Wicked for Good review

WICKED FOR GOOD: 

A FITTINGLY MAGICAL CONCLUSION TO GLINDA AND ELPHABA’S STORY! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** ½ out of 4

UNIVERSAL PICTURES

Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo in Wicked for Good

 

            Ariana Grande (Victorious, Sam & Cat, Focker In-Law) and Cynthia Erivo (Bad Times at the El Royale, Widows, Harriet) are back as Glinda and Elphaba in Wicked for Good, the much anticipated second part of the 2024 film adaptation of the Broadway stage musical, Wicked. I really enjoyed the first part of Wicked though I didn’t fall in love with it like a lot of other people did, but I found it to be a solid “What If?” take on Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz and a damn good musical with songs and dance numbers that will live rent free in my head until I die. 

            I had never seen the stage show or read the book, but as a movie, I liked Part 1 of Wicked a lot and was looking forward to seeing the resolution. Didn’t have to wait long as Part 2 now titled, Wicked for Good would be released one year later with Jon M. Chu (Now You See Me 2, Crazy Rich Asians, In the Heights) back in the director’s chair and Grande and Erivo singing their lungs out once again. 

            It’s…about as good as the first IMO, I don’t think it’s a perfect film and I do have some issues with it, but the stuff that works here overshadows most of its flaws. Ariana and Cynthia are once again fantastic here, the songs and dance numbers are lively and full of energy, and this chapter goes darker and has more conflict than the first. 

            The film is set after Elphaba Thropp (Erivo) defied gravity…and the Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum-The Big Chill, Jurassic Park franchise, Thor: Ragnarok) who is now known as the Wicked Witch of the West and continues to fight for animal rights from a forest hideout in the Land of Oz. Meanwhile, her friend, Glinda (Grande) is celebrated in Oz as the Good Witch and is preparing to marry Prince Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey-Elizabeth: The Golden Age, The Young Messiah, Jurassic World: Rebirth) but is haunted by her separation from Elphaba. 

            Glinda hopes to broker a conciliation between Elphaba and The Wizard, but her efforts unintentionally transform Fiyero and Boq (Ethan Slater-Lost on a Mountain in Maine) and puts Elphaba’s sister, Nessarose (Marissa Bode)’s life in danger when a house from Kansas falls from the sky and crashes into their lives. 

            The film also stars Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Everything Everywhere All at Once, A Haunting in Venice) reprising her role as Madame Morrible, Bowen Yang (Bros, Dicks: The Musical, The Wedding Banquet) reprising his role as Pfanne, Bronwyn James (Harlots, Wild Bill, How to Train Your Dragon (2025)) reprising her role as ShenShen, Colman Domingo (Rustin, Sing Sing, The Running Man (2025)) as the voice of The Cowardly Lion, and Sharon D. Clarke (Holby City, Doctor Who, EastEnders) reprising her role as the voice of Dulcibear. 

            Overall, Wicked for Good probably won’t leave as big a cultural impact as its predecessor, but it’s a worthy second half of the story that elevates the plot with a lot of focus on the rising tension between Ariana Grande’s Glinda and Cynthia Erivo’s Elphaba. This is where all the conflict that was built up in Part 1 starts to pay off with Elphaba now dubbed the Wicked Witch, Oz is being controlled by a Wizard that’s hiding a bunch of secrets, animals are going into hiding, and on top of all that, Dorothy Gale has now landed in Oz so…yeah, a lot happens! 

            The movie is once again visually dazzling with impressive production design that looks great on the big screen and very lively and bombastic musical numbers. I didn’t see this one on IMAX, but I am more than comfortable saying that this is an absolute theater movie and is the best way to experience the film. 

            Everything from the sets, song sequences, and special effects, it’s all big and epic and if you’re one of those jackasses that decides to wait for streaming for something like this, you’re part of the problem as to why the movie theater business is dying. Yeah, amazing looking and sounding movie! 

            Like last time, the songs and musical numbers are fantastic with the standout song sequence being Elphaba’s No Good Deed which is absolutely magnificent and I’m sure fans of the stage show will love seeing it brought to life on film. Even if you’re not well-versed in Wicked (Like me), the musical numbers have so much energy and passion in terms of the lyrics, choreography, and visuals, it’s impossible not to admire what you’re looking at and listening to. 

            Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are excellent once again as Glinda and Elphaba both of whom have a lot of charm and carry heavy emotional baggage throughout the movie. Grande is still very funny and brings back that lovable ditzy popular girl energy to Glinda while also delivering on the heavier and heartfelt moments between her and Erivo, both have wonderful chemistry the second time around…oh, need I mention her angelic singing voice makes a return? 

            Cynthia Erivo commands as Elphaba here as this tragic figure who was made into the enemy of Oz, she cranks the emotion up to 11 in this movie to the point where now I look at the Wicked Witch from the 1939 Wizard of Oz from a different perspective. One brilliant scene involving Grande and Erivo is done through a keyhole and involves a major Wizard of Oz plot point, but it’s done so effectively and the acting from both of them is incredible. 

            Jeff Goldblum is much better here as the Wizard and I already enjoyed him in Part 1, but he feels like he understood his performance more this time around and really brought this charismatic yet devious portrayal of the Wizard of Oz to life in the most Goldblum ways possible. He was a joy to have. 

            Even though I enjoyed my time with this movie, I felt the first film was better paced despite it being much longer. I thought everything flowed more naturally in the first movie whereas this one definitely had some bumpy points like Elphaba and Nessarose’s father dying offscreen (Unless I missed something from the last movie) and I’m not sure how I felt about the “duel” between Glinda and Elphaba which felt awkward in certain places to me. 

            If you loved Part 1 of Wicked, I don’t see why you wouldn’t love Wicked for Good given how much of a monster hit the last one was. Even if you’re like me and enjoyed the first movie but no nothing about the musical or book, it’s an impressive conclusion to the Wicked storyline with great songs, stellar performances by the cast, and a plot that raises the stakes, it’s wonderful.