Wicked: For Good - Review

Synopsis:

Elphaba, now demonized as The Wicked Witch of the West, lives in exile, hidden within the Ozian forest while continuing her fight for the freedom of Oz’s silenced Animals and desperately trying to expose the truth she knows about The Wizard. Glinda, meanwhile, has become the glamorous symbol of Goodness for all of Oz, living at the palace in Emerald City and reveling in the perks of fame and popularity.

Under the instruction of Madame Morrible, Glinda is deployed to serve as an effervescent comfort to Oz, reassuring the masses that all is well under the rule of The Wizard. As Glinda’s stardom expands and she prepares to marry Prince Fiyero in a spectacular Ozian wedding, she is haunted by her separation from Elphaba. She attempts to broker a conciliation between Elphaba and The Wizard, but those efforts will fail, driving Elphaba and Glinda only further apart. The aftershocks will transform Boq and Fiyero forever, and threaten the safety of Elphaba’s sister, Nessarose, when a girl from Kansas comes crashing into all their lives. As an angry mob rises against the Wicked Witch, Glinda and Elphaba will need to come together one final time. With their singular friendship now the fulcrum of their futures, they will need to truly see each other, with honesty and empathy, if they are to change themselves, and all of Oz, for good.

*SPOILERS*

Review:

“Wicked: For Good” is one odd bag of choices – some good, some bad, and some outright baffling.

On the good side of things: in recent movie history, it’s hard to think of two performers more perfectly cast in their respective roles than Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande as Elphaba and Galinda. Both actors continue to do great work here acting and singing-wise, and when paired together on-screen, their chemistry is as electric as ever. On top of that, everything about the production design continues to be a real highlight here– on a purely visual level, there’s so much in "Wicked: For Good" that is genuinely dazzling. And despite Part 2 not having any songs that hit quite as hard as “Defying Gravity,” Erivo’s “No Good Deed” is a suitably fierce anthem, one that serves as a cathartic launchpad for the audience into the film’s final act.

(Oh, and lest I forget Jeff Goldblum – I mean, what else is there to say? The man is a national treasure that literally makes every movie he’s in better through his mere presence).

So that’s the good here. Great acting, great visuals, a solid song, Jeff Goldblum – all great stuff.

As for the bad and/or baffling, however…

First, let me just caveat with this: I really enjoyed Part 1 – like a lot of people, I found it to be a surprisingly strong adaptation that did a great job of working for both "Wicked" fans and newbies alike. So, I went into Part 2 with significantly higher expectations, which could very well have tinged my ultimate reaction to it. That all being said, I have a hard time imagining anyone – even the most ardent of “Wicked” devotees – coming out of Part 2 finding it to be a markedly better film than its predecessor. As mentioned, the music is less memorable, the story is distinctly darker (and less fun), and the film’s two central characters spend the majority of the proceedings locked in a bitter emotional stalemate. On a pure watchability level, “Wicked: For Good” is just way less enjoyable, beat for beat.

How much of that is the fault of the filmmakers and how much is just a symptom of the original source material is, I’ll admit, a point worthy of conversation. Much has been written in recent weeks about how the second half of the original Broadway musical is widely regarded to be weaker and more unwieldy, narratively, than the first. Still, even knowing that going in, I had held out hope that director Jon M. Chu (whose “Crazy Rich Asians” and “In the Heights” are two of my absolute favorite major studio releases of the last 10 years) would find a way to smooth over some of the excesses of the musical’s back half, or at least iron out some of its clunkier beats.

Unfortunately – at least for me – he kind of did the opposite: there are story choices here (particularly in the film’s final act) that are confusing at best, outright frustrating at worst. And the way the movie chooses to incorporate elements from “The Wizard of Oz” feels VERY shoehorned in, almost as if the writers wanted to sync everything perfectly with the 1939 film, but realized too late that certain connective tissues still needed to be established and attempted to patch them together on the fly. Based on conversations with friends who are more versed in the original musical than I, it sounds like certain character motivations/characterizations and/or key emotional arcs were either abbreviated or totally reframed in the adaptation here. Whatever the reason, the result is something that – at least for me – felt neither fully earned nor satisfying.

I hate being negative, especially about a movie that I was really looking forward to. And honestly, I didn’t hate “Wicked: For Good” - as mentioned, there’s no shortage of craft and talent on display here. But I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t disappointed with how uneven the final product feels, especially in comparison to Part 1.

Oh, well. At least they nailed the first half.

Grade: C +

Spiritual Overview:

One of the elements that I did find really compelling in “Wicked: For Good” was the way it spoke to the possibility of grace after failure. For much of the film’s first two acts, we watch as Elphaba and Galinda grapple to live out their ideals, to make good out of a world that feels determined to constantly push back against their best intentions. There comes a point, however, when both characters seriously hurt the other and effectively retreat inward, electing to harden themselves and forsake their friendship in the wake of wounded pride and misunderstanding. It’s a tragic disintegration that hits hard,  especially after having watched their friendship blossom over the preceding movie-and-a-half.

It’s also something that made me think about our own personal relationships with Jesus. I know that, for me, when I stumble – whether it be in sin, neglecting to connect with Him as much as I should, or just plain out wearing myself too thin to be an effective ambassador for His mission - the temptation I often feel is to just give up, to throw in the towel, tell God “I’ve failed again, what’s the point?” and essentially pull away from him altogether. But not only is that instinct not helpful, it’s also not right.

1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” As believers, we should certainly pursue holiness – but we also should actively seek to extend ourselves the same amazing grace that Jesus lavishes upon us. Obviously, we aren’t called to excuse our sin - but if all we ever do is punish ourselves, that’s not repentance, it’s shame. And it’s exactly there where Satan wants us to remain stuck.

The fact of the matter is, if we’ve accepted Jesus into our hearts and made the decision to follow Him, our sins are forgiven, and no matter how many times we stumble or slip, God is always going to be there to catch us, dust us off, and point us back in the direction of life with Him. When we do inevitably stumble, we have a choice: we can either be like Elphaba and Galinda and run from reconciliation, or we can return to His presence, seek forgiveness, and keep moving forward in renewed fellowship with Him. It can be a hard posture to apply in practice, but it’s one that’s well worth pursuing.

Thankfully, in "Wicked: For Good," both characters do eventually soften towards one another, and the movie ends on a message of healing and restoration. It’s a gentle reminder that reconciliation is ALWAYS possible, even after we’ve fallen short.

What did you think about Wicked: For Good? Did you prefer the first film or this follow-up? And spiritually-speaking, did it also cause you to think about the importance - and difficulty - of self-forgiveness? How do you pick up yourself back up after stumbling spiritually? Comment below.