Wicked: For Good - The Highs & The Lows

Wicked: For Good has now been in cinemas for a whole week and fans have had chance to digest the cinematic take on the musical version's second act.

Picking up years after the events of 2024's Wicked, the story continues with Elphaba being marked as the Wicked Witch of the West after she discovered the true intentions of The Wizard of Oz and Madame Morrible. With Galinda stuck in the middle of it all and Fiyero trying to find his way to Elphaba again.

But now the question is, where does the movie version faulter and where does it flourish? Well, let's take a look.

HIGH: From Stage To Screen

There is no question that Jon M. Chu has had all eyes on him since he was first announced as director for this two-part story. To make Wicked work on the big screen takes imagination and some ballsy movies. Thankfully, Chu swung for the fences and he won us all over. The way in which made this stage musical so cinematic is something to behold for sure.

LOW: A Waste Of Colman Domingo

There was a lot of hype around the mysterious identity of who would be voicing the Cowardly Lion. Ahead of the release, The Running Man's Colman Domingo was announced as the voice actor, and it was hailed as quite a great use of his acting ability. Unforutnately, this just didn't ring true.

Domingo is a stellar actor but with only a few lines in the movie, it really was a shame that more wasn't made of this role for him. Let down is an understatement.

HIGH: Ethan Slater’s Boq/Tin Man

Easily one of the standout performances of the movie. Boq's story unravels exactly as the second act of the stage of musical does, but then with some extra UMPH! Boq's harrowing transformation into the Tin Man is elevated with actor Ethan Slater, and he brings some intensity that we don't get in the stage version.

His musical moment just before the attack of Elphaba is brilliant and THAT look at Galinda. Chills.

LOW: The Wizard’s De-Aging

Nowadays de-aging technology is the new norm. It's just a shame that we don't get many good uses of it, this being a prime example.

In the moment that it is revealed that it was the Wizard who fathered Elphaba in his youth, the face reveal us just...meh. For such a big blockbuster, surely there could have been more expense on making this look better. Better in any way.

HIGH: Grande & Erivo’s Performances

Say what you what about their current press tour behaviour, but you can't deny that their performances are out of this world. Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo really brought their A-game for Wicked: For Good. There is clear growth from the first movie and they make the story have you in a chokehold from start to finish. What makes it all the more impressive is that this was filmed simultaneously with part one of the story. Given the amount of screen time they have (so a lot of jumping around in time for their performances), that's no easy feat.

P.S. a real highlight is that closet scene near the end. Jeez louise. RIGHT in the feels.

LOW: Michelle Yeoh’s Performance

Yeah, pretty much the same opinion from the first movie. Michelle Yeoh has had some great performances in her day. Tomorrow Never Dies. Everything Everywhere All At Once. Even Last Christmas. But this...this is just wooden. Aside from the odd roll of the eyes at Grande's Galinda, Yeoh's performance is just boring.

HIGH: Jonathan Bailey’s Fiyero/Scarecrow

Our man Jonathan was coming to do justice to Fiyero's story in For Good. Like Grande with Galinda. Like Erivo with Elphaba. Bailey really got stuck into the character development and acted his ass off in this role. The switch from the spoilt prince in Part One to the noble, torn guard is great to watch. And his minor screen time as the Scarecrow is just as fun as we had hoped.

LOW: The Soundtrack

Act One of Wicked definitely has the stronger selection of songs, which makes For Good a tad weaker. Don't get me wrong - For Good and No Good Deed and decent. But, sadly the other songs just have you waiting for them to get back to the dialogue.

HIGH: That Final Scene

The end of the movie does build on the final shot of the stage musical and it looks brilliant how Chu has interpreted it. But what makes the final seconds excel even further is the perfect homage to the musical's original poster (which is also homaged in the above poster snippet). It makes more sense of those lovely flashbacks we've seen since the first movie and it just acts a perfect tip of the hat to the musical that brought this cinematic two-part story to us.

LOW: “Clock Tick”

Yeah, only something minor, but boy did it irritate the Oz out of me. How many times did they have to say "clock tick" in this movie? Out of nowhere. It wasn't even a thing in the first movie. Where was the world building for this expression?

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Agree with my highs and lows for Wicked: For Good? Let us know your thoughts! It'll only take you a clock tick moment.