Wicked 2024

Jon M. Chu once again proves his undeniable talent for creating cinematic spectacles that are both visually stunning and emotionally captivating with “Wicked.” This adaptation of the iconic Broadway musical spares no effort in transporting audiences to the enchanted land of Oz. Every detail, from the vibrant streets of Munchkinland to the opulent halls of the Emerald City, overflows with imagination and technical precision. The sets not only emulate the grandeur of the stage production but also expand the universe with an epic scale, while the lavish costumes add layers of personality to each character and setting. Meanwhile, the cinematography amplifies the immersion, using vibrant colors and evocative lighting to highlight both the magic and the melancholy moments.

One of the film’s greatest triumphs lies in its musical performances, delivered with infectious energy and meticulous choreography. Numbers like Dancing Through Life blend music, dance, and scenery to create moments that capture the essence of the stage show while embracing the fluidity cinema allows. Chu’s dynamic camera work skillfully highlights the dancers’ movements without sacrificing scale or clarity. However, it’s in more intimate scenes, like Popular, where the film truly shines—balancing humor, emotion, and visual spectacle to craft a feast for both the eyes and the heart.

At the center of this extravaganza are Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, whose performances bring Elphaba and Glinda to life in ways that honor the characters’ legacy while adding their own nuances. Erivo captures Elphaba’s vulnerability in a breathtaking way, conveying her struggle against rejection and prejudice with a depth that transcends the script. Her powerful voice pairs perfectly with her magnetic stage presence, keeping audiences glued to her every move. Grande, on the other hand, surprises by taking Glinda beyond the expected superficiality, exploring the insecurities and contradictions of her character. Together, they build a relationship that is both humorous and deeply moving, especially in quieter moments like the silent dance that solidifies their unlikely friendship.

“Wicked” excels in weaving heavy themes like oppression, authoritarianism, and discrimination into a narrative brimming with magic and fantasy. Chu boldly brings these issues to the forefront, enriching the story with a contemporary relevance that resonates with today’s audiences. These elements provide a fascinating contrast to Oz’s charming tone, inviting reflection without undermining the whimsical atmosphere. Chu’s approach skillfully balances social critique and magical storytelling, adding depth to the world while amplifying the story’s emotional reach and maintaining its timeless appeal.

The supporting cast also adds significant value to the film’s rich tapestry. Jonathan Bailey exudes charisma as Fiyero, balancing levity and charm in his performance. Michelle Yeoh is commanding as Madame Morrible, radiating a mix of maternal warmth and chilling authority, while Jeff Goldblum clearly enjoys himself as the Wizard, injecting a dose of sinister humor into the role. Peter Dinklage, meanwhile, delivers a poignant performance as Doctor Dillamond, whose journey encapsulates the fight against marginalization that runs throughout the film. These secondary characters help expand the narrative, adding texture to the world Chu so carefully constructs.

“Wicked” is a cinematic experience that demands to be seen, especially for fans of the original material. The film shines in both its intimate moments and its grand visual scale. With passionate performances, impeccable technical direction, and a world overflowing with fantasy, “Wicked” lays a solid foundation for the highly anticipated second chapter arriving in 2025. The promise of an epic conclusion, where themes and storylines will come together more intensely, keeps the magic alive in this adaptation, which manages to dazzle in every carefully crafted detail.

Another example of how perfect casting is crucial to success. Especially in a film like “Wicked,” the central duo of Elphaba and Galinda must work well together—and Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande really do have excellent chemistry. Both are also very strong individually, with Grande in particular being terrific with her comedic timing.

In Jon M. Chu, the film also has the ideal director. After all, he has already proven with films such as “Step Up 2” or “In the Heights” that he has the right eye for staging dance and musical films. This is also the case here. The songs are already great anyway, but Chu also stages them in a varied and visually interesting way.

"Wicked” is also a visual feast in general thanks to the excellent production design. At least I never had the feeling that half-baked CGI effects were used here. Of course there are a lot of computer effects, but it's not distracting at all.

The story certainly doesn't have the greatest depth, but it nevertheless deals with important topics such as racism and social exclusion. At the same time, the movie doesn't overdo it with too much heaviness; it's just a lot of fun for the most part.

