Film Review: Wicked: For Good

Pragmatism versus idealism in the emotional conclusion of the hit musical

Those who have seen the long-running stage musical Wicked already know that the second half of the performance takes a dark turn as the story moves from bold empowerment to anger and tragedy. While Wicked, Part 1 explores the relationships of the witches of Oz during their time in school, the second part of the story undermines the original plot elements of the classic film, The Wizard of Oz. The result is an emotionally stressful story that will have you reaching for your tissues. Wicked: For Good picks up with an angry and disillusioned Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) trying to expose the corrupt Oz government while trying to free the newly oppressed talking animals. Meanwhile Glinda (Ariana Grande) accepts her figurehead role at the hands of the evil Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) while still worrying over Elphaba’s safety and pining for Prince Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey) who remains devoted to Elphaba. After the death of their father, Elphaba’s sister Nessarose (Marissa Bode) becomes the governor of Munchkinland. But her obsession over her former classmate Boq (Ethan Slater) (who only loves Glinda) turns her into an oppressive and toxic tyrant to the Munchkins and to Boq in particular. Meanwhile, the arrival a little girl from Kansas creates a catalyst for the final confrontations in the story.

It’s hard to top a musical production as entertaining as Wicked, Part 1. The film did a great job of addressing themes of bigotry, social gaslighting, hypocrisy, and oppression. But, the messaging was subtle and cleverly woven into addictive show tunes and big dance numbers. The enemies to friends dynamic between Elphaba and Glinda was funny and endearing, and ultimately led to an entertaining ensemble dynamic with their friends Fiyero, Boq, and Elphaba’s sister Nessarose. However, in For Good, the amusing love polygon from the first film takes a grim turn as Nessarose obsesses over Boq to the point of imprisoning him, Boq pines for Glinda to point of bitterness, Glinda fixates on Fiyero to the point of a forced engagement, and Fiyero longs for Elphaba to the point of endangering his life and his humanity. 

In Wicked: For Good, the societal and philosophical commentary is more direct, the set design is darker, and the songs are definitely sadder. The combined weight of this removes any subtle irony and makes the film more directly angry, rather than quietly critical. The more serious tone is underscored by solid performances by Jeff Goldblum as the comfortably deceiving Wizard who flippantly justifies everything from fraud to oppression to murder. Additionally, Marissa Bode’s Nessarose is excellent as she shifts from adorable pining to a physically toxic control of Boq.

The grim visuals of the film stand out as an extension of the anger of the characters and the toxic nature of the new Oz society. However, the film intentionally balances the dark themes of the source material against an apparent need for a PG rating. As a result, several intense moments where key characters meet their demise, are diluted or given minimal screen time. Additionally, the Tin Man aesthetic was a little disappointing as it remained mostly aligned with the traditional film version rather than opting for something a little edgier or interesting for the big screen. Given the grim tone, it would have been nice to see something a bit more creatively gothic as the character descends into anger and bitterness.

The two main villains, Madame Morrible and the Wizard, dominate the fates of the characters, but they do so without much introspection or depth. Instead, the real villains are the residents of Oz who openly accept the injustices around them and readily swallow the lies from their leaders without debate or question. That seems to be the real message of the film: the manipulation or gullibility of the masses. As the film tells us, truth is what everyone agrees on, not what really exists. The Wizard is highly symbolic as a great, unrepentant con-artist who notes that once people buy into a lie, they will irrationally choose to cling to it, even when it’s been clearly disproved and shown to be toxic.

The other key theme is the idea of pragmatism versus idealism. Glinda and Elphaba both agree that the oppression of the talking animals is wrong and that the Wizard’s deception is wrong, but they still take very different paths. Glinda accepts a position in the oppressive Oz administration and uses it to her advantage, admitting she has an addiction to adoration. Elphaba is headstrong and repeatedly directly attacks the Wizard and Madame Morrible, but with failed results that paint her more and more as a villain. She, initially, lacks the subtlety to be strategic and Glinda, initially, lacks the resolve to be ethical. Fortunately, as the film’s title implies, the two opposites influence each other and result in a change in both of them, for good. As expected, the performance of the song “For Good” by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande is the showstopper moment of the film that will have viewers reaching for tissues in the best possible way. 

