Just as Wicked (the first movie of two, based on the musical) premieres in cinemas (22 Nov), this film looks at the story behind how the world of Oz came to the musical stage.
Looking at L Frank Baum, Gregory Maguire and Stephen Schwartz and how each of them was linked into the project, this film starts when Baum first puts pen to paper to write his novels about the Wonderful World of Oz.
Moving through to the Hollywood film with Judy Garland on the yellow brick road in 1939, to Maguire’s passion project of filling in the gaps from the Wicked Witch’s point of view for Wicked the novel, it ends with the musical treatment of that book by Schwartz.
This is an in-depth look at Oz in all its forms. If you are expecting a devoted deep dive into Wicked, this isn’t it, as only 25 minutes of the 90-minute running time are devoted to that.
Instead, we look at where Baum got his ideas from, and how even after his death, the ideas and people he had created found new life and immortality.
It is very interesting to hear how Maguire took both Baum’s novel and the film as source material for his own work while exploring true crime and war stories as additional inspiration.
By the time it comes to the musical, it isn’t just Elphaba’s story any more, but it is the story of the relationship/friendship between Elphaba (wicked witch) and Glinda (good witch) and how that came about.
As Maguire says in this film about the musical’s creation, “If I don’t like it, I’ll be polite about it”, but it is clear that Wicked has now made its own foray into cultural recognition, aside from the film (over 80 years old, but still watched and revered) and the book (over 100 years old).
It may even be likely that a wider public know Wicked than any of its sources, with the characters and situations now being common knowledge (Dorothy’s red shoes, the tin man’s heart, the Munchkins).
Maguire and Schwartz both reflect on the world in which the world of Oz and Wicked sits alongside modern ethics and morality. Oz stands for a time where no place is like home and where being good and just is a virtue.
Child actor Grace Jenkins’s narration reminds us this was originally a children’s book which has now offered pleasure across the generations.
Wicked – The Real Story is a fine companion to, or introduction to, the world of Oz. It has information and trivia that will please fans of every generation, but look for excerpts or clips from the musical or its film elsewhere.
My favourite part? Where Schwartz shares how ‘Over the Rainbow’ melody is given a little tribute in his own score for Wicked.
Wicked – The Real Story is directed by acclaimed filmmaker Robin Bextor was released on Amazon Prime by Reel 2 Reel Films on 11 Nov.