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Wicked Movie: Best and Worst Moments
125 Plays2 months ago
I saw Wicked in theaters on Friday and I'm breaking down the best and worst things about the most successful Broadway to film adaptations of all time. Jonathan Bailey? Who knew he was so sexy?! "Holding space for the lyrics of Defying Gravity and feeling power in that?" That's one of the best jokes to come out this whole damn year. Ariana Grande, please hold my finger!
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Transcript
Marketing Madness: Wicked's Campaign
00:00:00
Speaker
Hello, everyone. How are you doing? Did you see Wicked? This movie, the marketing campaign, really reminds me of a lot of other productions where it seems like they spent $40 billion promoting this movie and talking about it for what feels like
00:00:19
Speaker
years. Finally, it's upon us. Finally, Wicked came out. I was so excited to see it. I have seen the play. I've seen it out of the country, actually, which feels like such a flex. But watching the Broadway play is not why I was excited to see this movie. I was excited to see this movie to see if
00:00:46
Speaker
Ariana could pull it off to see what Cynthia was bringing to see what the entire production brought to the table and I was not disappointed at all.
Anticipation and Excitement for Wicked's Release
00:00:56
Speaker
Wicked is a movie that lived up to the hype. However, I am going to start with my favorite
00:01:04
Speaker
Well, not my favorite, but the five best things about the movie. And then I will get to the five worst things about the movie. Because as I said earlier, I'm not a Broadway historian. I saw the play, but I don't know enough of the origin story. I don't know enough about the characters. I don't know enough about how the Wizard of Oz ties into it.
00:01:30
Speaker
And I learned all those things from listening to other podcasters yesterday, really doing a bit of a deep dive on Wicked. And it was pretty fascinating. And so as I said, like, I'm not the right person to remove to review the movie. So I'm not going to do that. I'm not going to give a play by play top to bottom of why it was phenomenal, why it was good.
The Joy of Discussing Wicked: Why Watch It?
00:01:52
Speaker
But I am going to talk about, like I said, five worst things and five
00:01:57
Speaker
five best things and then end five worst things but you gotta see this movie if you haven't so I saw it on Friday night because it was important to me to be able to see it this past weekend all the well knowing that
00:02:13
Speaker
Everyone was going to be talking about it this week, and that is exactly what happened. I was able to listen to podcasters talk about loving this movie. I was able to see people on social media. I am so glad I'm a part of the conversation in a way, so to speak.
00:02:35
Speaker
kind of misusing that phrase but i know how about i know enough about the movie to be able to observe people and listen to people talking about the movie so you guys just hurry up and go see it already so you can understand why people are so excited about this and you can figure out if you liked it or not
00:03:00
Speaker
I certainly did.
Standout Performances: Jonathan Bailey and Ariana Grande
00:03:01
Speaker
I enjoyed it. So since I enjoyed it, and since I said I enjoyed it, I'm going to talk about the five best things about the movie Wicked, obviously, according to moi.
00:03:17
Speaker
Let's go. Now, when I say top five, I'm not numbering these. I'm just saying five best things in my opinion. At number one, I got Jonathan or first number one, whatever. I got Jonathan Bailey. OK, Jonathan M. F thing Bailey. Now, Jonathan is on Bridgerton.
00:03:43
Speaker
I thought he was good looking on Bridgerton. I didn't understand the hype, the fandom, people online. I was like, y'all need to calm down. Y'all need to get laid because season one of Bridgerton, reggae, even though it's pronounced like reggae to me, but reggae, Jean, I think something. That man is
00:04:07
Speaker
the definition of eye candy and i'm forever salty about him quitting the show because it's not like i follow him in any of his other projects like he's way too private to be such a public figure i follow reggae on instagram and the man posts like four times a year like he needs to get the fuck out of here
00:04:30
Speaker
Anyways, back to Jonathan. I did not know Jonathan was so effing hot and sexy until I saw Wicked. I was so turned on. The way how Jonathan looks, the man has this stare that he could give you and you are already a puddle. You are already like very ready to go.
