Review: Wicked Is a Letdown for Fans of the Books

The movie musical fails to deliver on the more interesting antiauthoritarian themes of its source material.

The Broadway sensation Wicked has finally made it to the big screen, earning mostly positive reviews and the best-ever opening week for a film based on a Broadway musical.

Wicked is not merely based on a musical; the musical's source material is a series of dark fantasy novels by Gregory Maguire, who presents a revisionist version of L. Frank Baum's original Oz books. The most famous Oz-derived property is undoubtedly the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, which introduced audiences to ruby slippers, Toto, and Technicolor.

By comparison, Wicked is unlikely to leave such a lasting legacy, if only because the film and musical—unlike the novels—are a bit too simple, even saccharine. In these adaptations, the titular Wicked Witch Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) is a schoolmate, rival, and eventual best friend to Glinda the Good (Ariana Grande). Both girls are learning to harness magic in a world run by the imperious humbug, the Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum). The Wizard wants to use the witches' power to create a surveillance state and oppress Oz's talking animals.

Obvious antiauthoritarian themes are involved, though the new film version does a thin job developing them. Elphaba's dramatic decision to rebuff the Wizard's offer of employment and instead strike out on her own serves as the moving musical climax—the witch defies both gravity and her government. It's a serviceable film, although fans of the Maguire series will miss its more sophisticated storylines. The most interesting Ozian ideas can still be found in the original Baum novels.