Wicked Meh

The family went out to see Wicked: For Good, mostly at the request/command of the wife. She was a big fan of the first film, the rest of us... not as much. And I think it's safe to say that our reactions to the current film mirror those of the former.

It's not a bad movie, but I found it didn't spend enough time with any one plot element to create an interesting story.  Between the propaganda campaign against Elphaba, the love triangle between her, Glinda, and Fiyero, the suppression of the talking animals, and the introduction of the Wizard of Oz characters, things never coalesced into a whole.  It feels like the movie tried to incorporate more from the novel to take advantage of the combined run time of the two movies, but either added too much or didn't add appropriately.

On the plus side, the singing was excellent. I probably would have more enjoyed a concert film of the musical using the film's cast.

We were also treated to an unexpected number of trailers, to the point where I kind of forgot there was an actual movie to see:

Eternity, where a woman (Elizabeth Olsen) has apparently died, and need to choose between her two husbands (Miles Teller and another guy who kind of looks like Miles Teller) for who she'll spend eternity with. I think I'll stay home and binge The Good Place instead.

Avatar: Fire and Ash, the latest installment in that series, which I have never watched and do not feel compelled to start.

The Sponge Bob Movie: Search for SquarePants: Sponge Bob gets taken to the underworld for some reason, and it's up to his Bikini Bottom friends to rescue him.  While I don't plan on seeing it, I'd happily see it over most of the movies that were previewed.

Anaconda, a comedy reset of the franchise launched by the 1997 J Lo/Ice Cube original, which apparently has several sequels?  I did see the original and kind of liked it, surprisingly as horror isn't my thing. This is squarely in the Lake Placid mode of horror comedy, which is also not my thing, but for different reasons.

Wuthering Heights, the bodice-ripping adaptation of the Emily Bronte novel by Emerald Fennell. Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi star as Catherine and Heathcliff, which has caused consternation in fans of the book as they're both seen as too old for the roles. There's also some talk that Elordi is too white for the role, given the descriptions of Heathcliff that suggest mixed parentage. Can't say I'm interested, and the wife is firmly in the camp angered over miscasting.

Reminders of Him, based on a Colleen Hoover novel where the protagonist tries to work her way back into the life of her son, from whom she was separated due to a tragic event. Someone's book club will love this.

Project Hail Mary, based on the Andy Weir novel of the same name, which sees a high school science teacher shot into space to find a solution to the pending death of the Sun. I enjoyed the book quite a bit, and would absolutely see this. Ryan Gosling plays the teacher/astronaut, if that helps.

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, where Mario, Luigi, and Princess Peach have to foil an attempt by Bowser Jr. to save his old man, who has been shrunken and imprisoned by the plumbing pair. Rosalina - who may or may not be a princess? - features prominently in the trailer. I suppose animated video game movies are preferable to live action video game movies, but I'm not really interested in any video game movies.

Kidz Bop Live: The Concert Movie: this is apparently a limited event movie rather than general release, coming to theaters in early January (just when parents need something to fill the time between the holidays and back to school). Even when they were small the kids would not have been interested in this.

Howl You Know: not an actual trailer, but an ad for Milk Bones, but worth a shout out (in my estimation) for its story of a girl finding the relationship she needs with a cute dachshund. I would never pass up a movie starring a wiener dog.

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