Directed by Jon M. Chu and based on the stage musical and novel of the same name, Wicked: For Good is set several years after the events of Wicked and follows Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo), now known as the Wicked Witch of the West, as she continues her fight for animal rights while living as a fugitive. Meanwhile, Galinda Upland (Ariana Grande), now recognized as Glinda the Good, is a public figure watched over by the Wizard (Jeff Goldblum) and Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh). As they face the consequences of their actions, their relationship is put to the test by a series of events—including the surprising arrival of Dorothy Gale from Kansas—that will change the Land of Oz forever.
The first film was a beautiful adaptation of the wonderfully whimsical and emotionally compelling first act of the beloved stage musical, crafted to near perfection by Jon M. Chu and his team. Needless to say, the mass success of the first part made everyone very excited to see the second part and it had massive expectations set for it, given the stage musical’s second act is considered to be bigger, bolder and far more intricate than the previous act. Did this sequel live up to those expectations and conclude the story on a high note? It absolutely did in phenomenal fashion!
Jon M. Chu and his team brought thunderous magic and very impactful heart to Wicked: For Good, cementing itself as a wonderful sequel that perfectly adapts the second act from stage to screen, as well as brings the complete story to a beautiful conclusion. It’s a much more mature and emotional journey about the consequences of the hard choices you make, whether for good or bad intentions, and is guaranteed to make you feel very moved to the point of tears as it hits your heart consistently with its characters, story, themes, visuals and of course, perfect music. It’s an adaptation I know my mother would have absolutely loved if she was still here with me.
The performances of the first film were amazing from all the cast members who gave enormous dedication to their respective characters, but now came the challenge of playing those characters again but playing more evolved versions of them as a result of the events of the first film that have radically changed all of them. The most significantly changed of the lot are of course our two leads, Elphaba and Glinda reprised by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande respectively. They were perfect in their roles in the first film and they are perfect once again in this film where they give their all to these characters in emotionally powerful performances, both alone and together as their friendship goes through numerous heartbreaking trials.
Cynthia Erivo brings so much layered humanity to Elphaba as she is persecuted with every move she makes in her fight to free Oz from the Wizard’s control, as well as faces numerous tragic consequences that begin to push her to her breaking point. You can’t help but feel immense sympathy for her as she is trying to do the right thing, only to be perceived as an evil monster by the public as a result of the manipulative propaganda by the Wizard and Madame Morrible, which can be considered highly relevant to how some people of a certain race, religion or moral standing are being persecuted by manipulative media right now. Elphaba fights an uphill battle that gets steeper as the film progresses, and despite a few people who know the truth about her it isn’t enough to stop the eventual spiral that causes her to embrace her reputation as the Wicked Witch of the West.
Meanwhile, Ariana Grande once again fully embodies the role of Glinda but now plays a much different version of her in this film as we get to see her true self be exposed to us as a result of her fantastic performance and her character being explored further than in the first film. All Glinda ever wanted was to be magical and bring goodness to the land of Oz so she could be loved by everyone but now that she has nearly everything she has ever wanted it doesn’t actually make her feel happy in the slightest, especially when it is all built on lies. She puts on her usual false face in public while hiding her true feelings underneath, feelings that begin to show over the course of the film while she is being used as the poster child of the Wizard’s hunt for Elphaba.
Her choice to side with the Wizard and Madame Morrible results in a variety of consequences that emotionally break her and make us also feel sympathy for her despite the mistakes she has made. Ariana Grande truly embodied this role to perfection as Cynthia Erivo did with hers, forming a beautiful friendship together that will forever be remembered in the hearts of all who watched their journey together in both films.
Jonathan Bailey reprises the role of Fiyero Tigelaar, returning as a far more mature version of the character we once knew but still maintains the same charm-filled and magnetic performance that made him so beloved in the first film. He has a lot of scenes where he gets to deliver fierce emotional intensity even without dialogue and gets to have even more powerful moments with Glinda and Elphaba, respectively. By far the best scenes that Bailey delivers are with Erivo in the truly moving and romantically passionate musical sequence “As Long as You’re Mine” that absolutely lived up to my expectations as well as exceeded them. It also certainly lived up to the expectations of my audience since it was the first song sequence of the film to get a massive applause moment when it was done.
Jeff Goldblum gets more time to shine as the Wizard of Oz in this film compared to the first film, and he does not disappoint with his alluring performance as the manipulative con artist that has power over the masses despite having no real magic. However, as the film progresses, it becomes abundantly clear that the Wizard is beginning to have regrets over some of his choices as he seemingly had no real evil intentions towards anyone during his control of Oz, leading up to one massive reveal that changes everything and results in Jeff Goldblum delivering quite possibly the most emotionally powerful moment I’ve ever seen in his career. He was truly a perfect choice for this role and I’m glad he got a lot more to do this time around, especially when it comes to singing.
