“Listen to me. You can do anything.”
I somewhat recall seeing Wicked on the stage in London for my birthday back in 2008. It was my first birthday living in that city and the biggest stage production I had ever seen in my life up to that point. My best friend, who was living in Oxford at the time, came over and treated us to some pretty good seats for the show I had heard so much about. However, apart from a single joke (which I was happy to see made it into the movie version), I remember virtually nothing from the experience; not the names of the characters, not the plot turns, not the cavalcade of songs. Every time I heard about Wicked in the years after, I couldn’t help but wonder why this was. It wasn’t that I didn’t like Wicked; I just flat-out couldn’t remember anything about it. Eventually, I just had to admit that, for whatever reason, it just wasn’t the time for me to absorb that story. Now, years later, the fact that Wicked has now emerged as one of the best of 2024 proves that time has come.
Based on both Gregory Maguire’s novel and the long-running stage musical, Wicked tells the story of how a young woman named Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) became known to everyone in the magical land of Oz as the Wicked Witch of the West. Beginning with her entrance into Shiz University, we see her and future Good Witch Glinda (Ariana Grande) become an unlikely pair of friends as they find themselves embarking on an adventure to see the Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum).
It’s a bit of an understatement to say that director Jon M. Chu was faced with one of the tallest orders in Hollywood when it came to adapting such a popular musical for the big screen. Yet, the director has seemed to pull it off at every turn. Wicked is the kind of lavish and thrilling movie spectacle everyone is hoping it would be. The musical numbers, which alternate between huge ballads and uptempo showstoppers, are positively sprawling. Each song is so well choreographed and takes place in a set more elaborate than the last while doing proper duty in moving the story along. The effects (practical and otherwise) have no chance of being outdone by the music as Oz has come to glorious life with a design that swallows the audience into that world from the very first shot. There has been some bemoaning (particularly from the 90-minute movie crowd) that at two hours and forty minutes, Wicked is too long of a movie to bear, especially when considering the fact that this is only the first part of the story. Make no mistake, Chu has got such a firm handle on the movie’s pacing, moving the proceedings along at just the right speed, that its nearly three-hour runtime feels like merely a fraction of that.
Wicked is so incredibly well-executed from top to bottom. Feelings of exuberance and exhilaration are at literally every turn for what is undeniably one of the most monumental movie experiences of the year. What’s most remarkable, however, is that within the large-scale world of Wicked, is a story full of intimate character moments. After being forced to room together, we initially see Elphaba and Glinda take a dislike to one another before an event happens. In one of the key moments of the film, we see both characters begin a transformation that changes not only who they are and how we now see them, but also alters the kind of movie we are now watching. As previously mentioned, the pair become friends, establishing a bond that quickly takes its place as one of the movie’s key driving forces. From then on, Wicked becomes a lesson in empathy, a movie that takes the time in the midst of all the fun to point out the value of actually exploring who a person really is versus who the world would assume them to be. These lessons flow throughout in a way that thankfully never ventures into the realm of self-righteousness, but instead are presented in ways that are both simple and honest.
Despite all of the movie’s plentiful delights, Wicked wouldn’t work without the right leads at the forefront, which it thankfully has. Erivo’s soulful performance shows just how much Elphaba has been carrying internally and the actress’ endlessly expressive eyes and mannerisms help us understand her character’s true self. She pairs well with Grande, who is a true marvel as Glinda, hitting every comedic beat with expert timing and delivery, while also giving her character genuine depth. Apart from a miscast Goldblum as the famous wizard, the rest of the supporting players, including Michelle Yeoh as the head of the university, Peter Dinklage voicing a professor who also happens to be a goat, and Jonathan Bailey as both girls’ love interest, all leave their mark and add to the overall enjoyment.
As someone who partakes in karaoke quite regularly, I can’t tell you how many renditions of “Defying Gravity” (arguably Wicked’s most famous song) have taken place in my presence. Yet much like my experience with the stage production, I never quite felt like I really heard the song. Despite seeing it performed by a variety of singers (including some of my own friends) I must have decided early on that it wasn’t for me. Typically, whenever someone got up to belt it out, I would either distract myself with my phone or head to the bar for another drink. Seeing the song be brought to glorious life on the screen made me actually listen to it for the first time and I finally heard what so many had before me. I finally heard the story of Wicked encapsulated in the music and lyrics, the sense of adventure, bravery, conviction, humanity, and the importance of the kind of bond that can exist between two friends which can never be overestimated.