As someone who is usually critical of excessive length, I was surprised that the long runtime of 160 minutes did not bother me at all. On the contrary, if part 2 had been shown later, I would have remained seated. That alone shows that it really is one of the best films of the year for me.

This was one of the best cinematic experiences I've ever had and I say this as someone who usually hates Musicals. That alone should tell you that, even if that's not your favorite movie genre, you won't regret giving this a chance.

I grew up being told the story of The Wizard of Oz, but I only found out about Wicked years later as a young adult and fell in love with the story being told from a different perspective while also getting an explanation as to why Elphaba was deemed evil.

Wicked is about how there's always two sides to a story. It's a tale about greed, power, alienation, oppression, but also pride, friendship, strength and advocacy.

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande were phenomenal. In my opinion, this is proof of the absurdity of their talents as individuals and as a duo. Their chemistry as partners in scene is something I'd never seen even in Romance movies.

The entire cast did a marvelous job and justice to the book and Broadway play. Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater.. no controversy is bigger than the masterpiece they were able to deliver here.

Needless to comment on the soundtrack, which I can't stop singing now.

As for the ending act, I couldn't stop crying. And I'm known for being one not to cry easily.

I can definitely see Wicked being nominated for the Oscar's in various categories. Dare I say, win some of them as well. And I might be judged for my opinion here, but Wicked, the movie adaptation, outdid every single other media there is of Wicked.

I had to see this one because the online theater kids have pressured the Academy into considering this as a serious Oscar contender, which makes the institution feel like an even bigger joke than it already was after having seen it. Now, if you think I’m starting this off on an overly cynical note, you have to understand that Wicked is pretty the ideal of everything I don’t stand for as a person. It’s certainly not for its themes, however all of what it tries to do is presented in the most basic, childish and saccharine package that it doesn’t meet the quality standard of any kids film (which this very much is, no matter how you slice it). Add to that the kitschy, manipulative and overproduced songs, continuous oversinging and disingenuous, overly campy performances (especially by Ariana Grande, who portrays this character in the most obvious, lazy, and again, overly theatrical way), and it pretty much does everything in its power to push me away as a viewer. Its one clever idea (subverting Jeff Goldblum’s usual shtick into something more sinister) comes in so late that I was pretty much completely checked out by that point. Besides that, there’s nothing that grabbed my attention. Some of the interesting camerawork and nice, practical set design are immediately undone by an over reliance on CGI and ugly digital trickery. The opening tracking shot looks horrendous, all of the digital animals are poorly rendered and the colour grade looks continuously flat and washed out. It’s all fine and well, after all ugly production choices are expected nowadays for big mainstream releases, until you realize the nearly 100 year old (!) Wizard of Oz doesn’t have any of these problems. It’s also better paced, composed, structured, acted, directe…wait why am I watching this boring slob again?

3/10

I am not even sure where to start. Let’s start with a good thing: Cynthia Erivo was the perfect choice for Elphaba. That’s it. That’s all that was good (apart from the original Broadway cast cameo—to a horribly boring song that did not even feel Wicked).
For the rest: it was just a disaster. why did they cast Ariana Grande? Her singing is bad—what an immensely weak voice and they made her sing even higher than the original musical just to "show off" how weak her voice is?! A real disappointment. The only thing that she did well was make me dislike G(a)linda.
The choreographer seems to have thought: let’s make all of the "dancing" a stomping-fest and make all other movements look like everyone is having strokes.
Sound mixing? Sometimes the orchestra seemed to have been performing in a different room to the voices, completely ripping you out of the world into asking yourself: why is everyone performing in different rooms without mixing together well?!
And how can you draw out this story this long. So many sloooooooow developments which were just unnecessary. Everyone in movies seems to think we need longer and longer multi-part money makers these days, just to stuff their pockets some more, but not to the enjoyment of the audience. They keep adding drab scenes.
One positive I forgot to mention: visual FX was well done—but then one does expect that from a film in 2024 anyways I guess.
Rant over I guess.

Knowing very well in advance not to expect anything, I went to see Wicked, directed by Jon M. Chu, and for the most part, I must say I was sufficiently happy with the first part. Visually, it's a tour de force: enormously grand backgrounds, stunning costumes, and the musical numbers are mostly staged with great invention. The actors, especially the ones in the lead, are convincing and give a great deal of emotive depth to their characters.

