With how “popular” the musical film Wicked was last year, this year’s conclusive sequel failed to fill the giant ruby (or silver) slippers left for it.
Compared to its renowned predecessor, Wicked: For Good is a sufficient ending to the story, but falls flat in other aspects.
In a darkened and dystopian Oz, Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), also known as the Wicked Witch of the West, has now retreated to a life of elusiveness, flying through the skies in an attempt to disabuse the Ozians of the Wizard’s lies.
She is also shown fighting for the rights of mistreated and silenced animals in Oz. Meanwhile, her former best friend, Glinda (Ariana Grande) has joined forces with the fascist Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum), gaining her the title Good Witch of the North.
While the first film explored the blooming friendship between Elphaba and Glinda, “For Good” delves deeper into the rising political tension in Oz, testing the limits of her relationship with Glinda.
The songs within the film reflect this emotional change, incorporating and building on musical elements from the past movie. Mournful piano melodies and fiery trumpets replace the peppy, upbeat tunes of the first film, matching the characters’ regret and anger. Elphaba’s bone-chilling riff during “Defying Gravity” makes a second appearance in “No Good Deed,” a choice that creates continuity with the first film.
Grande’s light, fluffy head voice and Erivo’s belting chest voice resonate gorgeously in pieces like “For Good.” However, most of the songs in the film are forgettable.
The first movie was jam-packed with fan favorites from beginning to end, such as “No One Mourns the Wicked” and “Defying Gravity.” Yet, Wicked: For Good only features songs of the same caliber near its end or at the climax of the film.
Many of the songs feel like recycled copies of the first movie’s music. For example, “Every Day More Wicked,” a new song that was originally a part of “Thank Goodness” in the musical, combines the melodies of “No One Mourns the Wicked” and “The Wizard and I” to produce a cheap imitation of two previous hits.
The rest of the songs lack the ditzy charm or captivating power that made the first movie’s tracks so striking and memorable.
Though the movie lacks in vocals, it makes up for this with its strong visuals. The pastel pink, glitzy Shiz University and glamorous green Emerald City backgrounds are replaced with gray and dark green tones, encompassing the film’s darker themes.
The actors themselves feel and act older. Despite the movies having been filmed “in tandem,” the makeup of both Elphaba and Glinda convincingly depicts them as older versions of themselves. The elaborate costumes were created entirely with makeup and hand-designed garments, with no computer-generated imagery being used—an impressive feat.
While the film certainly looks fantastic, its plot fails to capture this same fantasy in a believable way. Many of the actions taken by the characters are inexplicable, resulting in a variety of plot holes.
Wicked: For Good may not defy gravity, but it does an okay job at rounding out the story.
For an exceedingly peculiar and altogether quite impossible-to-describe experience, catch Wicked: For Good at a movie theater near you.