While he is technically considered the villain of the story, the true villain for me is Madame Morrible, who is given a wickedly cold and malicious performance by Michelle Yeoh. I have been so used to seeing Michelle Yeoh play heroic or good-natured characters in other films that it was honestly shocking to see her give such an evil performance as this character, who acts as the primary representative of the Wizard but takes things way too far just like in the original story. Morrible oozes with inhumanity in every word she speaks and action she takes, making her a truly love-to-hate villain that you’d want nothing more than to see karma come back to bite her.
The supporting performances of the film are just as strong as the main performances, with some very notable standouts being Marissa Bode as Nessarose Thropp and Ethan Slater as Boq Woodsman. Like in the original story, Nessarose Thropp becomes the governor of Munchkinland following the death of her father but her anger towards Elphaba for her actions and Boq’s rejection of her romantically has corrupted her to point that she has removed the rights of all talking animals and even the Munchkins in an attempt to mend her broken heart. This is what transitions her to become the notorious Wicked Witch of the East, giving us a short but tragic arc for a character that didn’t deserve to be put in such a position but was forced to as a result of others actions. Marissa Bode gives so much raw emotion in her performance of Nessarose, making us truly feel for her in her tragically dark turn.
Boq also has his own tragic turn as a result of the actions of others, turning him from the dimwitted but kind Munchkin we met in the first film into a heartless and angry man after his life is changed forever. Ethan Slater nails the character down with his rage-filled performance and transformation that will greatly surprise audiences who are unfamiliar with his path in the original story.
As for the iconic four characters of the Wizard of Oz story that play an underlying role in this film, like in the stage musical, I am unable to discuss any of them in great detail due to major spoilers and twists that occur connected to them. The only one I can talk about briefly is the cowardly lion who is voiced wonderfully by Colman Domingo. He may not have many lines or scenes in this film but Colman Domingo perfectly captures the character’s cowardly personality and mannerisms even within short segments.
The film perfectly adapts the second act of the stage musical every step of the way narratively, so anyone who knows the original story knows exactly what to expect, while people unfamiliar with the original story are in for a truly emotional experience that is full of shocking twists and turns. The filmmakers had the challenge of adapting a larger and more mature second act of a big story that they needed to bring full circle while also establishing the firm connections the stage musical has with the Wizard of Oz story, but I firmly believe they succeeded in doing both when making this film.
It also manages to continue all of the themes of the first film and the musical in this film without feeling overstuffed or overwhelming on top of everything else. Everything is told in a perfect natural flow through musical narrative elements that bring the full story to a beautiful conclusion that hits all the emotional high notes and ties up every thread, leaving no stone unturned. With all of that said this film does rely on some important plot points and set-ups presented in the first film so I would advise people to rewatch the first film prior to this one as a refresher, especially for all the massive pay offs this one delivers.
From a visual and technical standpoint the film once again captures the vibrant and colorful aesthetic of the land of Oz through perfect practical effects and sets, as well as CGI effects that were a vast improvement over the ones in the first film. The third act of the first film had some unrefined CGI effects that definitely needed more time, but here I think all of the CGI looked wonderfully done without anything looking off to me in a single frame. It’s clear that Jon M. Chu and his crew listened to the criticisms of the first film’s third act effects and made sure to take as much time as possible to perfect all the effects of this film.
But there were definitely tons of practical effects that were on display and all of them are masterfully crafted by passionate hands, from the costumes to the locations, retaining the Broadway-musical-come-to-life-on-screen feeling that the first film had, while also giving it more of an epic feel to match the tone and scale of the story.
And then of course there is the music, which as expected is perfect in every way, from the score to the songs, all under the direction of composers John Powell and Stephen Schwartz, the original composer and lyricist of the Wicked musical. The film features all the major songs from the second act of the musical, including reprises, while also including two new original songs written specifically for the film called “No Place Like Home” and “The Girl in the Bubble” that were honestly beautiful and brilliant additions to the soundtrack. But for me the most powerful and emotional songs of the entire film had to be “Thank Goodness/I Couldn’t Be Happier”, “As Long as You’re Mine”, “No Good Deed” and of course the titular song “For Good”.
This film truly hit my heart hard, even more than the first film, and I was left in a huge amount of tears both during and after the film. This adaptation is guaranteed to satisfy fans of the musical while also satisfying newcomers who loved the first film and have been eagerly anticipating this one. You will laugh, you will cry, you will be surprised, but most of all you will be changed for good! I just wish I was able to experience this complete story with my mother, who would have loved seeing one of her favorite musical stories come to life. I’m going to give Wicked: For Good an A+ = 100.
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