Even so, the movie is not flawless. The rhythm is sometimes uneven because some scenes are just a bit too long, creating lengths that break immersion. Also, some parts of the plot are not quite clearly elaborated, probably because they are held for the second part. The net effect is a little maddening; a reader so wants to find out more, to live more in a world being shown, to know more about all the people they have been introduced to. These are very small quibbles. With the first chapter being a strong, vividly realized introduction into the world of Wicked, the book had been engaging and enticing, and I really look forward to finding out how it all comes to closure in the second half.

This is a musical!
A very good movie, no more words. Well, okay, maybe a few more (LOL).

The movie is good and works overall, but it has a few issues. A minor one could be the aesthetics—I feel like the color grading could have been a bit livelier, maybe more saturated and contrasted. In the final version, it really looks like they left it in LOG. Now, my main issue lies with one of the pillars of the story: Elphaba and Galinda.

I really don’t understand what they wanted to do with them. At first, I thought they were going for the trope of two friends who loved each other deeply—almost like lovers—who eventually fight and become enemies. You know, something like Nana, Jujutsu Kaisen, Berserk, Arcane, Transformers One, Devilman, Naruto, X-Men, etc., etc., etc. (Wow, I just realized how many series use this trope). But no. I mean, I think the movie wanted to do this, but they present Galinda as one of the most classist, unlikable, and egotistical characters ever. Do you really want me to care about her? On top of that, there are very few scenes showing a genuine friendship between the two girls.

Based on how Galinda is written, I thought they were going to show the story of an envious know-it-all who caused people to hate the poor, different girl… but nope. And then, by the end, the movie insists on making us believe they’re best friends and get along, even though it never really shows us that.

I may sound like a hater, but this is really the only pebble in the shoe I found in the movie, and I felt it needed to be said. Other than that, the music, choreography, and production design are all a solid ten out of ten.

I’m genuinely excited for the second part: The Wizard of Oz. (Let’s hope there are no accidents this time).

Its feet float a few inches off the ground but it does not come close to defying gravity. The color palette is still as muddled as the promo pics, for one thing. And one of the most damning things is Grande. It’s a performance that screams insecurity. She’s too married to Chenoweth’s performance, and you can’t be Chenoweth! And voice modulation peeks through her performance most of all. With every acting choice she makes I can feel her looking at the audience through the screen for approval. Ervo is a better actress and there’s times she works, but she too has moments of flittering in and out of character and performance- her riffing largely doesn’t work emotionally and is more a showcase of her voice and like much of the film trying to overwhelm you with spectacle.

So what did I like? Chu knows how to do a movie musical, when allowed- he embraces sets and real extras. The cherography is for the most part as lively and electric as In the Heights, and honestly the intro might set a high unfair standard for the rest of the film, Grande aside. It’s extravagance, the Ozians’ gleeful ignorance and relishing of their enemy’s death juxtaposed with their fairy tale outfits and aw shucks huzzah whimsical dancing is an infuriating pallor over the proceedings. I wish the film had more like this- harnessing old school musical flair with the subject matter of propaganda and a con man in power to create a powerful contrast. But despite the font of the title card and to be continued, there’s not enough as I’d like.

That said, again I can’t deny the dances are fantastic, the clockwork library another standout. And I like many of the additions and performances- Michelle Yeoh sells Morrible as more than a joke and someone Elphaba could really trust, Nessarose is more sympathetic, and Bailey as Fieyro is the best Fieyro’s ever been. Is he still largely in the way and unneeded? Yes. But Bailey has oozes of charm, killer moves, and almost makes a case for the character’s inclusion off his charisma alone. He has Nobert Leo Butz’s vocal energy while fitting the role much better.

But it all derails in the same place: the Defying Gravity climax. The CGI’s mostly been apparent but relatively inoffensive until then. You can feel the length straining especially with no new songs and existing songs stretched out with more instrumental breaks. It all comes to a head here. Chu’s strength was the sets and practical cherography- now we’re smothered in CGI. Shattering windows, billowing capes, floating brooms, flying monkeys, slow motion for Oz’s sake! None of it believable and all of it so much less than the goosebumps I felt watching Wicked live and having set design and staging and lights sell me the vision and my mind filling in the blanks. Limitation breeds innovation- what Wicked managed to achieve on stage in a story full of magic is dazzling. What you can do with magic in a modern big budget movie is bland and lifeless, just more of the same. It all has the energy of a MCU climax.

