Wicked
Wicked is playing in theaters at the time of writing. Rated PG. Common Sense says 10+.
Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) is accepted to Shiz University after demonstrating powerful magical abilities. She quickly makes an epic frenemy, her roommate Galinda (Ariana Grande). Will they learn to work together, or will the powerful forces simmering within Oz drive them further apart?
STORY: A
The first half of this origin story soars, defying gravity and its already lofty expectations.
Audiences will scramble with reckless abandon to type “WICKED PART TWO!!!” on November 21, 2025 in their phone’s calendar. They will do so with such dizzying speed and gusto that hospitals will see a steep uptick in patients coming in with sprained thumbs.
IP often splits its buzziest titles in two in order to boost profits. At least this Part One has the grace to end at a perfect moment that feels genuine and organic.
PEOPLE: A
Erivo and Grande weave the magic.
Elphaba shows up at Shiz University unsure where life will take her. Galinda arrives on campus completely confident not only in who she is but who she will be. By the end of the movie, they are transformed in totally opposite ways. Elphaba emerges dead certain the direction her life will take, while Galinda finds her previous certainty shaken.
College or no college, most everyone will face such a crossroads one day. Both actors portray the journey with spirit and sincerity. They are both utterly wonderful.
FILM NERD STUFF: B+
Oz has never felt so real.
Director Jon M. Chu builds the magical world of Oz through a fluent blend of CGI backgrounds and physical sets. It doesn’t look like the glossy, flashy, fantasy world of the original film. Nor does it resemble the more recent cinematic trend of grittiness and shadow. It feels of its own time. It feels real.
Of course we know it’s all fantasy, but the film’s sense of realness allows us to empathize with Elphaba’s struggles to a deeper degree. We are able to see our own struggles in hers because of it.
ONE BIG LESSON: A
Listen to people whose lives are made more difficult because of who they are.
A big moment happens late in the film that brought MLK’s famous quote to my mind: “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends".
Life is harder for certain groups of people. That’s not to say that all the other folks are living on Easy Street. We will all face obstacles. But there are a bunch of titanic obstacles that those sitting comfortably inside the mainstream will never need to overcome.
I would hope that you find it unfair. I would hope that you think it’s a problem that needs fixing. I would hope that you’d listen to those who face these hardships every single day.
And I hope you won’t stay silent about it.
FINAL COMMENTS:
Jon M. Chu’s love for the material, the melodies, and the traditions of musical theater glows from every single frame of this film. Wicked diehards will find little if anything to criticize, and the newbies will fall head over heels for its many charms.
What makes the film truly amazing is that in the midst of all the razzle and dazzle is an insightful, timely examination of what it means to be an outsider.