“Wicked” Is A Riotously Humorous And Insightful Adaptation Of The Beloved Musical
To say that I entered the theater for my Wicked screening with fear and trembling would be an understatement. In a world of bad adaptations, how could I hope this one film would be any different?
Defying all odds (and gravity, while they’re at it), Wicked passes with flying colors. Director Jon M. Chu has given the Ozians what they want: an adaptation of the beloved musical that is both nostalgic and a work of art on its own.
Why does Wicked work so well? It’s precisely because it doesn’t try to be different from the beloved Broadway play. Spellbinding visuals, a host of powerhouse performances, and its uncompromising loyalty to its source material makes it easily one of the best films of the year.
Wicked is a Loving Adaptation and a Feast for the Eyes
There’s always a risk when you watch a movie adaptation of a story you love. Things can be going so well. You recognize lines from your favorite book, and the actor really nails the accent of a particular character. But then you hit that moment - the “Oh great, and I was just enjoying myself so much” disappointment when the production team gets a little too creative.
In Wicked, this moment never comes. Jon Chu, the mastermind behind the wildly under-appreciated In the Heights, has crafted a truly reverent cinematic version of the original Broadway musical. Chu and his creative team have cut nothing out - not a single reprise or subtle moment of character development. If this is why it took ten years to finally get a Wicked movie, then I’m really glad we waited.
Chu is happy for his mark on the world of Wicked to be a sense of irrepressible joy and a stunning palette of colors. Chu’s Wicked is imbued with the same visual splendor and bold colors which made The Wizard of Oz an instant classic back in the 1930s. Here we have the same big song and dance numbers which made In the Heights so excellent, but Chu’s camerawork focuses on the subtle but talented emotional work of his two leads. From the first scene, where we watch Glinda burn an effigy of her former friend, it’s not the rousing group that catches our attention - it’s the haunted pauses in Grande's performance.
For anyone like me, who adores the original Broadway musical and the female stars who made it famous, it was hard to imagine anyone playing these roles other than the iconic Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel. But by casting Broadway steady Cynthia Erivo, Chu secured a heroine who can belt the finest notes of 'Defying Gravity' and speak with a softness that could melt stone. As she always does, Erivo displays an ability to deliver truly grounded emotions which make her Elphaba impossible not to love.