Wicked: For Good review - Despite spellbinding efforts from Cynthia Erivo and shining Ariana Grande, the finale is an uneven letdown

Despite Erivo's and Grande's impressive acts, Wicked: For Good is a less impactful, uneven sequel. The script and songs are forgettable, making it a disappointing dust-up instead of a dazzling climax.

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in a still from Wicked: For Good

Wicked: For Good story

With Cynthia Erivo's Elphaba and Arianna Grande's Glinda being torn apart and living on opposing sides of Oz's fate, Wicked: For Good brings the worldwide hit musical to a grand and moving close. Glinda enjoys the benefits of fame as the realm's emblem of "Goodness" under the Wizard's rule, whereas Elphaba faces exile as the demonised "Wicked Witch" and fights for the liberation of Oz's animals. A girl from Kansas unexpectedly shows up here, which causes a chain reaction that changes their loved ones and provokes a wrathful mob, all while Glinda is getting ready to marry Prince Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey) and tries, unsuccessfully, to reconcile. By depending on the sincerity and compassion of their one-of-a-kind friendship, the two witches will be able to heal themselves and Oz once and for all.

Wicked: For Good review

This time last year, I witnessed the magic of Wicked on the big IMAX screen. By the end of it, I began to prepare for the concluding part, which I witnessed last night. The 2024 release was touted to be a drop in the ocean, where we only reach the part where Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) is declared as the Wicked Witch and she is banished from Oz. Her fight for the rights of talking animals—even showing the real face of the Wizard (Jeff Goldblum)—becomes the ulterior motive for Wicked: For Good. But does this sequel make any sense for a year-long wait? Let's find out...

I went in with no expectations when I watched Wicked because I hadn't invested my time in Hollywood musicals over the years. But the film did surprise me by striking the right chord and making me well up at several moments. However, although "Wicked: For Good" is shorter in runtime compared to its predecessor, the film also clearly makes a lesser impact, so to speak.

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In this film, the battle between good and evil is nearly indistinguishable because their roles have been completely reversed. However, this approach results in several sequences that significantly deviate from conventional expectations, an understandable outcome considering the film's adaptation status.

In the previous film, Elphaba, an outcast with magical powers, garnered most of the attention due to her misunderstood appearance. Every step violates Elphaba's rights, and we soon discover that Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) is the mastermind behind it all. She has teamed up with The Wizard, who actually is a sham with no actual magical powers.

There's a moment in Wicked: For Good where Elphaba confronts The Wizard and asks him to confess everything to the people of Oz. In subtlety, he says that whatever he says, no one is ever going to believe it, no matter how convincing he is. Honestly, that entire scene made much more sense to me than the rest of the film. Because before and after that scene, the deception dust that is thrown in Elphaba's eyes looks merely unconvincing.

As magnificent as the first film looked while setting up a candy world, its impact just mellows down here, and it's largely due to the screenplay making the place look meh over time. The tulip field is eye-soothing, while Shiz University still looks like Hogwarts dipped in a rainbow can. Meanwhile, Elphaba transcends further into darkness by being typical of living on a tree and making it her studio apartment as such.

The film wants us to take it seriously, with the director Jon M. Chu making it more political than before. Winnie Holzman and Dana Fox adapted the screenplay by making it more intense and darker, which is what is expected in the second act, for sure. However, the tone is quite uneven, with some songs that are deep into emotions, while in others, it's tough to gauge the point of it. The song Wonderful which comes as a slight lighter moment before the storm, is clearly manipulative, where Elphaba, who has been fighting against the Wizard, comes face-to-face with him, only to sing and dance alongside while being joined by Glinda (Ariana Grande). I tried to make sense of it but failed.

However, the "Good" in the title clearly refers to Grande, who is a show stealer and has a more developed character arc that is quite self-aware. We see her literally living in a bubble and failing to recognise the reality that is presented to her repeatedly. We know that she is manipulated, and we make sure that she doesn't have the right to think with her brain or her heart. She can only be a mouthpiece to bring the wave of positive energy for the people of Oz.

There's this stealing moment where Glinda sheds her candy image while having hand-to-hand combat with none other than Elphaba. Well, the characters did feel better, and so did I.

Talking about Erivo, there can never be a moment where she misses the beat. The actor maintains her vulnerability, which overpowers her not-so-existing wickedness and shines in every frame she enters. The songs crooned by her are packed with deeper meaning this time; however, they are ineffective. Nonetheless, it's her performance that still leaves a mark and proves that she is among the greatest performers in today's times, definitely.

On the other hand, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero Tigelaar has more to offer this time than just his looks. It works for the actor, because he is a treat to watch. The actor maintains his Bridgerton image, and I think he has no inhibitions in doing so.

Meanwhile, the cowardly lion's backstory is revealed, and how I wish even the unseriousness looked far more convincing than they aspired for. Meanwhile, we see the Tin Man and how he became one, and although the end result was a little touching, the path leading to it felt more impactful.

We finally get a glimpse into Dorothy Gale, who has been a part of the popular and meme culture for years now. However, her sequence was quite negligible and didn't add much to the story as such.

If considered as a musical, the songs are quite forgettable; although they summarise the monologue, they fail to achieve popularity and do not truly embody the concept of "defying gravity." Similarly, Wicked: For Good renders the impact of the sequel meaningless, even though it features spellbinding performances by the two leading ladies.

Wicked: For Good verdict:

Wicked: For Good is a wicked letdown, struggling to build on the goodwill of its predecessor. Despite spellbinding performances from Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, the inconsistent tone and a less impactful script leave the sequel feeling like a dust-up instead of a dazzling crescendo.

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