Wicked Review: Jon M. Chu Directs an Exhausting Musical Epic

   December 3, 2024

Monetarily speaking, Wicked is shaping up to be the movie sensation of the fall. Each year, a few family-friendly blockbusters dominate the holiday season box office, drawing in swarms of extended families and raking in massive earnings. In 2024, Wicked is one such standout, serving as a prequel to The Wizard of Oz and kicking off a two-part franchise. The film explores the origins of the Wicked Witch of the West, framed through the eyes of her closest classmate from years prior.

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in Wicked
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in Wicked

Based on the smash-hit Broadway musical—one of the most successful stage productions in history—the movie adaptation has been highly anticipated, promising both a faithful recreation of its theatrical magic and an expansion of its already iconic story for the big screen.

And Wicked is packing some elite talent to bring the beloved musical to life. Behind the camera is director Jon M. Chu, known for his success with dazzling musicals and sprawling mainstream hits like In the Heights, Crazy Rich Asians, and Now You See Me 2. While Crazy Rich Asians stands out as a strong point in Chu’s career, I’ve often found his work to lean heavily on style at the expense of substance.

Chu’s films undeniably boast a sense of visual flair and energetic choreography, but that same choreography can sometimes feel like filler for scripts that lack depth. Additionally, his tendency to helm sequels and adaptations leaves little room for the kind of distinctive authorship that separates truly remarkable directors from competent crowd-pleasers.

As for Wicked, it’s hard to deny that Jon M. Chu has never worked with a cast of this caliber. Cynthia Erivo (Widows, Bad Times at the El Royale) takes on the role of Elphaba, the magically gifted student ostracized because of her green skin. Erivo delivers a committed performance, bringing as much depth as she can to a character whose defining traits are largely rooted in her status as an outsider.

While Erivo infuses Elphaba with moments of empathy and vulnerability, the character’s arc often feels constrained by predictable tropes of alienation and persecution. These themes are potent but can feel overly familiar, preventing Elphaba from becoming a fully realized figure beyond her mistreatment by peers. Despite this, Erivo’s natural charisma and vocal talent ensure that she remains compelling, even when the script offers limited complexity.

Opposite Erivo, Ariana Grande steps into the role of Glinda, Elphaba’s initially dismissive but ultimately kindhearted classmate. Grande delivers a surprisingly strong performance, effectively channeling the character’s bubbly and flamboyant personality. Her transition from Glinda’s superficial, mean-girl beginnings to a more compassionate, layered friend feels natural, thanks to her ability to infuse sincerity into a larger-than-life persona.

Ariana Grande in Wicked
Ariana Grande in Wicked

Grande’s experience with showmanship shines here, as her comedic timing, honed from her Victorious days and SNL appearances, pairs well with her undeniable vocal chops. She embodies the glitz and sparkle expected of Glinda, often becoming the glue that holds the film together. Even as Wicked struggles to fully find its rhythm, Grande’s performance is a highlight, providing much-needed energy and charisma to an otherwise uneven adaptation.

Wicked feels like an overly drawn-out setup rather than a standalone story. At 160 minutes, it leans so heavily on exposition that the film barely moves past the basics of its narrative arc. If the marketing has promised you a story about Elphaba acquiring her broomstick, then that’s essentially all you’re going to get, with little else in the way of substantial development or payoff. The film’s script feels stretched thin, prioritizing world-building and laying groundwork for Part Two over delivering a satisfying or cohesive narrative.

What’s particularly disappointing is how this exhaustive exposition is paired with a visual style that drains the vibrancy and whimsy of Oz. Instead of embracing the enchanting, technicolor allure synonymous with the Wizard of Oz universe, Wicked adopts a desaturated, overly realistic aesthetic that feels out of sync with the magical tone the story needs. The result is a world that’s more gloopy and grim than fantastical, leaving the film visually and emotionally flat despite its theatrical roots and high production values.

Musicals are often a challenge to balance, requiring enough room for both storytelling and songs to coexist harmoniously. Jon M. Chu, understandably leaning on Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande’s immense vocal talents, focuses heavily on the music. However, the repetitive, uninspired transitions between musical numbers and plot make the film feel tedious and formulaic. The result is less a cohesive narrative and more a patchwork of showstopping moments strung together with minimal emotional investment.

Chu’s direction feels more managerial than creative, as though he’s simply ensuring all the moving parts fit rather than shaping an engaging story. The spectacle is there, but the soul is absent, making Wicked feel like a checklist of set pieces rather than a captivating film. For those who aren’t naturally drawn to musicals, the film’s inability to weave its songs meaningfully into the narrative only makes its bloated runtime and formulaic pacing all the more grating.

The film gains some momentum as Wicked shifts its focus to Elphaba and Glinda’s journey to the city of Oz and their encounter with the mythical wizard. Jeff Goldblum (Jurassic Park, The Fly, Asteroid City) and Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All at Once, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) take on more significant roles in this portion, injecting some much-needed depth to the lore and elevating the cast dynamic in a meaningful way.

Despite these late-stage improvements, the movie’s highlight—its rendition of Defying Gravity—arrives far too late to redeem the experience. While the performance is undeniably powerful, its placement more than two hours into the film underscores the exhausting wait for a truly memorable moment. By then, much of my patience was spent.

The best “Part Ones” succeed as standalone stories, even while relying on their follow-ups to conclude the broader arc—examples like Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 come to mind. Unfortunately, Wicked feels more like an unnecessarily stretched, mundane prologue to a prequel.

While a few musical numbers shine and the performances of Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande add some charm, Jon M. Chu’s direction lacks inspiration. Coupled with the film’s visual style—an oddly muted, dreary take that undermines the timeless vibrancy of The Wizard of Oz—Wicked struggles to justify its bloated runtime or its place alongside its iconic predecessor.

Score: 5/10

Movies like Wicked (2024)

Movies like Wicked include The End (2024), Emilia Pérez (2024), and Spirited (2022).

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