Margaret Korte
Print/Podcast Editor
After being bombarded with clips of Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo in their press interviews, audiences have already made “Wicked” a financial success—and in many ways, it’s worth the fanfare. “Wicked” is pretty remarkable.
Grande and Erivo (“Harriet”) star as Elphaba and Glinda, two witches studying at Shiz University. They’re polar opposites: Elphaba is used to being ignored, while Glinda is used to getting her way. Both want to study sorcery but are forced to be roommates and quarrel because of their differences.
As well as being set in the same universe, and featuring similar characters to “The “Wizard of Oz,” the movie is adapted from the popular Broadway musical of the same name. It pays tribute to it well, including cameos by the musical’s original leads.
The soundtrack, all songs taken from the stage version, fits the story well and comes to life with the skillful voices of Erivo and Grande. Each song lives up to its Broadway counterpart, bringing something new while honoring the original.
The acting of Erivo and Grande, along with other actors such as Jonathan Bailey (“Bridgerton”) and Jeff Goldblum (“Jurassic Park”), is impressive, and each actor is well-cast in their role. Grande, for her part, manages to slip into her role and make her portrayal of Glinda believable, despite her fame. In “Wicked,” it feels like watching a character, instead of just Ariana Grande. The same is true for Erivo, whose dramatic acting skills, in addition to her powerful voice, make her an asset to the film.
As for the story, the movie tries to cover so much, and while it is long, it is still just one movie. It attempts to cover themes of exclusion, animal abuse, oppression, female friendships and more. These are all noble topics for the movie to cover; however, it ends up just touching on each subject, never really coming to a full conclusion on any of them. This is just part one, and it’s possible that in part two, all loose ends are tied together and all of these issues will have been solved and properly discussed.
Though “Wicked” is somewhat convoluted, it makes sense coming from a two-hour-and-45 minute movie.
Many audience members have also criticized the movie for its runtime (which will be double, more or less, when its sequel comes out next year). While “Wicked” could probably be much shorter than it is—some scenes feel like they could be condensed, or just taken out all together—there is something to be said about not trying to over-edit and force a film to conform to shorter attention spans. It takes its time: its priority is to tell the story, and not just to do it as efficiently as possible.
While the longer runtime is definitely noticeable, “Wicked” does manage to stay engaging. Even the somewhat drawn-out scenes are important to the story, and when the story isn’t evolving, the characters are. Despite being so long, the movie is certainly packed full.
Some moviegoers have also criticized the physical appearance of “Wicked”: while the sets and visuals are impressive, the coloring of the movie makes it look more monotone and understated—it feels more realistic than it should, especially for a movie where one of the main characters is literally green. There is definitely something ironic about the movie that is a follow-up to “The Wizard of Oz,” one of the very first technicolor films, being criticized for its lack of vibrant color. Still, the impressive scenery and visual effects make up for what is lost in the color, and then some.
Overall, while complicated, “Wicked” still manages to be full of powerful vocals and heartfelt acting. The movie is empowering and convinces audiences to look forward to part two next year—and any movie that manages to be nearly three hours and still move audiences, has to be a success.
“Wicked” is showing in theaters and is rated PG for “scary action, thematic material, and brief suggestive material.” It will be streaming on Peacock after it leaves theaters.
See Also: Review: ‘Wicked’ meets expectations
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Margaret Korte–Print/Podcast EditorThis will be Margaret Korte’s second year on ECHO staff. She made several contributions while taking journalism class her freshman year. |
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