"Last year, did the impossible. Adapting one of the most popular Broadway musicals of all time - the first half of said musical, at least - would be enough to drive any director mad. But Jon M. Chu shouldered the struggle and delivered on a promise over 20 years in the making. More than that, he renewed Wicked's status as a phenomenon, with brilliant, inclusive casting choices that turned this revisionist fairy tale into a shockingly modern coming-of-age story."
"That Wicked reintroduces the Witch of the West as a misunderstood Black woman (yes, she's green, but she is also Black) who heals her inner child, incidentally, helped me heal mine. I found myself among the many entirely taken with Wicked: Part One, but I still worried if Part Two could reconcile Elphaba's new origin story with the events of The Wizard of Oz. The prequel diverges so radically from its source material that it might as well be telling a different story entirely."
"It's duty-bound to bridge the gap between Wicked: Part One and The Wizard of Oz, and that responsibility is the false note in an otherwise flawless vocal riff (you know the one). Where Part One took its time, For Good speedruns through its finale. It can't completely shake the flaws of the original musical, even with Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holtzman reuniting to beef up Wicked' s slimmer second act."
Jon M. Chu's adaptation renewed Wicked's cultural status by using inclusive casting and a modern coming-of-age lens. Elphaba is reimagined as a misunderstood Black woman who heals her inner child, adding emotional resonance. Part Two faces the challenge of reconciling this new origin with The Wizard of Oz while bridging narrative gaps. The film falters as a prequel by rushing its finale and inheriting some structural weaknesses of the original musical, despite Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holtzman strengthening the second act. Strong performances and chemistry between the leads provide the film's most uplifting moments.
Read at Inverse
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