00:04:56
Speaker
you're either a puddle or you're rock hot or you're bricked up like he is so effortlessly sexy and that's what somebody who's truly sexy is like their existence is hot that's all like all he has to do is look
00:05:15
Speaker
in what feels like my direction to the cameras or at the camera screen or at, you know, Glinda or at Galinda. Look, I'm, anyways, at Glinda or at Elphaba. And I'm just, I'm already ready to go. And he really like, oh my gosh. Anyways, Jonathan Bailey, like,
00:05:45
Speaker
I need more of this man in front of my screen. I just... How do they have the man looking so sexy? Like, I don't know. I may watch Wicked again just so I can stare at Jonathan Bailey. I'm laughing because, like, what a loser, right? Like, what a loser! Like...
00:06:10
Speaker
I don't know. I need to get more familiar with his work because I need more from him. Like, I don't know. And maybe I got to go and rewatch Bridgerton and like, you know, have a good time if you know what I mean. But I don't know. Jonathan just did it for me. And I'm so glad that they put Jonathan in that role. Jonathan, if I'm not mistaken, has always been a Broadway actor before he joined Bridgerton. But
00:06:39
Speaker
I don't know he just the man has me very hot and bothered. And I'm so ready to see more of him and wicked part two I'm so ready to see more of him in Bridgerton and that's just the power of this film like this film has turned I believe is going to turn its cast members into overnight superstars.
Cynthia Erivo's Impact and Ethan Slater's Role
00:07:01
Speaker
And so shout out to everybody who was lucky enough to be a part of this project. I mean, what a resume booster to be able to be Elphaba's sister. Or to be able to be. I can't remember his name, but Ethan Slater.
00:07:21
Speaker
the former, they said he was like Spongebob, the voice of Spongebob on Broadway or something, but to be able to basically be unknown and then be a part of Wicked, like the job offers are probably coming to you. I saw this audition, I saw this quote like a week ago and it was from Lindsay Lohan and she said like ever since, and I might be wrong,
00:07:47
Speaker
But I feel like the quote said ever since I was in Parent Trap, I never had to audition after that. Like, that's what a big-ass role could do for you. The offers come to you. Like, how convenient, how amazing. So at number one on the list is Jonathan Bailey. I'm laughing because I'm eight minutes in and I'm only on number one. Okay, number two, best things.
00:08:14
Speaker
Shout out to Ariana Grande's acting and shout out to the bitch's vocal cords, vocal ability. She slayed the house down. She ate that left no crumbs.
00:08:33
Speaker
Ariana, okay, so Ariana has always wanted to be in Wicked and apparently the person who casted Wicked, he said that he had Ariana come in multiple times. I think I heard something like four times because it was very important to him for him to see Ariana as the character and not the singer that we know her as. And here comes Ariana just like
00:08:59
Speaker
crushing this. And what you have to remember is Ariana was going through a lot at the time in her personal life. She was going through a divorce, essentially, while filming this movie. And then it became public that she's with her co-star from Wicked and Ethan. So, I mean, she was going through a lot personally. And then she showed up to set every day, did her job, blew it out the water.
00:09:26
Speaker
And everybody said that Ariana was a scene stealer and I agree with that. When I was watching this movie, not once did I think I am watching Ariana. I always felt that I am watching Glinda.
00:09:40
Speaker
she was that captivating, that good. And we all know that Ariana could sing, but this is a role that really allows her to show her range in a way that her range is not really displayed and conveyed in the albums that she puts out. It's certainly not showing, giving us any opera, right? And so it's like,
00:10:06
Speaker
Ariana can do multiple genres. And I hope that her being in Wicked is going to allow her to experiment more with her range in her albums. I just I want more like I was a fan before.
00:10:22
Speaker
And after seeing Wicked, I just think like Ariana is, even though she's already at super stardom, I do think that this is going to also open the floodgates of offers for her for her to sing more.
00:10:39
Speaker
in similar type of productions. I just I'm ready for the Ariana Grande show. I am sad. She really it feels like she was meant to do to play this character to get this role. And Ariana actually auditioned for both Elphaba and Glinda and she got Glinda and it's like I couldn't imagine her being in any other role.
00:11:08
Speaker
in Wicked because she really, really became her character. And she's just kind of so perfect for it because she's so petite. The blonde hair looks so great on her and she looked very pretty. Like Ariana was out in this movie looking like a goddamn 10. She still looks over the top youthful.
