As the long-awaited “Wicked: For Good” beautifully conveys, I, too, feel “I have been changed for good.”
After the longest intermission ever, an entire year, people flooded to the theaters to see what happens to Oz and the characters we’ve fallen in love with.
I will say, the second act of Broadway’s “Wicked” is known to be weaker than the first act, so I went in with lower expectations. The plot is confusing and grasps at straws (pun intended) to connect the details, not to mention the motives behind some characters’ actions don’t make much sense.
That being said, this movie helped make the Part Two stronger. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but it was an improvement.
I can see why critics gave it bad reviews if they were expecting something as incredible as Part One.
Two new songs were added that I think were part of the reason this movie is better than the Broadway second act. “No Place Like Home” and “The Girl in the Bubble” showed more depth in the characters and helped the movie have room to breathe.
I would venture as far to say that I liked the movie’s version of the songs more than the Broadway show. For Part One there were only a few songs where I liked the movie version better, but in “For Good” the songs felt like an improvement, probably since the Broadway show moves a little fast.
Not to mention, the vocal talent of Elphaba, Glinda, Fiyero, and Boq, respectively played by Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, and Ethan Slater absolutely carried the film.
I especially loved Erivo’s rendition of “No Good Deed.” The emotion she displays in each lyric was simply amazing. I applauded as if she could hear me both times.
There were many parts of this film relatable to our current political climate. The song “No Place Like Home” reminded people that now is not the time to abandon ship, but rather to stay and work to protect our rights here in America.
The Wizard’s rendition of “Wonderful” and what history is like where he comes from also fit with reality. This is part of the Broadway musical that I found funny because of how accurate it is to society.
This is definitely a great movie to go see with family, but more so friends. The song “For Good” is a beautiful reminder of how friends change our lives. I was brought to tears thinking about how lucky I am to have such incredible people in my life.
There will be a few spoilers in the next section, so skip if you haven’t watched it yet.
First off, I would like to mention just how weak the lion’s character is. He is legitimately upset that Elphaba saved his life. This makes so little sense that they tried to make up for it by having two-time Best Actor nominee Colman Domingo voice him for approximately five lines. There wasn’t much they could do about this issue without changing the plot too much, so I understand they did the best they could. Though it’s still an annoying detail.
Likewise, they were way too obvious that 1) Fiyero becomes the Scarecrow and 2) the Wizard is Elphaba’s father.
Fiyero’s soldier costume literally had stalks of wheat on his back, and it showed him being beaten up in a corn field. I felt this took away from the shock effect the Broadway show had. However, I did love the change of perspective in the lines Fiyero said to Elphaba earlier about how beautiful she is and then how she turned them around to describe Fiyero later.
I also felt disappointed with the reveal of the Wizard as her dad. In the Broadway show it is much more subtle until the final reveal because (in my memory/from my seat) they didn’t have the Wizard drinking from the same bottle that she has as a keepsake in every scene.
On a different note, I loved Glinda’s end. The confidence she gained as she stopped the Wizard and Madame Morrible, welcomed the animals back into Oz, and became truly magical as shown by the Grimmerie opening for her.
This was such a heartwarming scene and showed the character growth she went through. From promising to help Elphaba with powers she didn’t have at the start of Part One, to promising to help the people of Oz with powers she now has at the end of “For Good.”
Spoilers are over!
If you liked Part One, there is no reason to not see this film. Though it has slightly darker tones, it was nicely done. The actors were wickedly talented, and the songs were great; making it worth watching.