in the story. I think it will also feature more changes to the musical's plotline than the first film did because, from what I've heard, the second act of Wicked is not as strong as the first.

I can't wait to see Cynthia belt out No Good Deed!

If you made it all the way to the end, thank you so much for reading! I don't usually make my Letterboxd reviews as long as this. However, I may do more in the future if I feel like it. Oh, and feel free to tell me if you like my longer reviews or not.