00:11:32
Speaker
but i was just happy i was happy watching ariana shine in a role that she was meant for and i cannot wait to see what she brings in part two of wicked which i'm about positive comes out a year from now
00:11:47
Speaker
Next we got Cynthia Rivo, honey. We got Lena Waithe's partner since 2020. Now Miss Cynthia Rivo, I had no idea that she would look beautiful with green eyes.
00:12:06
Speaker
but she looked beautiful with green eyes. They were the color of her green skin in the film. I didn't find Cynthia attractive until Wicked. And then I'm like, this woman is kind of beautiful. Like I was really pleasantly surprised to see how much the green eyes just brought out her beauty in a very unexpected way.
00:12:33
Speaker
And then Cynthia nailing an American accent has me shook. Like I feel like Cynthia's ass sounds more American than I do. She just kills the American accent in a way that I don't feel most actors do.
Musical Magic: The Power of Wicked's Songs
00:12:53
Speaker
Now, of course we have so, so, so, so, so many British actors and British actresses who they really have taken many of our jobs. Like, and I hate that. I hate that. I hate it when we use a British person to play an American icon. Like, that's where I draw the line.
00:13:12
Speaker
But when it comes to Cynthia, yeah, she's dating an American, has been dating an American for four years, but there's a lot of British people who are dating Americans and they can't do the accent like this. So with Cynthia,
00:13:29
Speaker
where compared to other British actors, I feel that other British actors tend to have a moment where they dip into their British accent, even if they nail it, even if they murder it. Sometimes I feel like it comes out in their tone on like one syllable or two. But here comes Cynthia totally snatched my wig. And I'm like, how the fuck is she nailing an American accent to perfection?
00:13:55
Speaker
absolute perfection like it was like what this woman let me tell you something Cynthia and both Ariana give the girls their awards give the girls their nominations impressed impressive damn damn girl damn
00:14:18
Speaker
Next we got Ethan Slater, Ariana Grande's boyfriend. So the first time he was on the screen, people started laughing. I was kind of laughing too. Why? Ethan's character is in love with Ariana Grande's character. So Ethan was playing himself. And I feel like Ariana like, okay, Ethan looks wise, I don't get it.
00:14:43
Speaker
I really hope he's bringing something to the table that we cannot see unless we subscribe to his non-existent OnlyFans. I hope there is something in Ethan that we do not see.
00:15:01
Speaker
I'm hoping the personality is phenomenal. I'm hoping the humor, the wit, the intellect, the conversation, the dick game, the sex game, I don't get it. And I'm never gonna become privy to what it is Ariana sees in him. I wonder about the longevity of this relationship because Ariana just, she fucks everybody. She was with Big Sean.
00:15:30
Speaker
She was with Pete Davidson. She was with her ex now ex-husband. Yeah, I think it's finalized. She's with Ethan. I'm like, okay, you started with Big Sean. You started with a handsome black man and you downgraded as much as possible. So.
00:15:53
Speaker
I don't know something. There has to be something with Ian that we don't see unless Ariana was just like having problems in her marriage and decided to shit where she eats. And the thing with Ariana too is her relationships are always pretty long.
00:16:13
Speaker
oh yeah she was with Mac Miller again like she likes like a hood bad boy sometimes she just she has range but so like why is she with Ethan like what is going on like we're confused but it is so amusing to watch Ariana interact with her real boyfriend who's pining for her in the movie it's hilarious so that's one of the best things about Wicked is we get to
00:16:40
Speaker
See Ariana's chemistry with her man, which I believe is non-existent on screen, but I'm biased. That's only because he doesn't do it for me. Next we got the sequence.
00:16:54
Speaker
song and performance, dancing through life. I think it was like nine minutes and 27 seconds on Spotify. Yes, as soon as I saw the movie, I was like, the way how this soundtrack is finna get in my ear holds immediately. And that's what I did. And what's so great about Wicked and a lot of musicals that isn't spoken about enough, in my opinion, maybe it is.
00:17:20
Speaker
but musicals could uplift you and put you in the absolute best mood and the way how i was just feeling myself feeling feeling
00:17:35
Speaker
feeling myself, feeling my non-existent vocals, feeling the song dancing through life, feeling exhilarated and happy. That's what a damn musical can do. And so the way how the streams are gonna be shooting, shooting, shooting for the stars, we are going to run this shit up, the soundtrack of Wicked.
