The Broadway sensation Wicked has finally made it to the big screen, earning mostly positive reviews and the best-ever opening week for a film based on a Broadway musical.
Wicked is not merely based on a musical; the musical's source material is a series of dark fantasy novels by Gregory Maguire, who presents a revisionist version of L. Frank Baum's original Oz books. The most famous Oz-derived property is undoubtedly the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, which introduced audiences to ruby slippers, Toto, and Technicolor.
By comparison, Wicked is unlikely to leave such a lasting legacy, if only because the film and musical—unlike the novels—are a bit too simple, even saccharine. In these adaptations, the titular Wicked Witch Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) is a schoolmate, rival, and eventual best friend to Glinda the Good (Ariana Grande). Both girls are learning to harness magic in a world run by the imperious humbug, the Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum). The Wizard wants to use the witches' power to create a surveillance state and oppress Oz's talking animals.
