Ok, after seeing the movie and listening to the soundtrack, its time for my Into the Woods review. Let me start by saying that Im a die-hard Into the Woods fan, having grown up listening to the original Broadway cast and actually playing a character (Rapunzel, see my profile pic) in the show 2 years ago. So Im qualified to give my critique. I went into the movie with low expectations, mainly because Id heard that the plot had been drastically changed and main characters werent going to be killed off. My theater fans will be glad to know that this was a false alarm: dont worry, major characters DO die like theyre supposed to, and the essential plot remains intact. Does that mean that the director got everyrthing else right? No. My mom Nina Salembier Murphy summed up the films main flaw perfectly: many of the humorous and darker elements of the show have been cut or simply glossed over, taking away much of the sarcasm and deeper meaning of the whole show. Does this bother me? Yes. But I still enjoyed it because of excellent characterizations of some main characters, a few standout moments, both funny and deep, and some interesting directorial decisions that can really only work in a movie. Now for some particulars. Only read this part if youre really interested in what I think. Anna Kendrick was miscast in my opinion. She did not adapt her sound to the classical vocal requirements of her role; put plainly, she was nasal and pop-sounding and stuck out. Her acting also fell short in that her acting was shallow, you really didnt care what happened to her, nor was she loving and empathetic. Dont get me wrong, Im really looking forward to seeing her in The Last Five Years because that is her niche. Shes just not cut out for Sondheim. The Baker and his wife, however, were really good! I have to say Emily Blunt really surprised me with her excellent acting and vocals. Hers is the standout performance overall. Chris Pine was another surprise - he captured the Princes suave arrogance and debonair egoisim PERFECTLY. Agony was THE highlight of the movie in my opinion. Hilarious! Rapunzels Prince was ok, much less focus on his story, but he proved adequate. Rapunzel was a disappointment, I didnt care about her at all, her story with the Witch was barely fleshed out, and there was one directorial decision that took the emotional impact away from one of the plays most poignant moments/songs. Since Jack and Little Red were cast as children, I didnt expect much depth from either character and wasnt surprised when that turned out to be the case. Jack was a little better than Red, at least he tried to have some substance. But I did not like Reds casting choice. She played it confident but not funny, much of her humor was lost in an effort to be business-like or something, and she almost seemed hard at times. She was too serious, thats it. Jacks mother was the same; there was no funny interplay between them, since Jack was really a little boy who still needed his mother, and she just came across as hen-pecked and nagging. The Royal Stepfamily was predictably nasty --they didnt shy away from the Stepmothers traditional cruelty towards her daughters, nor what happens to the step sisters --- and I have to admit I was glad they kept that darker element in. At least there was SOME accuracy. I have saved the Witch for last. Meryl Streep is an excellent actress, so I expected to be bowled over by her performance. I was strangely...placent, however. I did not like her portrayal of the Witch in the first act of the show; shes supposed to be funny, and all she was, was, well, scary. Very little three-dimensional acting. Interestingly, I enjoyed her singing more. I wasnt expecting her belting ability and she really blew me away with Last Midnight, an extremely challenging piece to sing. Also, Stay with Me was very sensitively sung and she showed great versatility with her tonal colors. All in all, I liked her far more after her transformation when she could be a diva. One more major problem Ive realized after listening closely to the soundtrack ---- why did they cast Brits along with Americans? There is a MAJOR difference between Emily Blunts vowels and Anna Kendricks (her Rs are apalling), and Meryl Streep doesnt change her voice really at all. She sounds like Meryl Streep, playing a witch. With her acting chops, Id at least have expected a different voice. Ok those are my thoughts, Id love to hear your impressions of this very interesting movie
Posted on: Sat, 27 Dec 2014 01:11:51 +0000
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