Diversity and Controversy: Cast Representation and Pay Issues
00:18:00
Speaker
It makes me happy.
00:18:02
Speaker
this movie just it feels good it's like uplifting and has a beautiful message so so yeah dancing through life it really stood out to me as one of the best performances of the movie it was visually stunning with the moving
00:18:20
Speaker
library and the coordination and the synced up dancers. And I just love that it was such a long, long performance. We got Jonathan Bailey's sexy ass. We got it all dancing through life. And number five of best things about Wicked, I have to say that I was so surprised that the cast was as diverse as it was.
00:18:50
Speaker
It was like black people's, black person upon black person, black person here, black person there, black person to the right, black person to the left, more black people here, more black people there. And I was like, I was expecting this to be a whitewashed film with just Cynthia. But then I watched and I was like, the diversity on F and Wicked. Maybe it's because John Chu is behind it.
00:19:20
Speaker
John Chu obviously is not white. I don't know. I just was impressed. I was impressed. And the funny thing is.
00:19:30
Speaker
You know what I'm saying? It's like a lot of people who aren't a minority, they just don't even pick up on that, slash understand what it means to minorities and underrepresented groups. And I just have to say, I'm very impressed with the diversity in Wicked. Next, it is time for me to talk about the worst things about Wicked. So at number one,
00:19:59
Speaker
I was listening to a podcast yesterday and they said that Cynthia Arevo was paid $1 million for this film and Jeff Goldblum was paid $2 million and Ariana Grande was paid $12 or $15 million. Okay, hold up. Why is this allowed? Like I'm being serious. Why is it legal to have one main star
00:20:28
Speaker
make more than 10 times than the other main co-star. I would love to know because you can't do that in any other business. You can't have two CEOs, two founders, one makes 1 million, the other makes 12 or 15 million. You just cannot do that in any other business.
00:20:52
Speaker
You can't when they're both performing the same, doing the same amount of work. Now, the only other example that comes right to the top of my mind would be sports, but sports, this shit don't apply to either because people in sports are paid on talent.
00:21:10
Speaker
So it's like how, like let's use that metric of talent. Cynthia and Ariana, they both got them vocal chords. They both got the vocal chops. They got the pipes. Why the hell is Cynthia, who is really arguably in this movie,
00:21:32
Speaker
more than Ariana. How the fuck is she paid such a small fraction of the money? I don't care that Ariana is A-list and Cynthia isn't. They're logging the same amount of hours and singing basically the same amount of songs. So how dare y'all do Cynthia like this? I hope that that what I heard yesterday is incorrect and it is a rumor and it is bullshit, I hope.
00:22:00
Speaker
because there should be, laws should be passed so that the discrepancies in Hollywood like this, this is egregious.
Famous Faces: Impact on Wicked's Immersion
00:22:12
Speaker
Again, if this is true, something should be done. This is not right. It's not about fair. It's like, this is not right. This doesn't feel ethical. Then you got Jeff Goldblum's ass, who, how the hell is he making twice as much as a woman who's singing throughout the whole fucking production?
00:22:30
Speaker
So, I don't know. Again, I hope this was a rumor because it is unsettling. Next, the worst things about Wicked is Bo and Yang. Now, I listen to Bo and Yang's podcast, Lost Culturistas. Every once in a while, I'll watch his clips on SNL.
00:22:50
Speaker
We needed an unknown in this role because I was distracted by Bo and Yang's presence. I was really lost in the world of Wicked until Bo and Yang appeared on screen every single time reminding me that this is actually a production in London that he was doing and really stressed out by and actually took some time off from his podcast because he was just like dealing with depression and he was overwhelmed because he was flying back
00:23:20
Speaker
to film SNL. If I'm not mistaken, while filming Wicked, like that's crazy. Like that is insane. So I gotta say, Bonyang was one of the worst parts of the movie for me because he took me out of enjoying and being immersed in this fictional universe because he's too well known.
Length and Structure: Two Parts or One?
00:23:43
Speaker
Whereas
00:23:44
Speaker
Ariana was so transformative and her performance was so transcendent that I wasn't aware it was Ariana, but I just saw her more as the character than the celebrity. Number three on the worst list, I have to say the length of this movie. Thank God this movie is two parts because I think way too much of the film would have been cut out.
