Welcome again to Oz… The place have been we? Depraved: For Good, Half 2 of Common’s big-budget adaptation of the Broadway musical, is with out query the second half of the story begun with final 12 months’s Depraved. In some methods, this offers director Jon M. Chu and writers Winnie Holzman and Dana Fox the benefit of a operating begin, as we dive instantly into the aftermath of the earlier movie’s conclusion: “Depraved witch” Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) being declared Ouncess Public Enemy #1, abandoning her once-and-future bestie Glinda (Ariana Grande-Butera) as she units out to take down the Wizard (Jeff Goldblum).
It’s sadly momentum that’s squandered in a while, as For Good incorporates a tempo that varies from too quick to too sluggish, meandering its method by massive showcase numbers for its stars earlier than accelerating by massive plot factors that don’t make fairly the impression they need to.
For Good is a film that totally expects you to have seen Half 1 very lately, solely using just a few dialogue-free flashbacks to remind the viewer of how these characters have modified since their extra harmless days. In future months and years, when Peacock subscribers resolve to bask in a comfortable all-afternoon double-feature, it is going to be a fairly seamless viewing expertise. However in the event you’re wanting ahead to seeing the brand new film in theaters and also you haven’t seen the primary shortly, you may make a degree of revisiting it upfront.
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Right here’s extra of a “Beforehand on…” explainer than For Good offers you: In Half 1 (the film that’s now simply referred to as Depraved), Elphaba and her sister Nessarose (Marissa Bode) start attending Shiz College, Elphaba’s pure expertise for magic making her very attention-grabbing to each professor Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) in addition to the mysterious Wizard (Jeff Goldblum) who guidelines over Oz.
As their schooling begins, Elphaba and fellow scholar Glinda (first referred to as Galinda) turn into unlikely roommates after which ultimately shut mates, although each ladies have emotions for Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey), the dashing new scholar who’s simply enrolled. Extra importantly, when Elphaba lastly will get to fulfill the Wizard, he manipulates her into utilizing her magic to create a pack of flying monkeys, and she or he’s so horrified that she turns into dedicated to stopping his merciless therapy of them and the opposite animals who’ve turn into a goal of his propaganda machine.
For Good thus begins by diving into Elphaba’s makes an attempt to overthrow the Wizard, which is a tricky factor to do as only one particular person, particularly once you’re going up towards that aforementioned propaganda machine. She additionally doesn’t have a lot of a technique, past attempting to unify the remaining animals of Ouncesagainst the Wizard and spelling out messages within the sky which can be simply ignored. She does nonetheless have allies in Glinda and Fiyero, however when Madame Morrible makes use of her climate magic to conjure up a twister with a particular supply from Kansas, the story begins to really feel greater than slightly acquainted.
The plotting general doesn’t maintain up properly beneath scrutiny. But on a scene-by-scene foundation, a lot of For Good is absolutely affecting — typically in ways in which really feel too near dwelling. Manufacturing on each motion pictures (shot concurrently) wrapped in January 2024, so it’s not like Chu and his collaborators may have presumably been certain how sharp a proper flip America could be taking in lower than two years’ time. Understanding that, although, doesn’t detract from the uncooked energy of a scene the place the remaining animals of Ouncesflee the house they as soon as knew, as a result of it’s that or imprisonment or worse. Elphaba sings to them in regards to the energy of dwelling, and why they need to struggle for it to be higher. However Oz, the animals inform Elphaba, now not looks like a protected place for them. “It’s rotten.”
Then there’s the Wizard’s massive quantity, “Fantastic” (now a duet with Glinda): “A wealthy man’s a thief or philanthropist/ Is one a crusader or ruthless invader?/ It’s all during which label is ready to persist.” These are lyrics written within the early 2000s, however that doesn’t change the way in which they land in 2025. It actually fucks with the mind to think about the present President watching this film — and we all know he loves musicals.
The tragedy right here is that as sharply related as these early scenes really feel, the film doesn’t ship on their impression in the long run. Moreover, the way in which during which time passes in For Good doesn’t make any actual sense. It’s been “12 tide turns” for the reason that earlier film (so, a 12 months), however as soon as the plot kicks into gear, occasions are given the epic really feel of lasting for weeks, when actually going down over the course of days. This actually comes into focus as soon as the plot begins the cautious work of operating concurrently with the occasions of the unique The Wizard of Oz.
One curious be aware: Whereas Dorothy’s companions on the Yellow Brick Highway are all ultimately launched — no spoilers for a way that works out, in case you’re unfamiliar with any of the supply materials — Dorothy herself is stored simply out of body, permitting for the idea that Judy Garland has someway come again from the useless to be concerned.
When it comes to the solid, I actually don’t need to name out anybody by title (Michelle Yeoh), however not one of the stars who struggled with their singing roles within the first half have gotten any higher within the second. This does profit the movie in a single massive regard: It signifies that no A.I. or different digital trickery was employed to enhance anybody’s voices. Which implies that once you do hear the world-class vocal performances of Erivo and Grande-Butera, you may belief that they’re actual. Boy, they’re spectacular.
Depraved: For Good (Common)
The 2 new songs written for this film (guaranteeing that not like Half 1, For Good might be eligible within the Unique Track class on the 2026 Oscars) don’t assist the pacing. Nevertheless, they do give each stars unimaginable showcases: “No Place Like House” (the beforehand talked about track Elphaba sings to the fleeing animals) begins with a quiet energy that transforms right into a rousing anthem.
And whereas Grande-Butera doesn’t actually want one other unhappy track to sing, “The Lady within the Bubble” does give Glinda slightly company whereas additionally giving Chu and cinematographer Alice Brooks the chance to play with mirrors and reflections for what’s simply probably the most visually gorgeous quantity within the movie. To not say that the spectacle of Erivo belting out “No Good Deed” within the ruins of a CGI fortress is underwhelming. (Manufacturing-wise, this film is gorgeous — the set design and costumes all really transportive.)
When it comes to the supporting solid, Goldblum does tremendous work in his restricted appearances, whereas Yeoh makes up for her vocal efficiency with some dazzling bodily motion (she’s one of many best motion stars ever for a motive. Whereas Jonathan Bailey does a stable job in his supporting capability (together with one scene that is perhaps the sexiest rattling scene I’ve ever seen in a film rated PG), and Ethan Slater will get no less than one massive second to remind us that he’s acquired large Broadway cred, this film actually is a two-hander. The true tragic love story is Elphaba and Glinda’s, and neither actress holds again in that regard, their chemistry as actors in sync with their harmonization.
It’s wild to consider how the recognition of Depraved (not simply on the motion pictures, however as a stage musical and e-book sequence) implies that for this era, it’s turn into the canonical tackle the unique L. Frank Baum books, first revealed in 1900. One thing related technically occurred earlier than in 1939, with the Judy Garland-starring adaptation then turning into the most well-liked accessible iteration of the story. But Depraved reinterprets the story so wildly that one wonders how children right this moment will react to studying that after upon a time, the Depraved Witch was what she stated on the tin.
So many post-modern narratives have been constructed on the thought of subverting the idea of heroes and villains, similar to how the traditional Watchmen comics tore on the iconography of superheroes. Maybe that’s why For Good doesn’t efficiently promote Elphaba’s decree that “no good deed will I do once more,” one of many film’s many muddled moments. It does, nevertheless, replicate an age the place each message feels muddled, no hero will be trusted. All we all know is that one thing is rotten right here.
Depraved: For Good flies into theaters on Friday, November twenty first.
