SONNY BUNCH: Wicked: Part One Review.
I did not care much for Wicked: Part One—I’m desperately tired of movies being one half of one movie, particularly when said movie has a run time of 160 minutes—but Ariana Grande delivers one of the best performances of the year as Glinda. Yes, it’s largely one note, that note being “ditzy blonde consumed by self-absorption.” But she hits that note like she’s Whitney Houston at the Super Bowl: Grande is raucously funny and charming within it, and Glinda’s moments of growth—as when she sees behind Elphaba’s rock-like façade and acknowledges the girl’s suffering—are both genuine and heartfelt. There’s conflict within the heart of this ditz, and she conveys it clearly with her eyes.
I’ve seen folks suggest that this movie is a satisfying whole rather than an unsatisfying half of a whole that’s nevertheless the same runtime as the Broadway musical. This is perplexing, as virtually every subplot—including the hamhanded metaphor about animal oppression that implicitly compares talking goats to Jews in Nazi Germany and the desperately dull relationship between Nessarose and a Munchkin with a crush on Glinda—goes completely unresolved.
Thankfully, all of my questions will be answered: Regardless of my exhaustion, the movie will likely be a monstrous hit with audiences and Oscar voters alike. The audience I saw it with seemed enraptured; it laughed and sniffled at all the right moments. It’s not for me, but you’ll know if it’s for you. Please don’t let my peevish nature dissuade you defying the gravity of my disapproval.
Related: “Is This the Craziest Trigger Warning Yet?”, Christian Toto asks of the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC):
The story touches on friendship, feeling different from your peers and, of course, flying monkeys.
The BBFC fears the film, which is crushing the box office competition, might trigger select audiences.
Why?
“…seeing beloved characters being mistreated, especially when Elphaba’s skin-colour is used to demonise her as the ‘Wicked Witch’, may be upsetting and poignant for some audiences.”
Yes, that’s a key point of the original show and the movie. Should we avoid stories that are “upsetting” and/or “poignant?” That might leave out, well, most content.
Wait until the BBFC discovers the Incredible Hulk, Zoe Saldaña’s Gamora from Guardians of the Galaxy, and some of Capt. Kirk’s interstellar trysts. Speaking of which:
