"Where I come from, we believe in all kinds of things that are false. We call it History." The phrase literally explodes in the diction and refined forms of the very Wizard of Oz (more specifically in the song Wonderful performed by a wonderfully cynical Jeff Goldblum in his role as the green super-fop) and could now be maintained effortlessly (or while getting disheveled, depending) by any world leader. In short, this is the note on which the second installment of Jon M. Chu's superb and majestic diptych is tuned, not only expanding the mythology of the musical premiered in 2003, but also polishing, cleaning, and giving splendor to it, turning it into a piece that is currently adorably subversive, probably unintentionally. Ultimately, what Wicked talks and sings about, beyond the value of friendship and other melodies, is how lies, the targeting of the non-identical (in this case, animals), or exclusive nationalism (the mythical No Place Like Home is brilliantly reinterpreted now by Erivo) sweep away any semblance of a decent life. In addition to being fair, bearable, free, or worthy of being lived, as one wishes.
It's not Cabaret, be careful, but it's as if it were. If you look from a bit of a distance, Bob Fosse's film hit theaters the same year that some individuals were arrested for breaking into the Watergate complex of the Democratic Party, which would trigger the scandal that would end with the lying Richard Nixon. The 1972 film did nothing more than play with the obvious parallels and place the United States of the moment and the Germany of the 1930s in front of the mirror of History, the same History that is disdainfully ventilated by Mr. Oz. Chu doesn't aim for that much. He is content with not making mistakes, with respectfully and sensibly following not so much the measure as the excess of the original text so that, as if by magic, the magic takes effect. And to make it clear what all this is about, this second film adds an hour of script to the Broadway libretto and exacerbates to the point of simple redundancy the central argument of the film, not coincidentally released the same year as the start of World War II: the manipulation of the masses by deceitful and coarse leaders.
Wicked: Part II starts right where the first one left off. Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) opposes with all her might, which is considerable since she alone possesses magical powers and the Grimoire spellbook, the use of animals (now treated as subspecies or, in current terminology, undocumented foreigners) as slaves in the construction of the yellow brick road. Remember, the animals were scapegoated in the reproduction of a mechanism that seems not to age. But our heroine will not have it easy. Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh), Oz's enforcer, has turned the entire kingdom against her. And in the all, the grim and perfect Glinda in her bubble (Ariana Grande) is included. What follows is many things. The first and most important is the reconstruction of a friendship between old friends that serves to redeem one (Glinda) and to understand in its broadest and most perfect sense the other (Elphaba). But it is also the archaeology of a story that, truth be told and as we now know, we had not fully understood or, in other words, had been told in an intentionally deceitful manner; this includes the true story of the straw man, the tin man, and the cowardly lion. Moreover, the reunion with Dorothy after the tragic collapse of the Texas houses is as artificial, let's admit it, as it is simply charming.
Jon M. Chu succeeds in every decision he makes. To nitpick, compared to the first installment, the overabundance of digital effects slightly clouds the view this time. That and the fact that there is no theme comparable to Defying Gravity. But where the director definitely overwhelms is in something as basic as giving all the power to Cynthia Erivo. The actress's performance is as overwhelming as it is charming. The entire burden of proof rests on her ability to place the viewer on her side and convince them that her resistance is that of everyone and that few skin colors are as beautiful as green. And she undoubtedly achieves this beyond enthusiasm.
The final twist that we do not reveal for the simple reason that it is in plain sight, which basically consists of the paradoxical conclusion of agreeing with Oz and lying to preserve what matters, is as unsettling as it is disturbing and reminds us that indeed, few films have been as unsettling and profoundly disturbing as, indeed, The Wizard of Oz, Victor Fleming's immortal film of which this is a worthy refutation and ecstasy.
Director: Jon M. Chu. Cast: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh. Duration: 138 minutes. Nationality: United States.