Universal's WICKED Films - News & Discussion Thread- Page 86

[JudyDenmark]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 8:59am

DiscoCrows said: "JudyDenmark said: "For those who have seen it already - have you dealt with much singing along in the theaters? Seeing it tonight and that NYT article from yesterday has me worried…"

I have seen it twice in public screenings in NYC. My screening yesterday in Times Square was definitely a bit morecheer-heavy (moderate applauses after the bigger numbers and moments) but that’s as far as it went. No singing at all."

Ok that’s great to hear, thank you! I’m all for an enthusiastic audience, just not a selfish one haha. Seeing it in Times Square tonight which is not exactly my dream location, but had to go with what worked, and that factor especially has been making me second-guess. Excited to finally see this thing! 

[Miss10036]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 9:01am

JudyDenmark said: "For those who have seen it already - have you dealt with much singing along in the theaters? Seeing it tonight and that NYT article from yesterday has me worried…"

At AMCs they have a short video before it starts where they tell people not to sing, talk, etc. with some clips from the movie in it.  My screening didn’t have any singing either last night, just applause.

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 9:09am

SweetLips22 said: "What does that even mean? I gave my honest opinion, OK?"

SweettLips - can I ask where you saw the film? Of course, your opinion is your opinion, but some of what you describe sound like sound/picture issues in the theatre you saw the film in. I've seen the film a few times, and honestly wouldn't describe the colors as dull or the dialogue as murky.

[Kad]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 9:46am

I’m finding it odd that most of these major reviews barely talk about the supporting cast at all beyond an acknowledgement that they are in the film. 

[Ensemble1709724344]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 12:50pm

The supporting cast made less of an impact than I would have imagined. They often cut away from those actors' coverage to show Cynthia or Ariana's reactions. One actor was quite clearly a weak link

[pupscotch]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 1:27pm

I saw it twice this week and I enjoyed it a ton. The cinematography was easily the worst part about the film, the lighting was pretty bad throughout which was a shame since the practical sets were phenomenal, but the songs, orchestrations, and the actors were all great, especially Ariana who was really impressive.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 1:36pm

I went to a late screening of the movie in 4DX last night and that was a trip. I'd never done a 4DX screening but it was like being on a ride at Universal studios. Quite a few scenes I thought since there were no seatbelts for these moving seats, some little old lady would fly out and break her neck. Water squirting out at you and smoke being distributed throughout the auditorium with scents piped in to mirror what was happening on screen. Pretty wild. 

Updated On: 11/21/24 at 01:36 PM

[Sally Durant Plummer]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 2:33pm

Jordan - my screening was 4D too (I had no idea when I got the tickets) and it was insane. From the laughs and gasps around me, I kinda got the impression that no one knew the screening was 4D when they got the tickets - they just wanted to see the movie early.

[Someone in a Tree2]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 4:11pm

Count me in the crowd who is cheering to the rafters! Finally a musical film created by someone who absolutely loves that it's a musical. Scene after scene builds to a heart-leaping high between music, dance and camera moves.

It really is Cynthia's movie with everyone else including Arianna there to support the leading lady. And Erivo is magnificent-- full of subtlety and unexpected quietness mixed with gorgeous pyrotechnics. And every word out of her mouth is clear as a bell. Arianna Grande can be a bit one-note acting-wise, and her diction while singing is troublesome. But emotionally she brings perfect energy to the push/pull between the 2 girls. And cheers for Jonathan Bailey, who gives us the most gender-queer Fiyero I've ever seen-- he's pure seduction onscreen. Oh, and fans of Idina and Kristen will NOT be disappointed by their participation an hour or two in! Sorry to say, only Michelle Yeoh seems not to know what kind of film she's in-- her Madame Morrible barely registers among all these heavy hitters. 

Visually, did I have some issues? Well yes. I wish the production designer had been held to some discipline in his design choices -- often there was just too much muchness crowding the screen. The color timing was really in need of a major boost-- why did they refuse to give us the technicolor rainbow the material demands? And I could have done with a few less CG enhancements to gild every lily ("I'm Not That Girl" was gorgeous on its own without needing to see iridescent flowers opening and closing around Elphaba.) 

So cheers for John Chu and company. Can't wait for Act 2 in a year. Please oh please give him the reigns for a HADESTOWN film, or a FOLLIES, or a RAGTIME while the iron is hot.

Updated On: 11/21/24 at 04:11 PM

[SweetLips22]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 5:00pm

QueenAlice said: "SweetLips22 said: "What does that even mean? I gave my honest opinion, OK?"

SweettLips - can I ask where you saw the film? Of course, your opinion is your opinion, but some of what you describe sound like sound/picture issues in the theatre you saw the film in. I've seen the film a few times, and honestly wouldn't describe the colors as dull or the dialogue as murky."

