Are movies born wicked, or could success be showered upon them?
That’s the question that lingered over the production of the musical movie Wicked.
The idea of the musical first originated from Gregory Maguire’s Wicked novel, then turned into a hit Broadway show, and now film! Directed by John M. Chu, the development process took 10 years, as many cast and crew members were hard at work to make the movie well worth it. Notable figures include Cynthia Erivo (Elphaba), Ariana Grande (Glinda), Jeff Goldblum (The Wizard), and more.
Being a prequel to the Wizard of Oz, the story tells the tale of Ga-linda (Glinda Good Witch) and Elphaba (Wicked Witch of the West), and their relationship. Judged for her green skin, Elphaba strives to embrace her flaws, as Glinda is by her side at Shiz University. However, once they arrive at the Emerald City and meet the Wizard, things start to change, as the two have to walk different paths.
Did this movie truly live up to the musical success? Were audiences really happy?
“I haven’t gotten this much energy from a musical adaptation in a while,” Senior Jamie Fernandez says. “I watch a lot of musical movies, recently Mean Girls, which wasn’t that good.”
“Personally, I feel like it was definitely one of the greatest live action musicals I have ever seen,” Isabel Silva agrees.
Movie watchers really enjoyed the outcome of the movie, as they also talked about the little aspects of the film, from set design to costuming.
“I thought the set design was amazing,” Aisha Mawier remarks. “You can really tell John Chu and the crew put a lot of love and care into this adaptation.”
Isabel Silva adds on how much “minimal CGI was used,” which makes audiences appreciate the film even more.
With Wicked, building everything in real life from scratch makes it magical. Areas such as Shiz University, were created by combined concepts of “models, illustrations, and visual references used by Sky Studios Elstree’s set designers,” reported Architectural Digest.
“The costumes as well had so much detail, and I think it mattered so much, especially for Glinda!” Isabel further explains.
Ariana’s wardrobe is made of light pastel colors, most of them being in pink tones. Her dress in the opening sequence of Wicked is considered to be the favorite. Specifically, her bubble crown is composed of silver circles that are created from the Fibonacci sequence!
The scenes in the movie blend in smoothly, with no song cuts for each of them. These are the moments where the actors can truly shine in their roles.
“My favorite scene is ‘What is This Feeling’” Senior Alannah Nole says. “It was just funny and amazing, and it’s one of my favorite songs in the musical.”
Fun fact: with all the scenes, the main actors sang their parts live! An impressive feat that was performed, while they did their stunts. Particularly, “Defying Gravity” is where Cynthia shines when flying and singing.
“With Cynthia being held up during the performance, while singing was crazy,” Jamie Fernandez says. “Having that much breath support with it is insane.”
The actress is known to be well-versed in opera, no wonder her vocals are spectacular.
“It was so intense. I felt like the film as a whole is an allegory for discrimination and prejudice towards people,” Jamie Fernandez further states.
As fans loved vibrant and energetic moments, they also sympathized with moments that were emotional.
“When Glinda joined Elphaba in the Ozdust Ball dancing, I found that to be very heartwarming,” Aisha Mawier explains, being that the scene is her all time favorite.
Prior to shooting the scene, Ariana noted that “she didn’t memorize the choreography for the scene, as she wanted to make the moment as authentic as possible,” reported by Buzzfeed from the Las Culturistas Podcast. The reason behind this is to make the reactions seem more real. The special moment between Glinda and Elphaba shines, as the scene demonstrates their growth and understanding of one another.
Fans such as Jamie remarks on Ariana’s performance in the whole movie.
“She has been a singer and an actress on Nickelodeon for so long that she can just disappear into a role, and she did just that. It didn’t feel like Ariana Grande, it felt like Glinda.”
The pop star had been put to the spotlight being in the movie, as people were suspicious of her acting skills. However, she proved them wrong, playing the part so strongly. Especially, her special song “Popular,” showed her impressive range and character for Glinda.
Overall fans thought the film was successful.
“I believe it is the #1 movie of the year!” Alannah Nole comments. “ I remember the theater when we saw it being packed, and many people who were waiting to see it ended up watching and loved it.”
Aisha Movie follows up on the success, explaining that the actors put in their all to respect and live up to the musical.
Everyone deserves to fly in the film industry, and Wicked did just that.
