Movie · 2024 · Drama, Romance, Fantasy · 2h 42m · PG · English
Curator score: 6.9/10 (2.8M ratings)
Everyone deserves the chance to fly.
Overview
In the land of Oz, ostracized and misunderstood green-skinned Elphaba is forced to share a room with the popular aristocrat Glinda at Shiz University, and the two's unlikely friendship is tested as they begin to fulfill their respective destinies as Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West.
Ratings
Curator score: 6.9/10
IMDb: 7.3/10
Letterboxd: 3.79/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 88%
Metacritic: 73
TMDB: 6.9/10
Director
Jon M. Chu
Production
Universal Pictures, Marc Platt Productions
Cast
Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Michelle Yeoh, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Marissa Bode, Jeff Goldblum, Peter Dinklage, Andy Nyman, Courtney-Mae Briggs, Bowen Yang, Bronwyn James, Aaron Teoh, Shaun Prendergast, Keala Settle, Sharon D. Clarke, Jenna Boyd, Colin Michael Carmichael, Lexi Lancaster, Arlo Turner
Where to watch
Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus
Curator Review
Verdict
A big, glossy, emotionally earnest musical that mostly delivers on spectacle, star power, and the central friendship at its core. It’s long and clearly only half the story, but the production design, performances, and big numbers make it a rewarding theatrical event.
Best for
musical fans
fantasy audiences
viewers who like lavish production design
fans of friendship-driven stories
big-screen spectacle seekers
Skip if
you dislike stage-to-screen musicals
you want a complete self-contained story
you’re impatient with long runtimes
you prefer subtle, low-key acting
Overview
Wicked is the kind of studio musical that remembers why the form works in a theater: scale, emotion, and a sense of communal delight. It leans hard into color, movement, and performance, turning Oz into a place where every hallway, classroom, and skybound set piece feels engineered for awe. The movie’s greatest strength is the chemistry between its two leads, who make the friendship feel vivid enough to carry the whole enterprise.
Worth noting
It is also unmistakably a first chapter, which means the emotional payoff is sometimes delayed in favor of setup. That can make the pacing feel indulgent, especially if you are not already invested in the mythology. But the film knows exactly when to go big, and when it does, it lands with genuine force.
Bottom line
For viewers open to a maximalist musical, this is a polished, crowd-pleasing ride with enough wit and heart to justify its ambition. It may not convert everyone, but it absolutely understands its audience and gives them the kind of polished spectacle they came for.
Top Letterboxd reviews
kats (5★) · 46379 likes
the way the entire theater moaned every single time jonathan bailey was on screen should be studied
Dylan (4★) · 33595 likes
graduated from shiz university with a masters in aaaghahohahaghhaaaaahhhhh
leahonfilmm (4.5★) · 31740 likes
i love that jonathan bailey didn’t even try to play fiyero straight at all ⊹ ࣪ ౨ৎ˚₊
☆ sophie ☆ (4★) · 26053 likes
historians will say they were ‘good friends’
davidehrlich (1.5★) · 23246 likes
undeniably funny that this 160-minute half-movie about how the wicked witch of the west got her broom opens with voiceover saying “let me tell you the whole story.”
1986 · Adventure, Family, Fantasy · 1h 41m · PG · Curator 6.1/10 (643.5K ratings) · Where to watch: Netflix, Hulu, fuboTV, Peacock Premium, Night Flight Plus, Netflix Standard with Ads, Peacock Premium Plus
For its fantastical production design, offbeat tone, and dreamlike sense of otherworldly danger.