And the pacing of the song is ruined, strangled by stops for exposition and movement. Anytime goosebumps for the music are threatened they are smothered by another lull to get everything in its place. Orvo’s riffs fail to sell the power of Elphaba coming into her own. It’s not a character, it’s a performance, and a vocal one only. All the artifice of the movie is exposed like the Wizard, the craftsmanship thrown away. Under the loud spectacle there’s a hollowness. While Elphaba swears off compromise this movie falls victim to it and the demands of a modern day blockbuster. I was gonna give it a three out of five, but putting down my thoughts… I’m going down to two. There’s moments, sure, but the chemistry between Orvo and Grande isn’t anywhere where it needs to be and if you don’t have that, what are we doing here? Watch a local show, or a bootleg, or just listen to the soundtrack. I, for one, do mourn what the Wicked could have been.

-1 because whoever decided on the color grading for this needs to be fired. If there's any movie that deserved to be so saturated it's almost technicolor it's literally this one. Whoever did this should be barred from ever working in Hollywood ever again, it is egregious and the single worst thing about this movie.

Otherwise I absolutely adored this. Am not really a musical fan but this weirdly worked for me?? Like the songs felt like they had more emotional weight to them. I think mostly because they spaced them out so much. It actually worked a LOT better than I expected it to. By splitting it into two parts they really got the pacing right, the characterization, etc.

The movie felt long but that was mainly because so much was happening. I don't know if there's a single wasted scene in here, there's just soooo much. Writing is really tight and well done. Humor is perfect. Obviously because it's a musical the writing is going to not be perfect, but this was about as close as you can get.

Ariana was literally born for this role, she sang sooooo well. No pop star singing, her theater kid background came through so much here. I was actually shocked, like she sounds like she should be on Broadway. That's not normally how she sounds lol. Popular sounded great (that is the only wicked song I know). Ariana is literally the funniest thing in the entire movie, she is ENDLESSLY funny I was so shocked lmfao.

Cynthia also does great. Again gorgeous singing, no notes. I ADORED her costumes they are so fucking good. But Jesus the black hat was not great it looked like someone bought it on Wish.com for 50 cents. Like I feel like the most notable part of the most notable character in the show should maybe have more of a budget than $20.

I cannot say enough bad things about the color grading of this movie. IT IS SHIT. DOGSHIT. IT'S SO FUCKING BAD. The costumes looked gorgeous, the sets look amazing, and it is all RUINED BY THE SHITTY COLOR GRADING!!! It's not "bad" by any means, it's just that they made it look like LITERALLY EVERY OTHER HOLLYWOOD MOVIE. Half of the scenes Elphaba or however you spell her name DOESN'T EVEN LOOK GREEN BECAUSE SHE IS SO DESATURATED. The train that you've seen the pictures of (the one with the physical set) looks AWFUL. SO much potential wasted. There is soooo much effects work in this movie that is just brutally undercut by someone not giving this movie enough fucking saturation. The yellow brick road looked like your piss when you drink wayyyyy too much water and it's barely even yellow anymore. I WANT AN UNHEALTHY PISS YELLOW-COLORED YELLOW BRICK ROAD!!!!

Jesus, we had Pearl in 2022 show us that technicolor color grading can be done and audiences will ADORE it. It is THE most defining characteristic of the Wizard of Oz. The emerald city literally looks better in movie made almost a century ago. WHY COULD YOU NOT BUMP UP THE SATURATION BY 10%?????

