November 19, 2025
The exiled Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) was already notorious as the Wicked Witch of the West, thanks to the fake news spread by Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh). Glinda (Ariana Grande) has been named the "Good" spokesperson of the Wizard (Jeff Goldblum), while Fiyero has become the Captain of the Guard. Meanwhile, Nessarose (Marissa Bode) was now the governor of Munchkinland, and Boq (Ethan Slater) became her servant.
This film sequel is Act 2 of the musical. Honestly, my memory of Act 2 is fuzzy for me even if I had already watched the stage musical live twice before. There were actually scenes in this film sequel that were still major surprises for me -- from the bed scene, to the catfight scene, to the trapdoor scene. I do recall that "Wizard of Oz" guys show up in Act 2, and I liked how their spot was more substantial in the film, even without revealing Dorothy's face.
Unlike Act 1 where most, if not all, of the songs became memorable hits, there is arguably only one popular song in the whole of Act 2, and that is title song "For Good." Perhaps because of this, Stephen Schwartz wrote two more songs -- "No Place Like Home" for an earnest Elphaba while the animals were fleeing, and "The Girl in a Bubble" for a pensive Glinda after Morrible guilt-tripped her. Both dramatic ballads were well-performed, but were not exactly catchy.
The cinematography of the "The Girl in a Bubble" scene was actually more remarkable than the song, as the camera followed Glinda through her closet of many mirrors in what seemed to be one continuous long shot. Another excellent directorial by John Chu was making the story going full circle, such that it cleanly returned to the opening scene of the first film, with Glinda joining the Ozians to celebrate the death of the Wicked Witch of the West.
It was clearly easier to love the first "Wicked" (MY REVIEW) because it had an infectious, cheerful atmosphere practically throughout the show, right up to its iconic show-stopping final song "Defying Gravity." Story-wise, this second film is more mature, more serious than fun -- tackling darker issues about friendships, relationships and animal rights. The pace did feel slower because there were more scenes of talking set in dimmer light than Part 1.
Out of its 10 noms, the first "Wicked" won Oscars for Best Costume Design and Best Production Design, and again these two technical aspects shine in the sequel. I would've wanted to see what happened to the Cowardly Lion (and Tin Man) post-Dorothy. The facial makeup for the Scarecrow could've been better though. In terms of visual effects I appreciated the expanded role of the Ozian animals, especially the Flying Monkeys.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande will likely be nominated for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress respectively at the Oscars again, based on their subtler, introspective performances in this decidedly darker sequel. Here, Erivo's Elphaba goes full-blown Wicked to forward her advocacy, while Grande's Glinda absorbs the pain of her powerless pretension -- both actresses deeply understanding of their characters and their complicated friendship. 8/10
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