Film Review: Wicked - From Stage To Screen

Mysterious. Mesmerising. Moving. Magical. Is it possible to recreate that feeling (I'm not talking about loathing!) that you experience from watching such a Magnificent Musical like Wicked and transfer that to the audience through a screen? ...

Film Review: Wicked - From Stage To Screen

Having watched the touring company of Wicked for the first time earlier this year, it has quickly become one of my favourite musicals of all time. Following the story of Elphaba (The Wicked Witch of the West) through adolescence and university life at Shiz, then onto the next step in her life as a sorceress, this musical answers the all important question – “are people born wicked, or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?”

As a result of this, the excitement I felt when I heard that they were developing this much loved musical into a film, was off the charts high. It was a lovely retelling of the adored story we have seen brought to life on Broadway and the West End, as well as many of our home cities over the past years, and despite having a run time of two hours and forty minutes, this time seemed to go by relatively quickly and it definitely didn't feel that long.

I loved the fact that they brought Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth into the film (the original Elphaba and Glinda on Broadway) and the extra scenes showing life at Shiz University developed the story nicely, with the further detail added compared to the stage musical fitting in as if it had always belonged there.

What Is This Feeling? was the standout song for me with the choreography, singing, acting and visuals all going nicely together, and I felt that the actors' and director's own touches were added, without losing the original feel of the song. Little moments like Elphaba and Galinda fighting over a desk and having combat lessons with poles against each other developed their relationship wonderfully, and added well to a sense of character.

In my opinion, Ariana Grande (Glinda) absolutely carried the musical and she gave me a newfound love for the song Popular as well as her character GalindaGrande's facial expressions, intonation and comedy deliverance were all exactly on point, and her reactions to the Munchkins during No One Mourns The Wicked was a lovely moment of seeing how Glinda feels about events from a fresh perspective.

Overall, the songs were a little disappointing – the songs themselves are amazing and I love them so much, but the delivery didn't hit the mark for me in this film. I wasn't a fan of the way that Cynthia Erivo (Elphaba) added twists and changed the timings slightly for many of her solos, and during the majority of songs I felt that there was too much speaking breaking them up, as opposed to singing them straight through. I understand why this had to be done for songs such as Dancing Through Life that take you through three or four different locations in the space of around seven minutes, however it cut off the ability to really immerse yourself in the music and enjoy it to its full potential.

A couple of scenes, such as the Ozdust Ballroom and when Elphaba and Glinda meet the Wizard dragged on and I think that they were unnecessarily long – it felt like the Wizard scene was being dragged out because it's supposedly the climax of the First Part, however with the film already reaching over two and a half hours, it really isn't needed.

Contrary to popular opinion, I'm actually a big fan of splitting the film into two parts to emulate the acts of a musical, because it means that you've got Part One as a great film on its own, or if you're like me and really struggle to decide what film to watch each evening, you've got two nights in a row sorted.

Everything considered, Wicked Part One was an enjoyable film with a loyal adaptation of the plot and characters that we've witnessed on stage, however compared to the theatre musical it is a slightly disappointing product – my advice would be, go and give it a watch because it's a brilliant film in its own right, but don't expect that same magical feeling you get from watching live on stage. 

Header Image Credit: Universal Pictures

Author

Naomi Johnson

Naomi Johnson Local Reviewer

Based in Cheshire, England. Naomi is 17 years old and very passionate about all things theatre, including: acting, directing, scriptwriting, and reviewing!!

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1 Comments

  • Judy McFall

    On 15 December 2024, 12:45 Judy McFall Voice Team commented:

    An interesting review, I'm glad to hear the film (at 2hours 40mins!) doesn't feel that long when you watch it but I agree that there is something really magical about live theatre so it's interesting to read your different perspectives regarding screen and stage.

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