Wicked
Year: 2024
Rating: PG
Length: 160 minutes / 2.67 hours
When one looks back on all the stories that have come out that try to paint the villains of classic, well-known books as misunderstood, I think the original book for Wicked is what started this trend. Now, 30 years later, the first half of this redemption arc comes to the big screen with Wicked (2024). Having only read the original Baum book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, and seen the Wizard of Oz (1939) Judy Garland movie, I came into this with unbiased eyes that didn’t know the context of the book or the musical that inspired this film adaptation.
Casting-wise, the three leads of Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), Galinda (Ariana Grande), and Oz (Jeff Goldblum) were great choices for a variety of reasons—mainly that the two witches knew how to sing. The songs themselves were mostly memorable, even if the only ones that stuck were the ones drilled into every piece of advertising for this film. I also appreciated a few tiny Easter eggs for anyone who has read any of the Oz books past the first one, but found the lack of the main characters from the original book disappointing.
Having been a part of live theater groups in the 90s and early 2000s, I definitely get why so many of my fellow thespians really connected with Wicked. It really is a grand statement of trying to fit in despite obviously being the outsider and eventually coming to terms with who you are and accepting the parts of yourself you cannot change. That the movie chooses that moment to cut the story into two pieces makes sense, especially considering most musicals are much longer than most modern movie audiences could sit through without an intermission.
A fun re-imagining of a classic story, I give Wicked 4.0 stars out of 5.
