#454: The Witch Is Back, Pt. 2 — Wicked
The blockbuster musical turns Oz on its head.
Episode 454 of the The Next Picture Show podcast, hosted by Genevieve Koski, Keith Phipps, Tasha Robinson & Scott Tobias, titled "#454: The Witch Is Back, Pt. 2 — Wicked" was published on December 10, 2024 and runs 84 minutes.
December 10, 2024 ·84m · The Next Picture Show
Summary
The antagonist becomes the protagonist in Jon M. Chu’s WICKED, which adapts a stage musical — the first act, anyway — which adapts a novel that flipped the script on 1939’s THE WIZARD OF OZ (itself an adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s novel). So while there are plenty of narrative and character parallels between the two films, they often run perpendicular to each other in their respective notions of good and wicked. But the two films are certainly aligned in their aim to be big-screen spectacles of the highest order, though opinions differ among our hosts as to what degree WICKED achieves that goal in its heavily CGI-ed and halved form. Following that debate, we pit Dorothy and Elphaba against each other to see what each protagonist has to offer when it comes to fish-out-of-water pluck, character-defining“I Want” songs, and willingness to trust in that scoundrel the Wizard. And for Your Next Picture Show, Scott wheels out a recommendation for one of the weirder, but strangely enduring, cinematic visions of Oz. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE WIZARD OF OZ, WICKED, and anything else in the world of film by sending an email or voice memo to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. Next pairing: RaMell Ross’s NICKEL BOYS and Stanley Kramer’s THE DEFIANT ONES Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Episode Description
Similar Episodes
Apr 21, 2026 ·21m
Feb 17, 2026 ·43m
Dec 16, 2025 ·18m
Oct 28, 2025 ·18m
Sep 23, 2025 ·18m