REVIEW: "Wicked: For Good" ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Director Jon M. Chu's conclusion to the "Wicked" saga is tighter, more intense, and ultimately just a teensy bit more satisfying than its predecessor, which was already pretty damn dazzling.
Happy Thursday, friends!
I’m getting this review just minutes before the first Thursday night preview showings of “Wicked: For Good” hit theaters, so I’m hoping you’ll take a moment to read this before you head to the theater, or better still, read this and decide to buy your tickets and see it this weekend. Let’s dive in, shall we?
Postscripts:
As I said I would in the video, here’s a link to my review of “Wicked” from November 2024 for easy reference:
Cut for time: This might be a hot take, but I like the songs in “Wicked: For Good” just a little bit more than the songs in the first film. It might just be that this is the darker, more emotional part of the story, and that lends itself to stirring songs like “No Good Deed,” “The Girl in the Bubble,” and of course “For Good.” They have much more in common with “Defying Gravity,” the soaring showstopper from Part 1, than the lighter, funnier, catchier tunes like “Popular” and “Dancing Through Life.” They hit harder and stay with you long after the credits have rolled.
As I did with Part 1 in 2024, I went into this film cold. I had no idea how the story was going to end aside from the iconic plot beats from “The Wizard of Oz” that the film would have to work around and through. As a result, I didn’t know what turns the plot would take, how certain characters’ stories would unfold or when certain songs would come during the film. So what happened when I could feel the moment was coming for “For Good”? Tears were already forming at the corners of my eyes before Glinda had sung the first note. That should tell you how effective this film (and its predecessor) is at telling this story and making you care about the relationship between Elphaba and Glinda.
As with the first film and its depiction of Shiz University’s blithely cruel atmosphere, the look we get at the Wizard’s beliefs regarding the people of Oz and their relationship to “truth” should sound pretty familiar to 2025 audiences living in the world of social media and “alternative facts.” The screenwriters don’t beat you over the head with it — it’s only a few minutes of dialogue in the middle of the film — but the satirical bite is there and it should hit home.