Wicked: Part I movie review: Is it worth all the hype?

𝐖𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐝: 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐈 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝐛𝐲 𝐌𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝐌𝐨𝐦! You can view my full movie reviews at www.MovieReviewMom.com Movie Review Mom helps you make informed decisions about which movies are the best and most appropriate for you and your family. You'll get tips and warnings for parents, watch inspiring interviews with film directors, meet actors and writers, and get the latest scoop on which movies are worth spending your time and hard-earned money on.

You can support Movie Review Mom on Patreon and receive tons of fun gifts at / moviereviewmom
Thank you!

SPONSOR of Today’s movie review:
Sing along to the soundtrack of the original 2003 Broadway Cast starring Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth!
Link: https://amzn.to/3Z4xfG3

OTHER MOVIES LIKE THIS YOU MIGHT ENJOY:
Enchanted (Composer Stephen Schwartz): https://amzn.to/4eI3wIw
Godspell: (Composer Stephen Schwartz): https://amzn.to/3On8nEu
In the Heights: (directed by Jon M. Chu): https://moviereviewmom.com/in-the-hei...

This is part 1 of the movie adaptation of the HUGELY popular Broadway musical Wicked. The story is about Elphaba, a misunderstood young woman because of her green skin, and Glinda, a popular girl at school, who become friends at Shiz University in the Land of Oz. After an encounter with the Wonderful Wizard of Oz, their friendship reaches a crossroads.

It's the origin story of how Elphaba becomes the Wicked Witch of the West. The film was directed by Jon M. Chu. Writing credits go to Winnie Holzman, Dana Fox, and Gregory Maguire.

Already, the movie has been nominated for and won several awards. No doubt more will come! Heartland Film awarded it “Truly Moving Picture Award”. Well deserved. You WILL laugh. You WILL cry!

Fans of the Broadway musical will be happy to hear that Director Jon M. Chu has stayed true to the Broadway show, but tweaked it to make it even better, which is hard to believe. When I was a little girl, I loved watching the Wizard of Oz on TV, although I ran out of the room every time the Wicked Witch was on the screen because she scared me so much! She was played so convincingly by Margaret Hamilton and had the creepiest laugh. The director describes this movie as immersive and it truly is.

Cynthia Erivo is really great. She looks terrific. I loved her in the movie Harriet, so it’s fun to see her in this. The witch’s black hat and glasses certainly give us what we expected, yet with an entirely new twist. Fun Fact #1: Elphaba gets her name from the initials of the author of the book Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum…L-F-B.

Ariana Grande is completely adorable and has mastered the cute “toss toss” of Galinda, which always got a laugh from the audience when she did it. She just lit up the “stage” any time she’s on it.

The two of them sang live on set. Cynthia Erivo is actually singing “Defying Gravity” while flying!

The music is, of course, FANTASTIC. I recently watched a video about how the musical score has Easter Eggs that fans of the Judy Garland movie The Wizard of Oz had in its melodies. There are plenty of visual and spoken Easter Eggs too.

It’s wonderful to see Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, and Jonathan Bailey. They’re all fantastic and all sing!

Speaking of Jonathan Bailey, he actually did all of that dancing and footwork in the musical number “Dancing Through Life.”

Additional standouts in the film are Ethan Slater, Marissa Bode, Bowen Yang, Keala Settle (I adored her in The Greatest Showman), and Peter Dinklage (did you recognize his voice as Dr. Dillamond the goat?)

Notice the unique logo for Universal Pictures! The pink globe represents Glinda, and the green name of the company represents Elphaba.

Fun fact #2: They actually planted 9 MILLION tulips for one of the scenes!

Paul Tazewell did an absolutely incredible job as the imaginative costume designer, showcasing masterpieces that illustrate the characters’ personalities. He was inspired by mushrooms to create Elphaba’s grounded designs, while Glinda’s dresses are light and bubbly. Rather than create a blue dress for Glinda, like the Broadway production’s color, he reflected back to Glinda’s pink dress from the original movie The Wizard of Oz. The ruby slippers have changed color over the years in various productions, but the new crystal slippers for Nessarose with the tornado design is brilliant.

Just like the Broadway stage production, there is a lot of humor blended perfectly with touching moments.

I loved loved the cameos! No spoilers!

Really good visual and special effects.

Absolutely gorgeous and creative set designs. Everything was stunning. The cast is large but the crew and everyone behind the scenes is enormous! Kudos to everyone for pulling off one of the best and biggest movies of the year!