A still from Wicked: For Good. Photo courtesy of Universal Studios.
by MIKE ORLOCK
The last time we saw Elphaba and Galinda (AKA Glinda) in the climactic scenes of Wicked (part one), they were cornered in the tower of the Wizard’s palace, pursued by flying monkeys and Winkie guards because they knew the truth about the “Wonderful One” – that he was nothing more than a carny huckster and fraud.
Madame Morrible had turned on them, too; she was their estimable professor at Shiz, the university in the land of Oz where they’d enrolled as rivals but became friends as roommates. Apparently, she had a vested interest in keeping the Wizard in charge of things, even though he didn’t have a magical bone in his body.
Cut to the present, which is, of course, the newly released Wicked: For Good (PG), the conclusion of this enormously expensive and incredibly successful film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical.
Elphaba is now an outlaw, branded as a traitor and hunted by soldiers from the Emerald City, led by Fiyero, the Winkie prince who once professed his love for her.
Meanwhile, Galinda has been persuaded by Madame Morrible that the only way to save her friend Elphaba – and win the affections of Fiyero – is to play the part, for propaganda purposes, of “Glinda the Good,” a fairy-tale princess-witch complete with a floating bubble coach, even though she possesses no more magical ability than the Wizard.
And the poor talking animals of Oz, including Dulcibear, Elphaba and her sister Nessarose’s beloved nanny, have been enslaved by the Wizard to build the Yellow Brick Road, a “civic improvement” project that’s really meant to solidify the authoritarian control over the land.
The only thing standing in the Wizard’s way is Elphaba, the “Wicked Witch of the West,” presumably so named because that is where she is rumored to be hiding.
If she would just get with the program instead of inciting rebellion, she could help the Wizard rule Oz. Why, he has even enlisted the support of Nessarose, who he has appointed the new governor of Munchkinland – but who is in so far over her head that her beleaguered subjects have snidely nicknamed her “Wicked Witch of the East” because of the mess she’s made of things as she relentlessly pursues Boq, her Munchkin crush who is, alas, hopelessly devoted to Galinda.
Since this second film was made simultaneously with the first, the full cast is back, except for Peter Dinklage as the voice of Dr. Dillamond, the talking goat who was Elphaba’s favorite teacher at Shiz.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande are the headliners again as Elphaba and Galinda, joined by Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Ethan Slater as Boq and Marissa Bode as Nessarose. Bronwyn James and Saturday Night Live comedian Bowen Yang are also featured as two of Galinda’s best buds from Shiz, although their screen time is dramatically reduced this go-around.
Like the play that preceded them, the movies are based on Jeffrey Maguire’s 1995 novel, with songs by Stephen Schwartz, book by Winnie Holzman and screenplay by Holzman and Dana Fox.
Despite a running time of 137 minutes (part one clocked in at 160 minutes, which means we fans of this fantasy will have spent nearly five hours in Oz, not including repeat viewings), director Jon M. Chu keeps things moving along at a brisk enough pace between showstopping musical numbers, including a couple that were added specifically for these films.
He also avoids the obvious temptation of making this story an allegory of current political conditions and conniptions. Instead, he ties Wicked: For Good to its foundational inspiration, The Wizard of Oz, cleverly stitching the characters from that 1939 Judy Garland classic into the narrative of this new story. It’s fun to catch peripheral glimpses of Dorothy and Toto skipping down the Yellow Brick Road, and learning the Oz origins of the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion.
Chu also balances the scales somewhat between Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. Both received Academy Award nominations for Wicked – Erivo for Best Actress and Grande for Best Supporting Actress. Despite their co-billing, that seemed fair. Erivo’s Elphaba was the focus of part one, and her performance was dominant. This second part puts Grande in the forefront of things, and she gets some great moments to exercise her acting chops as well as that glorious voice of hers. I wouldn’t be surprised if she and Erivo swap categories this year.
Wicked: For Good is well on its way to surpassing the box office take of part one, which had an impressive haul of $759 million. That will likely make this two-part adaptation of a Broadway musical the most successful since The Sound of Music 60 years ago.
If you were hooked by the first installment, you likely already have plans for this second trip over the rainbow. Otherwise, you can expect to find the film streaming on Peacock sometime early next year.
In another lifetime, Mike Orlock wrote film reviews for the Reporter/Progress newspapers in the western suburbs of Chicago. He has also taught high school English, coached basketball and authored five books of poetry. He finished his two-year term as Door County’s poet laureate in early 2023.