00:24:10
Speaker
for the adaptation to be just a one part movie. So I'm so, so glad that this movie is actually two parts. I would not want to sit through part one and part two as some people have said, oh my God, I wish they gave us both parts and I wish we just had a break like it wasn't a play and I wish we could. No.
00:24:30
Speaker
Some of us have things to do. Some of us want to stretch our legs. Some of us want to leave the goddamn theater. So I'm glad that this movie is two parts, but I am not a big fan of long ass movies. So I wish that if anything, it was three parts and they made the movies shorter.
00:24:53
Speaker
Next, number four, I got Jeff Goldblum. My issue with Jeff Goldblum is the man cannot sing, in my opinion, first and foremost. But secondly, he's just like an older version of Bo and Yang in a way where he took my ass right out of the movie. He is too famous to have this role. He's distracting. I don't see him as this character.
00:25:18
Speaker
He was not like I didn't really I did not like him in this role. I did not like him in this movie. That was a flop decision. And on top of it, y'all really going to pay him more than Cynthia. So Jeff Goldblum was a flop. He took me out of the movie. He was too famous. I didn't see what he was bringing to the table at all.
Viral Moments and Future Hopes for Wicked
00:25:40
Speaker
Like I felt that his character was interchangeable because he just didn't bring he didn't bring
00:25:47
Speaker
anything in my opinion necessarily unique or good and it's not like he could like really sing so why the hell was he there so Jeff Goldblum was a flop and last but not least we gotta talk about the viral clip
00:26:07
Speaker
of a white woman with bad hair who says to Cynthia and Ariana, did you hear that people are holding space for the lyrics of Defying Gravity and feeling power in that? I didn't know. And Ariana holds Cynthia's finger.
00:26:32
Speaker
And the memes, the memes, I was just on the floor rolling. Okay. I'm saying this is one of the worst things because this interviewer is an idiot. This interviewer sensationalized whatever it is that she claims that she saw. She's like, oh, I've seen some clips on social media. Like, bitch, no.
00:26:57
Speaker
Nobody is holding space for the lyrics of Defying Gravity and feeling power in that. That's not a real thing. So like, she just like hyped up whatever dumb clip she saw on social media, said this Ariana and Cynthia and they got emotional and it was like, yo, this is too much.
00:27:20
Speaker
This is too much. So I'm against this reporter because I think that she has Cynthia and Ariana out there looking crazy, looking stupid just because she is the one who exaggerated whatever it is that she saw online. However, it's also one of the best things about Wicked because the memes and the way how we are all going to basically steal this phrase
00:27:49
Speaker
about holding space for the lyrics of Defying Gravity and feeling power in that. I'm sad. I'm here for it. It's hysterical. But again, like, what? That, like, I don't know. I didn't like it. Like, it just, the way how this reporter abated Cynthia and Ariana by dramatizing and sensationalizing whatever dumbass clip she saw, and they just fell for it.
00:28:17
Speaker
you know it's like i i feel some secondhand embarrassment you know what i mean and so it's like f that bitch but the way how she has gone viral shout out to her but i just like don't be doing celebrities like this who are taking the time out to interview with you like don't put them in a position where they're gonna look so stupid
00:28:41
Speaker
And people are so excited about the film. They love the film so much. Nobody's looking at them necessarily like idiots, but at the same time, they do look dumb. Ariana and Cynthia, for just like latching on to hearing this and being like, oh my God. And then Ariana holds her finger.
00:29:05
Speaker
I don't know. I love, I do love how precious Cynthia is about this role. I love her arrogance. That's what I want. When you have the talent that Cynthia has, go ahead and be a bitch. Go ahead and be a serve me kind, okay? Go ahead.
00:29:26
Speaker
I don't mind it at all. It is justified and I'm excited for Cynthia just to see where her career will go after this. This is a big deal and I hope they pick up the awards. I hope. I don't want snubs. I do not want snubs for Miss Ariana and Cynthia. Don't do us like that, please. We've gone through enough in the month of November. Anyways, y'all.
00:29:56
Speaker
Thanks for listening. Get your ass to the theater if you haven't. And I will talk to you soon.