Wicked

Went into this without seeing the musical or even really knowing much about it. So I guess I’m judging it as much as a musical as I am a film.

On the musical front I was a bit let down, but then again I really struggle to differentiate the songs from modern musicals. I can safely say having just seen Wicked I cannot tell you any songs from Wicked. It seems we’re content with large orchestral numbers and samey vocals everywhere.

As an adaptation of a stage play, this film does work pretty well. The performances are theatre-kiddie, and something about the pacing and general vibe kind of feels like you could be in the West End.

I also really liked the set design and art direction. This could have been a CG nightmare but it’s quite old-fashioned in its execution and, particularly in the first two thirds, gives the film a real sense of place.

The musical set pieces were a bit squandered though. You’ve got these fantastic circular sets and people dancing everywhere but the direction is just so-so and it feels like they are never properly in the frame. This really stings in the library scene, where they’ve built this incredible rotating room but it’s all just paint by numbers camera angles and edits.

I found Wicked utterly exhausting rather than exhilarating, and winced at the ‘to be continued’ at the end because it’s really not put me in the mood for a part two. Surely the ‘continued’ part is The Wizard of Oz but no we’re getting another Wicked next year.

However, that doesn’t mean it was a bad film and there’s enough good here to make it a great trip out to the cinema if you’re in the mood. Plus if it gets people interested in the 1939 masterpiece then it really is a winner.