And The Director Of Wicked (Movie) Will Be...- Page 4

[americanboy99]

Posted: 11/28/08 at 5:58pm

Amy Adams as Glinda.

Can you say "perfect?"

Menzel and Chenoweth should stay far away from this.

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 11/28/08 at 6:01pm

They'd do very well casting Amy Adams as Glinda, and either casting a recent Elphaba or a newcomer as Elphaba.

I loves me some Cheno and Menzel, but they really shouldn't be involved in this movie.

[americanboy99]

Posted: 11/28/08 at 6:07pm

As is evident from the harsh monster in ENCHANTED, Menzel does not work well on film. And Chenoweth is simply too mature for this.

[inlovewithjerryherman]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 12:33am

Mmmm I have to disagree - I really feel that Menzel should reprise her role - yes, she's gotten older but I feel that Menzel has become synonymous with people's recognition of the show. And I do feel that she could do it on screen (let's be real, Luhrman is not afraid of big personalities).

I thought about it more too, and thought about Moulin Rouge, and thought about how much fun John Leguizamo would be as the Wizard as well. I stick by my original Dustin Hoffman choice, though.

[jewishboy]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 1:33am

Hate Romeo + Juliet, really like Australia, love Moulin Rouge, and Strictly Ballroom is one of my favorite movies ever made. If Luhrman is directing it, you have got one ticket from me and one from the friend going with me. Otherwise, I don't know...

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 2:53am

People know WICKED, they don't know Idina Menzel, not anymore than they associated the truly legendary turn by Jennifer Holliday with DREAMGIRLS. We all know Jennifer Hudson went to earn an Oscar for the role that once was thought to belong to Holliday alone.
I don't get why people insist that only a newcomer can play the role, perhaps because the show keeps bumping up understudies and recycling from the different legs of the tour. No need for newcomers when there are wonderful Hollywood actresses who can sell the film and do a good job with the part.

Jewishboy, I love STRICTLY BALLROOM! So so so much. It is one of my favorite films too. MOULIN ROUGE is just perfection. I adore Luhrman. I feel he is musical even in his straight films.

[LuPonatic]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 3:09am

I would want Cheno and Menzel to make a appearance, but as something else, like one of them be Morrible. I think that's fun and a great way to pay homage to those great ladies that helped bring these characters to life.

[amoni]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 9:16am

"No. This is awful news. They may think twice after AUSTRALIA tanks"

Why? "Australia" will be no bigger a flop than Rob Marshall's "Memoirs of a Geisha". Chris Columbus failed with "RENT", Tim Burton flopped with his "Planet Of The Apes" remake and "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" never really made it to the hit category, either. No working director is without a miss step. Doesn't mean they don't work again.

Oh and the actual title is "Moulin Rouge!" with an exclamation point. If you're going to discuss someone's work, at least get the title right.

[toanythingtaboo 2]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 10:01am

I'm really warming to the idea of Menzel and Adams leading the movie, however, if they don't release it in the next 5 years, both will be too old, Cheno would definitely be too old for the part.

I have no problem with Elphaba being played by an unknown but extremely talented actress, but the fact they will almost certainly go for a 'name' that isn't right for it - vocally, most likely - i do have a problem with. Alas, that's Hollywood.

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 10:04am

If they're going for a "name", I GUESS in a pinch Anne Hathaway would be fine. Although I'd really like them to pull a Nikki Blonsky and either cast a total unknown or someone who's played the role before (Stephanie J. Block, Lisa Brescia, Shoshana Bean). Idina would be OK too, but she's pushing the age limit. Kristin's already past it.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 10:08am

I'm interested to see what Baz's incredibly talented wife, Catherine Martin, will do with the costumes. She always works with him on his film projects, and she's a genius.

[toanythingtaboo 2]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 10:11am

Thats a point actually...Shoshana Bean.

I don't expect it to happen whatsoever, but it would be a nice idea. She has a very pop voice and she can belt/riff along with the best Divas in the charts right now.

Coinciding the film with her album/singles would be pretty smart. She could actually do a movie/music crossover.

Does she have the Hollywood 'look'...not really, but she is more what the film needs than a Broadway actress.

