“The much-anticipated “Wicked: For Good,” based on act two of the 2003 Broadway musical by Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman, picks up the story years after the events of last year’s “Wicked.”
“Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo), the Wicked Witch of the West, is now a fugitive who works tirelessly to free Oz’s silenced talking animals and expose the fraudulent activities of the not so Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum). “Our Wizard lies,” she skywrites in bold letters above Emerald City for all to see…”
I sit in on the CFRA Ottawa morning show with host Bill Carroll to talk about the new movies coming to theatres including the much anticipated “Wicked: For Good,” the Brendan Fraser dramedy “Rental Family” and the Hollywood drama “Jay Kelly.”
I join the Bell Media Radio Network national night time show “Shane Hewitt and the Night Shift” for “Booze & Reviews!” This week I review tell you about a new Bridget Jones statue, the Trump-ordered end to a Buddy Holly tribute and the real Swim Shady stands up.
Click to HERE to listen to Shane and me talk about the a new Bridget Jones tribute, the end of a Buddy Holly Tribute and a Slim Shady lawsuit!
For the Booze & Reviews look at “Wicked: The Good” and some wicked good cocktails to enjoy while watching this flick click HERE!
SYNOPSIS: In “Wicked: For Good,” Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo), a.k.a. the Wicked Witch of the West and sorority-girl-turned-ruler Glinda the Good (Ariana Grande), are subjected to a series of events that tests the boundaries of their relationship.
CAST: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Bowen Yang, Marissa Bode, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum. Directed by John M. Chu.
REVIEW: “Wicked: For Good,” based on act two of the 2003 Broadway musical by Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman, picks up the story years after the events of last year’s “Wicked.”
Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo), the Wicked Witch of the West, is now a fugitive who works tirelessly to free Oz’s silenced talking animals and expose the fraudulent activities of the not so Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum). “Our Wizard lies,” she skywrites in bold letters above Emerald City for all to see.
Her erstwhile friend Glinda the Good (Ariana Grande) is now a paragon of Goodness who floats around in a giant mechanized bubble. She is a walking, talking propaganda tool controlled by The Wizard and Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) to convince Emerald City citizens that all is well under The Wizard’s rule.
As her wedding to the handsome Prince Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey) approaches, Glinda attempts to put things right between Elphaba and The Wizard, only to deepen the rift between the Wicked Witch and the ruling class of Oz, including Glinda.
As things heat up between Elphaba and Glinda, a famous foursome—Dorothy and Co.—arrive in Oz, heralding troubled times that can only be healed by the power of friendship. “We can’t let good be just a word,” says Elphaba. “It has to mean something.”
With some new songs like, “No Place Like Home” and “The Girl in the Bubble,” “Wicked: For Good” is a heart wrenching conclusion to the story, powered by impressive performances and emotional depth.
A darker, more serious film that the original, “For Good” explores themes of friendship, identity, and sacrifice through big, booming Broadway tunes. Less visually crowded than part one—it’s still baroque; art directed from here to Oz and back—but there is more unused space which allows the performances to speak for themselves without feeling crowded by the ornamental excess of the first film. The restraint places the focus on the songs and performers, trusting the material to deliver the story’s punch with fewer distractions.
Erivo and Grande share great on-screen chemistry and have the chops to elevate songs like “For Good” to show-stopper status. They are the movie’s secret sauce, and their story of friendship and sacrifice coupled with their supersonic vocals remain the film’s most compelling aspects.
“Wicked: For Good” is not a standalone movie. You’d likely get lost in the Ozian forest without the background story from last year’s “Wicked,” but those willing to invest five hours total into Elphaba and Glinda’s relationship will be rewarded with beautiful performances woven into an uplifting story of hope, resilience and acceptance.
Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to make the bed! Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about the much anticipated “Wicked: For Good,” the Brendan Fraser dramedy “Rental Family” and the Hollywood drama “Jay Kelly.”
SYNOPSIS: Set before Dorothy Gale blew into the Land of Oz, “Wicked,” the first half of the film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical, chronicles the unlikely friendship between Shiz University—Where knowledge meets magic!—students Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo), before she became the Wicked Witch of the West, and Galinda Upland (Ariana Grande-Butera), who later becomes Glinda the Good Witch of the North. “Are people born wicked,” asks Glinda, “or do they have wickedness thrust on them?”
CAST: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande-Butera, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Marissa Bode, Bowen Yang, Bronwyn James, Keala Settle, and Peter Dinklage. Directed by Jon M. Chu.
REVIEW: A big, bold and brassy reimagination of the fifth longest-running show in Broadway history is an origin story that pays tribute to the beloved stage show, but also brews up its own cinematic vibe.
Fans of the show will be pleased to know the themes that made “the untold story of the witches of Oz” so popular have been maintained. As the fairy tale unfolds, it reveals commentary on identity, privilege and control woven into the story of Elphaba and Galinda’s friendship and the climatic showdown with Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) and the (not-so) Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum).
Elphaba is kind, intelligent and honest but suffers society’s slings and arrows because she looks and behaves differently than the norm. “I don’t cause a commotion,” she says. “I am one.”
She is the green-skinned outsider, misjudged by everyone from her father (Andy Nyman) to the student body of Shiz University who openly laugh at her. With powerhouse vocals (even when she’s singing a duet with a goat) Erivo guides the character along a journey from innocence to a certain kind of jadedness as she learns how the world really works. In doing so, facing racism and persecution, Elphaba, a character who is very specific to the story, turns into a universal avatar for the misunderstood.
When Madame Morrible strips her of her name, dubbing her the Wicked Witch, she is villainized by a powerful bully, but finds strength in that adversity.
Erivo’s intensity is countered by Grande-Butera’s bubbly, hair-flipping comedic take on the spoiled Galinda. “Something is wrong,” she says with wide-eyed wonder. “I didn’t get my way.” Her vocals soar, but it is the chemistry she shares with Erivo and the glittery gusto with which she attacks the role that is memorable.
Thematically and performance wise, “Wicked” gets it right. The beloved mix of lighter songs, emotional numbers and power ballads are expertly and lovingly rendered, and director Jon M. Chu fills the screen with constant movement and elaborate set design, but at 2 hours and 40 minutes—that just five minutes shy of the entire stage show’s runtime, including intermission—the movie feels overstuffed. Several scenes are overlong and over designed, despite Chu’s enthusiastic direction, as though the film is a little too in love with its own iconography.
In other words, Ain’t no rest for the “Wicked.”
Still, by the time “Wicked: Part One” gets to its finale, Elphaba’s transformation into the Wicked Witch and the rousing version of the show’s signature song, “Defying Gravity,” blows off whatever dust may have accumulated. It’s a showstopper that literally brings the curtain down until part two drops in theatres on November 21, 2025.
“The much-anticipated “Wicked: For Good,” based on act two of the 2003 Broadway musical by Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman, picks up the story years after the events of last year’s “Wicked.”
