Matt Briggs’s review published on Letterboxd:
3 out of 4 stars.
I already know the ending.
But that's okay, because it is about the trip not the destination, and the trip is (mostly) fun.
This is one long over-bloated massively digital large-scale production, something that director John M. Chu specializes in. At 2 1/2 hours, parts lag, pacing stumbles, and it could be cut by 30 minutes. This will not matter to anyone who cherishes the Broadway play. I have no ties to the play or the novel.
Much of this digital world owes a lot to the world of Harry Potter, and this movie is only as good as the worst Harry Potter film, Deathly Hallows Part 1. Modern movies have a sterile digital sheen to them that makes everything feel so....fake.
Cynthia Erivo is just fine as Elphaba; she has a very expressive face and I enjoyed her detached manner of unplaying her notes. She'll get an Oscar nod, but she won't win.
Ariana Grande is the real treasure here, perfect comic timing and the ability to believe even her most throwaway lines of dainty silliness. She reminded me of a young Joan Cusack. She plays Galinda as a "try hard", and in trying so hard to convince herself she is perfect she begins to understand she may not be. It is a pitch perfect comic performance that deserves Oscar attention.
Jonathan Bailey as a Disney prince come to life did nothing for me.
Two of the songs I enjoyed, and no, not "Defying Gravity". "The Wizard And I" moved me to a certain degree, and but "Popular" was the real show stopper; it was like Skittles come to life. In a musical with 11 songs, I guess 2 really good ones aren't half bad.
The National Board Of Review named this the best movie of the year. No friggin' way. But it's not half bad. Cut it by 30 minutes and it would be even better.
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