I saw it at a local screening[Brisbane Australia], big screen and only 30 people. As leaving I asked those around me what they thought and none seemed overly impressed. That 4d? screening seems like it's the only way to really enjoy the experience, or even IMAX perhaps. I might have to see it again as it only cost me A$7.

[bwayobsessed]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 5:23pm

I just got out of a local matinee, small crowd no cheers or disturbance. Until “To be continued” popped up and someone said “you gotta be kidding” lol

I thought it was pretty great. Defying Gravity is thrilling. What is this Feeling and Dancing thru Life are the standouts for me—Jon Chu really knows how to do a production number (which we knew from 96,000). Jonathan Bailey makes Fiyero so bisexual and I’m here for it. Cynthia is outstanding. Ariana I thought was a little flat acting wise but still good. 
 

I love how the act structure is pre fiyero, fiyero, post fiyero. I thought act 3 was the only one where I felt the padding.

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 5:56pm

SweetLips22 said: "Well that's 3 hours I'll never get back. Bored. I can't believe how dull and dark the whole film looked. The poppy field was a little brighter. Emerald City was green but dull. The big dance routines were badly shot, the diction was very bad except for the Wizard-he was excellent. The monkey transformation was one wholly mess, nothing scary about them. Glinda was hard to understand with her squeeky soprano and none of her humour landed. There was emotion when the girls bonded but for me,nothing worked.The big finale was so drawn out and because it seemed to be split into so many different segments the song really didn't have that big finish.Jonathon was good but again the lighting on him you missed his cute facial expressions. To sum up the biggest disappointment was the dull dark colouring, bad diction and my overall not connecting with the material. I have seen the stage production 3 time. This was a 4 out of 10."

What you are describing as dull and dark coloring sounds like they had the wrong lens in the camera. That’s exactly what happens if the projectionist forgets to switch the 3D lens for the non-3D lens. This has happened to me a couple of times. 

[luvcaroline]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 6:24pm

berniesb!tch said: "Saw it in IMAX tonight. It was perfection. I will post more in the morning but all I can say now is

The scene of Ariana and Cynthiadancing together in the Oz dust ballroom is one of the most beautiful and touching scenes I’ve seen in a movie in a while."

I couldn’t agree more. I still get chills just thinking about it. I feel like that scene alone earned them both noms for awards.  Perfection. 

[MezzA101]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 6:25pm

Seven Elphabas from ‘Wicked’ talk going green and defying gravity

Washington Post gift link

https://wapo.st/4hZ8XG0

[CJRochester]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 7:14pm

I saw it today. Loved it! All the hype is true. The movie is magnificent and breathtaking! Wonderful performances by Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo. The sets and costumes are jaw-dropping. I predict lots of Oscar nominations. The best movie musical in decades! 

[uncageg]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 8:08pm

Saw it this afternoon. Enjoyed it. I love the new orchestrations. Costumes are gorgeous. Sets are just stunning. I thought Michelle Yoh was a perfect Morrible. She used her eyes to great effect. It was fun watching the evil slip into them as the movie went on. Erivo is a very good Elphaba and Grande just runs away with the movie. She is just perfection in my opinion. Supporting cast is uniformly good. Nice to see Bowan Yang be Bowen Yang on the big screen.

I enjoyed how the movie expanded on the stage musical. The Cheno and Menzel cameo will totally delight the show's fans. I wasn't expecting that and it was really fun. A bit out to lunch the way Defying Gravity is broken up but it ultimately works. I found the ending of it to be a bit less powerful than it is on stage but it is filmed beautifully. I found myself unexpectedly in tears during the dance between Galinda and Elphaba. Dancing Through Life was just spectacular to look at. 

Would I see it again? Probably. Having seen the show 3 times, the time just flew by.  Just my random thoughts.

Updated On: 11/21/24 at 08:08 PM

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 9:35pm

Finally saw this earlier this afternoon.  Boy did those almost 3 hours fly rapid fast - the film felt like 45 minutes.

I will admit, the opening Prologue was painful to sit thru but Grande made it work. Once the WICKED Part 1 wording came on the screen, the film switched on and the rest just flew on by.  I agree with everyone else's raves on Erivo and Grande - talk about embodying their characters and every single person on that screen was perfectly cast.  Yeoh's Madame Morrible was refreshing as her deadpanning was the way to play it.  Playing her as she's done on stage would have totally thrown off the balance and Goldblum was born to play The Wizard. I'm not going to repeat the same things others have been saying but yes, THIS is definitely one of the best film adaptations of a Broadway musical ever done and I think the stage version just lost one returning audience member as this film adaptation is the WICKED I will prefer to see from now on. Having seen WICKED about 5 times since it made its debut on Broadway, today I understood it more than I did those 5 times watching the stage version.  Can't wait for the Special Edition 4K disc release.      