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 10:14am

Her Defying Gravity is legendary. She riffs that **** up.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 10:15am

Besty, I adore Catherine Martin. Her costumes for WICKED would probably be out of the world.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 10:28am

I don't honestly think Wicked needs stars as the two leads, especially with Baz at the helm, and assuming they will use "known" film actors in the supporting roles.

However ... Baz LOVES working with stars, so he'll probably cast well-knowns as the two leads.

I'm still thinking Anne Hathaway and Amy Adams have the best shot at it.

The one thing they need to be careful about is probably something they're not even concerned about.

"Oz" is a decidedly American fairy tale. Baz is a decidedly non-American film director.

If his "Wicked" or his Oz end up being some sort of Euro-Grimm-Potterish hybrid, it won't work.

Even though I suggested Broadbent as the Wizard in another thread, the more I think about it, that would be a mistake.

It would be like casting American actors in the Harry Potter movies. One of the great appeals of Potter is the whole British feel. Again, it's not something you think much about, but if the setting is wrong, you will notice it.

Same thing with Oz and Wicked. It's roots are found the biggest American fairy tale our country has ever produced. That's part of its appeal, and its fundamental fabric.

[logan0215]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 10:29am

I feel that Menzel has become synonymous with people's recognition of the show. And I do feel that she could do it on screen (let's be real, Luhrman is not afraid of big personalities).

I don't think the grievance is that she is too big a personality. Just the opposite: in Enchanted and RENT she had less personality than the plastic bag in American Beauty. And less likable for that matter.

Updated On: 11/29/08 at 10:29 AM

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 10:30am

Wizard of Oz isn't that "American". And Wicked is even less so. A Euro-Grimm-Potterish version would actually be cool.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 10:44am

"Wizard of Oz isn't that "American".

Okay, you have NO idea what you're talking about.

It's one of the reasons L. Frank Baum had so much trouble selling his novel. It was "too American" and publishers felt that people didn't really want to read an American fairy tale. That's why he had to put up the money for the first printing himself.

As far as Wicked not being "very American," even the stage show's design takes its cues from the original Denslow drawings and then elaborates from there. Denslow's approach was a decidedly American, turn-of-the-century look.

Which is why most of Wicked's chorus costumes are based on those styles, and then "put through the imagination mill" to mix with other fashions. But most of the Oz costumes come from the Denslow 1900s American drawings.

And Oz's architecture (Emerald City, etc.) is mostly Byzantine, which was a popular style at the turn of the 20th century. And it's taken from the illustrations as well.

It's very much a product of its country and its era. And Wicked captures both of those things beautifully.

Do some research next time. It'll help.

And again, this is not something people will notice unless it's wrong. If the feel of the movie is wrong, they'll figure it out pretty quickly.

[logan0215]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 11:02am

You're listing all things that effected the selling of the novel and subsequent film before its success.

Suffice it to say, the film's an international success and has been translated in to countless languages. Judy Garland as Dorothy is probably one of the most recognizable images of cinema, not only American but world cinema.

On top of all of that, Wicked is not The Wizard of Oz and aside from a few visual cues really looks nothing like the original film other than the deliberate recreation of the cornfield/post-tornado scene. It stands as its own entity with productions in Japan, Australia, London and Japan with many more international productions in the work.

Updated On: 11/29/08 at 11:02 AM

[toanythingtaboo 2]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 11:06am

That is another good point, they need to ensure they don't go too far off from where the whole Universe started in "Oz". My guess is they will try and keep their distance, but not run too far away that its hard to imagine it is "Oz"...the majority of the audience will be expecting the original concept, but a prequel...however the more 'aware' audiences shall we say will be wanting something new, different and an interesting twist on what we consider "Oz".

I agree with you that there is a danger they go too Grimm-esque European with Shiz being a boarderline carbon copy of Hogwarts...the only way around that is to make it such a hybrid that you have no idea where "Oz" is supposed to be. Accents may be integral to that, keeping them quite Anglo-American.

Just had a thought; they won't cast Ashanti will they?! It seems bizarre they asked her to be part of the Anniversary but had never seen it - testing the waters to see how the audience reacts to her in the part maybe?

I hope not.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 11:47am

If anyone knows about the world of Oz it's Besty.