Wicked: For Good is a grim change from the tone of the first film but ultimately leaves audiences with a sense of hopefulness. Elphaba shows that her core value is her love for Oz and her desire to see it be the best version of itself. As the film tells us, in this second part of the story, we may not be changed for the better, but hopefully you will feel changed for good. The hard themes of For Good may be a bit heavy handed, rather than introspective, but the pay off is worth it for a solid ending that will leave you cheering, even if things aren’t as perfect as we wish they would be.

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Highlights:

• Grim tone and visuals
• Heavy handed but relatable themes
• Showstopping moment defines the film
  
  

Nerd Coefficient: 7/10

POSTED BY: Ann Michelle Harris – Multitasking, fiction writing Trekkie currently dreaming of her next beach vacation.

Microreview: Everything Everywhere All at Once

Is this film about everything? Yes and no. But it's certainly everything I was looking for.

Everything Everywhere All at Once is a brilliantly maximalist film that’s grounded in a middle-aged Chinese-American woman managing a laundromat. A woman who’s thrust into a multiverse in which she’s a key player. Everything but the kitchen sink is thrown with verve and style. The ‘verse becomes so expansive that it could unleash the viewer into a never-ending vacuum in which their perception be overloaded with infiniteness. It could be so overwhelming that they lose touch with what ties them to their world and holds them together. Just like how things could’ve played out for the laundromat owner - Evelyn - if the film left things pessimistic and unresolved. Everything Everywhere All at Once is a contradiction in which almost everything that can happen does happen (and that’s part of what makes it so fun), but its devotion to a small, key cast of characters that Evelyn needs, also champions how, often, less is more.

Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh) runs a laundromat with her estranged husband Waymond (Ke Huy Quan). Meanwhile, she’s also dealing with her daughter Joy (Stephanie Hsu) whose attraction to the same sex she disapproves of. While dealing with taxes one day, she finds herself plunged into the multiverse, and soon finds out that she’s the only person capable of dealing with a force that seeks to destroy all the ‘verses. And that force might be something closer to her than initially thought.

The film tackles the meaningless of the universe, particularly how its amplified when we have infinite information - whether it be from multiverses or the Internet – and how once we know everything in the world, and yet nothing of value, we can be certain that nothing matters. That hopelessness is amplified further by how miniscule Earth in all its multiverses play a very small part in the grandeur of the universe. That’s the downside of all-knowingness of our planet in the most macro sense. The bright side is that the film never shies away from showing creative universes that simultaneously offer broad comedy and serious introspection, and somehow all having connective tissue, ending each universes' storyline satisfactorily.

This film also manages to be a hard-hitting family story. Whether it be Joy trying to have her mother and grandfather accept her homosexuality, Evelyn struggling to understand her daughter and reconnect with her husband, or Waymond trying to regain the spark he once felt in his life—this film doesn’t come close to fumbling its exploration of humanity. Those storylines are elevated by an incredible cast. Michelle Yeoh is brilliant as anyone who's seen any of her films would probably suspect. She plays more personalities than I can count and infuses each one with believability. Ke Huy Quan is the moral compass of the film and brings so much joy to every one of his lines. Speaking of joy, Stephanie Hsu who plays the daughter Joy Wang will probably be the character that the audience can relate to the most. The 2020s’ haven’t been the most uplifting years and Joy is almost a manifestation of that, voicing that feeling more authentically than any character I’ve seen.

Everything Everywhere All at Once should please everyone. For those looking for absurdity, the film delivers. It’s also accessible, offering action and pacey developments aplenty. It has its finger on the pulse of the last few years, no doubt sparking debates and introspection of our own lives. And without spoiling things, it offers a message that I found to be a salve for all the pain of the universe. The best art is one that can move you, entertain you, and almost change the chemistry of your brain, making you a different and often better person. Everything Everywhere All at Once did all those things, and left an indelible mark that I will cherish in this puny world. Despite the nihilism that often creeps into my worldview, it’s nice to embrace the smaller things, like great movies that keep you afloat. Nothing matters, but I can still love some of the things that don’t.

Nerd Coefficient: 10/10

POSTED BY: Sean Dowie - Screenwriter, stand-up comedian, lover of all books that make him nod his head and say, "Neat!