[Theatre Fan3]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 9:46pm

I really wish the Cast Recording would have included the end credit's instrumentals as those orchestrations were beautiful.

Updated On: 11/21/24 at 09:46 PM

[WldKingdomHM]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 10:53pm

Just got out and let me tell you it’s magical.  I didn’t want the movie to end. Cynthia, Ari, Michelle, Jeff…wow

Highlights: Wizard and I, Dancing through Life (the ozdust scene was amazing and Jon deserves an Oscar just for that), and Defying Gravity

Absolutely go see this on the big screen. 10 out of 10

[JudyDenmark]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 11:16pm

Just saw this tonight and will add to the chorus of WOW, SPECTACULAR. I can't believe how fast it flew for a movie this long (only dragged in one part for me, which is the same part that dragged in the show for me, sorry Wizard), and 100% the right decision to make it two movies. I knew the two leads would be fabulous and they were (I've never been a huge Ariana fan but this absolutely made me come around on her a lot), but Jonathan Bailey was the most pleasant surprise to me - I didn't really know him before this and thought he nailed Fiyero. Can't wait to listen to the soundtrack tonight/tomorrow - I need to hear Cynthia's choices in I'm Not That Girl again because my heart was fluttering.

My only beef was not with the movie, but clearly the format I saw it in. We saw it in 3D/AMC Laser and visually it was spectacular, but I felt a little cheated sound-wise. Like I really wanted to be bathed in sound, and for my watch to tell me I was in too loud an environment, and instead kept wishing they'd turn it up; it sounded a little distant. (Though the singing and music were sensational. I loved all of the motifs in the score, the little "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" melodies just barely woven in in a few places.)

I know I want to see this again on the big screen; what kind of theater should I be looking for for that ideal audio experience? Dolby? IMAX? (I'm in NYC if anyone has specific theater suggestions. TY!)

[dramamama611]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 11:27pm

I don't think I'm quite in much in love as many of you, but I really enjoyed the heck out of it.

 

Dancing through Life was absolutely worth the price of admission alone.   I have never cared for AG, but found her to be delightful. Erivo sounded amazing, but I found some of her acting choices a bit...safe, but by no means bad.  Loved JBailey (Fiyero) and Michelle Yeoh were real standouts for me, I got really excited each time they returned.  (To be fair, I'm a big fan of both of them.)

I look forward to seeing this again when it hits whatever streaming service lands it (I'm assuming Amazon since they already had a tie in for early screenings), and will most definitely be getting Tix for part 2 next year.

 

[JudyDenmark]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 11:39pm

dramamama611 said: "I look forward to seeing this again when it hits whatever streaming service lands it (I'm assuming Amazon since they already had a tie in for early screenings), and will most definitely be getting Tix for part 2 next year."

It'll stream on Peacock (after the paid home rental/buy period) since it's Universal - probably in spring.

 

[BenjaminNicholas2]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 11:58pm

I won't go into positive detail, as you've all handled it already.  Superb film.

My only issues was with Michelle Yeoh.  100% miscast.  She took what can be an absolutely haunting role with a whiplash character twist and made it all feel so....  Mundane.

No vocals.  No great delivery of her 'Citizens of Oz' monologue during the Defying Gravity sequence.  Bleh.

I also wasn't the biggest fan of Grande, as a lot of her vocal felt like a mimic of Cheno and her acting choices killed some of the better bits that Glinda has.

No one will sell the comedy of that role better than Megan Hilty.  To me, she was incredibly funny, incredibly serious and had the combo of a strong belt and beautiful upper register.  Hilty's 'Thank Goodness' was a masterclass.

Updated On: 11/21/24 at 11:58 PM

[Miss10036]

Posted: 11/21/24 at 11:59pm

I’m still ecstatic after going last night.  Could they have put any more love and care into creating this movie?  The spectacle, the level of detail in the sets and costumes, Ariana’s musical comedy chops, Cynthia’s soulfulness and eye acting, the callbacks to the original Wizard of Oz movie in the orchestrations… everything so thoughtfully executed.  It’s not perfect, but it is magical and I can’t wait to rewatch and see what details I missed the first time.  This is how you do a movie musical.

[NOWaWarning]

Posted: 11/22/24 at 12:36am

JudyDenmark said: "My only beef was not with the movie, but clearly the format I saw it in. We saw it in 3D/AMC Laser and visually it was spectacular, but I felt a little cheated sound-wise. Like I really wanted to be bathed in sound, and for my watch to tell me I was in too loud an environment, and instead kept wishing they'd turn it up; it sounded a little distant."

I had a similar experience. I loved the movie, but the sound seemed low and poorly mixed in my theatre. I’m listening to the soundtrack now and it’s night and day.