Wicked For Good: If You Fell Under Wicked’s Spell, This One’s Worth the Wait

By Chris Knight

Rating: A-

The release of part two of Wicked marks the end of the longest intermission in history, at 364 days. No other musical has even been turned into two movies before. The Sound of Music could have done it, 60 years ago, but instead was merely stretched out to almost three hours, with a proper 15-minute intermission in the middle.

I daresay this one was worth the wait. Though darker, visually and emotionally, than part one, and shorter — two hours and 18 minutes, down from two-forty — Wicked: For Good is still a rollicking good time, as shown by the multiple rounds of applause a recent preview audience showered on some of the showier numbers, including “For Good,” which I guess counts at the title track.

But for all the live-theatre vibes, director John Chu gets things going with a dramatic-cinematic whiz-bang. In the opening scene, Elphaba Thropp (a.k.a. the Wicked Witch of the West) swoops out of the sky to attack the human overseers of an animal work gang that is being forced by the Wizard to build the yellow brick road. With nothing but her wits and a magic broom, she makes a clean sweep of things before tearing off into the sky like a Blackbird (the spy plane, not the animal).

There’s thankfully little flashback filler as we are reacquainted with all the main characters and their misplaced, unrequited loves. Good witch Glinda (Ariana Grande) is about to wed the handsome Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey), even as he carries a torch for Elphaba, and she one for him.

Meanwhile, Munchkinland governor Nessa (Marissa Bode) keeps her beloved Boq (Ethan Slater) on a short leash, which is handy since he has unreturned feelings for Glinda. And over in the Emerald City, Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) and the Wizard (Jeff Goldblum) would make a perfect couple, if only they weren’t both so busy being evil — he passively, she aggressively.

Chu (who also directed part one) and his cast keep things bubbling along nicely. Grande and Erivo are well matched — Glinda has a little more vocal range, Elphaba more raw power, in roles that were originally played on Broadway by Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel.

And if no one else really breaks through their noise, that’s OK. This is a tale of two sort-of sisters who take very different paths through life, while still maintaining a strong sororal bond across the years.

Even Dorothy, when she shows up via Kansas air mail, is little more than a distraction to the residents of Oz. Makes you realize that the 1939 movie had its own point of view that, while strong, is hardly the last word. She really is a pain in the neck, the ol’ gingham-wearing shoe-stealer.

It’s also worth noting that one of the final images of this film is of one witch whispering something into the ear of the other, unheard by the audience but appreciated by the listener. “Give me a clock-tick” is a common Ozian phrase used throughout the film. You might even need a moment yourself to dry a tear as the story comes to a close.

Wicked: For Good. Directed by Jon Chu. Starring Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, and Jeff Goldblum. In theatres November 21.