It stands as its own entity with productions in Japan, Australia, London and Japan with many more international productions in the work.

You're forgetting that these productions all use the American design as they all are carbon copies of the Broadway production.
HARRY POTTER is an international success as well, it has been translated into countless of languages, loved and adored by millions of people, and it stands as one of the most successful movie franchises today. Yet, it still is as British as the Queen and the films (from casting to the look to the dialogue, of course) are incredibly British.
Besty is not saying that only Americans would see or appreciate WICKED or THE WIZARD OF OZ, for that matter. What I think he is saying (don't want to disrespect by putting words in his mouth) is that the world of Oz is a very American world, with cues, influences, and motifs firmly based on turn-of-the-century American standards.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 11:48am

"I agree with you that there is a danger they go too Grimm-esque European with Shiz being a boarderline carbon copy of Hogwarts...the only way around that is to make it such a hybrid that you have no idea where "Oz" is supposed to be. Accents may be integral to that, keeping them quite Anglo-American."


Exactly. You may not know why it isn't working, but it won't be working if they turn this into Lord-of-the-Chronicals-of-Grimm. And Baz Luhrman can be very European in his stylistic approach. He can be wildly creative with Wicked, just not "Euro."

If they go that route, they will be taking away exactly what is unique about this story and its genesis. It's fundamental fabric.

And if you don't think Gregory Maguire as well as the full creative team behind the musical paid attention to that, you're dead wrong. Maguire knew exactly what he was doing when he wrote Wicked. It's painstakingly researched. He pays respect to the original stories and the MGM film in countless ways.

And I've never seen an incarnation of an Oz story that steered too far away from the "Americana" roots that worked. They've tried. None of them have succeeded.

Just like I wouldn't want to see Hogwarts filled with Kansas prairie girls or surfer boys.

Updated On: 11/29/08 at 11:48 AM

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 11:54am

Thanks for the vote of confidence, ray!

That's exactly what I'm saying.



Maguire's "Wicked" and its stage show adaptation aren't set in America. Anymore than Lord of the Rings is set in Great Britain. Or Narnia, for that matter. But their fabric is decidedly British. It's part of what gives those stories character and charm. It's their foundation.

Same thing with Wicked. And The Wizard of Oz. It's not America. But it's American.

I hope Baz recognizes that. He did pretty well with Romeo + Juliet. That was close. It felt like an American-Euro hybrid.

He'll have to get closer with Wicked (which I think he can do, if he tries). I'm not talking about the physical locations of the movie, although that's part of it. I'm talking about the overall approach, from casting to costumes.

I'm talking about the basic sensibility.


EDIT: For somebody like Spielberg, who was originally rumored to be directing this movie, it would be second-nature.

For Baz? Not so much. I'm not saying he can't do it. I'm just saying he'll need to work at finding that "voice." It's not something he'll "get" right away.

And Chris Columbus wasn't British. You can argue that his Potter films are/were the least successful of the bunch, but I don't think that had to do with his being American. Well, come to think of it, maybe it DID. They're very "Hallmark family movie." And that's the warm-and-fuzzy American approach to children's entertainment. Once you handed the movies over to international directors, they added a much-needed missing "flavor." They suddenly felt "Euro," in a most appealing way. You have to remember, too, that they were considering many Hollywood names for roles in Potter. Including Haley Joel Osment as Harry. It was Rowling who urged them (not demanded) that they keep the British flavor. It made Warner Bros. nervous, and they were worried that American movie audiences might not take to it. But with the success of Potter and Rings, we now have TONS of Euro screen fairy tales coming at us in the cinema.

That's where "Wicked" can stand apart from them.

Updated On: 11/29/08 at 11:54 AM

[logan0215]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 12:16pm

Wasn't one of the arguments for Wicked London (in regards to their British accents) that Oz is an IMAGINARY place therefore people could speak in an entirely different vernacular?

I really don't think Baz needs to strive to keep Oz strictly American feeling. Moulin Rouge depicts Paris beautifully although entirely in English with varying accents, so I would assume he could do justice to an imaginary location.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 11/29/08 at 12:28pm

Logan, I think it has been said repeatedly that it's not a matter of "location," but a matter of American sensitivity and just an overall American atmosphere.