Review: Wicked For Good

Official Synopsis: Elphaba, (Cynthia Erivo) the future Wicked Witch of the West and her relationship with Glinda,(Ariana Grande) the Good Witch of the North. The second of a two-part feature film adaptation of the Broadway musical.

I'm still surprised at how hyped I am for Wicked, despite never caring for the stage show, but something about the first film was magical. Maybe it's the magic of Erivo and Grande (and Jonathan Bailey) together, maybe its the wonderful costumes, either way, it's been working for me, but even I had lower expectations going into this knowing how I feel about the back half of this musical.

And that's best, because Wicked For Good is not as strong as the first, and it was never going to be. Everyone knows this show loses steam after "Defying Gravity." That's not to say there's no good songs in For Good, "As Long as You're Mine" and "For Good" remain strong, but they're the only two. Even the two new songs "There's No Place Like Home" and "The Girl in the Bubble" don't really have the staying power of some of the songs from part 1.

The film does take some liberties to expand on a few things the show doesn't, mostly Glinda's arc. Ariana Grande is the true lead of this film and the film spends a lot more time with her coming to terms with doing what's right, and not just what she wants to do. So while that is done for the better (As is making Nessa Rose fly instead of walk) the film choses not to devote any additional time to other parts that could've used it. Mainly Nessa Rose's downfall, The Wizard being Elphaba's father, and having more animal point of views considering it's THEIR rights Elphaba is fighting for. It's very lazy writing.

Another issue Part II has is the dull coloring that the original film had as well. When you have  movie with costumes THIS gorgeous, why is everything not bright and beautiful? I watched Train Dreams the day before this, and that film is so vibrant that this stuck out to me even more. It's a shame because the production design and costumes are so good.

Of course our leading ladies remain amazing. I love that they seem to have a genuine friendship from their time together making this. They have excellent chemistry, and you wish they could make it work. It makes me wonder if there's a fan fiction out there that makes that so.

Still, while not as enjoyable as Part I, Wicked For Good was still a great time at the theater, and I'll be thinking about Elphaba and Fiyero together for a long time.

Grade: B-