Otherwise I adored this movie but I think the person who decided on the color shit should be hunted down and endlessly harassed by the media until they never ever ever show their face in public again

I was in 4th grade when Wicked released on Broadway, but I didn't see the play until three or four years later when the US tour came to town. However, I did have exposure to the music, or at least, one song in particular. This was back in the time before reserved seats at movie theaters, when it was standard to arrive long before showtimes in order to secure a good seat. I think 20 minutes early was quite normal, but for popular movies 30 minutes plus was not uncommon. During all of this wasted time, the theater would play a slideshow on loop of advertisements, movie trivia, and the like. The audio was usually unrelated to the slideshow, highlighting recent music. I remember countless trips to my local AMC where Defying Gravity was blasting on repeat while we waited for our movie to start. I didn't even know it was from a play at the time, but the fact that I have such distinct memories of it really is a testament to how iconic and memorable these songs are. Now, 20 years later, I got to listen to Defying Gravity in a theater once more, but this time accompanied by excellent performances, an extravagant production, and of course the rest of the Act I soundtrack. There's certainly a nostalgia factor working in this film's favor, but as we've seen with countless overly leveraged properties recently, a nostalgia factor is no guarantee of quality, so this film deserves respect for successfully adapting one of the biggest Broadway plays of all time.

Now, setting aside the idea that this is a successful adaptation and that fans will not be disappointed, I was surprised to find that some of the writing is quite thin on closer scrutiny. Some of the relationship dynamics are established off of very little (with the exception of the central Elphaba/Glinda relationship) and the escalation of the encounter with the wizard feels incredibly rushed. As far as technical critiques, I did find the opening number to be incredibly hard to understand (where are my subtitles!), which had me momentarily concerned, but this wasn't really an issue for the rest of the soundtrack.

Wicked's marketing intentionally hides that it is a Part 1, with none of the official posters or titles using that subtitle. However, as soon as the title card appears, it's clear this is just one half of a larger story. And it feels like it. However, I will say that unlike Dune, this movie does have a climactic ending that seems like a natural peak to the central character arc in this movie. Regardless, coming in at 2 hours and 40 minutes, this half is as long as the entire Broadway musical. Now, I haven't seen the Broadway play or read the book, so I can't really comment on what it adds to flesh out the story. However, it does feel its length, with a variety of scenes feeling a bit superfluous. Because they are clearly saving up major conflicts and moments for the second half, there also seems to be a lot of arcs that feel underserved within this movie. It's hard to comment on the setup done in this movie without seeing the second part, but that in of itself is a natural flaw in deciding to split it into two. I thought the interactions between Galinda and Elphaba were great, but I wasn't as engaged when Fiyero or Nessa were on screen. I think the movie could have spent more time developing some of the sociopolitical commentary. I liked the concepts, but they felt very surface-level in the movie. For such a long movie, it almost feels easy to forget they even exist considering the limited screentime. I get that the focus is on Elphaba, but her story easily parallels those elements. A few other comments from my side. I'll readily admit that this type of music is not my taste, and I found most of the songs either forgettable or annoying, but I liked the choreography in them. I think the set design and costuming is really great, but the lighting ruined so much of it. It feels way too brightened, washing away all the contrast and bright colors. I was the most impressed with Ariana Grande. I went in with very low expectations, but her performance and comedic timing was fantastic and the highlight of the movie for me. Overall, this is an entertaining movie that feels underserved by the decision to split the story into two movies.

Very good! I enjoyed 'Wicked'.

Always impressive when a long run time flashes by - no doubt a sign of a sturdy movie. 2hr 40mins is how long this one lasts, I thought I might have felt that whilst watching but, honestly, I didn't. Since sharing my reviews online I have appreciated musicals much more, to the point that when I learn a film is from this genre it barely registers.

I have never seen the stage musical, in fact the only detail I knew for certain was that it was from the world of 'The Wizard of Oz' - which, in turn, I only know from the 1939 and 2013 movies, as well as one or two other flicks. As such, I wasn't actually sure where they were heading with the Wicked Witch of the West - but I approve.

Cynthia Erivo impresses as the aforementioned. I have to say, mind, that Ariana Grande is the person onscreen that stood out most. She does an excellent job at making her character's self-centered quirks so convincing, while also producing a few amusing moments too. Jonathan Bailey and Peter Dinklage are good, while Jeff Goldblum certainly fits his role.

The ending, whilst perfectly fine and pleasing, is possibly a bit rushed/abrupt, though that's to be expected given it's only part one. The same can be said for most films that are split into multiple productions, to be fair. I am intrigued to see where part two goes, bring on this time next year.

The music is, as one would expect, also a positive. Granted I don't think I'll be adding any of the tracks to my playlist, but I still had a pleasant time hearing all the songs come and go - not one sticks out like a sore thumb, so that's good. Elsewhere, visually and plot-wise I have no real complaints.