Musicals: Into the Woods

This film, based on the Stephen Sondheim musical of the same name, was released in 2014 and is definitely a different sort of musical than you'd traditionally expect.

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What It's About:

Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Little Red, Jack (of Beanstalk fame), and more are living their fairytale lives...but life isn't all sunshine and roses, and things quickly start to go south. Cursed by a witch to be childless forever, a baker and his wife are given the chance to reverse the spell. But with very little time to accomplish this, they need the help of the fairytale heroes and heroines before disaster strikes them all.

Why You'll Love It:

• The songs are fun and simple, and a bit quirky and sarcastic. It's a different kind of musical than many people are familiar with, so if you aren't into the traditional format, or cutesy fairytales, this is one to try.
• The cast was chosen really well, as most are both strong singers as well as strong actors. Their on-screen chemistry is wonderful, and works so well. Those who aren't as strong in their roles have more minor roles.
• The harmonies are fantastic, and the music is repetitive with lots of layered melodies. This keeps a great theme running through the whole thing and keeps the music grounded when so much is going on.
• The humour is wonderful, with lines such as "perhaps it'll take two of us to have this child" and "I was raised to be charming, not sincere."

Why You Might Want To Skip It:

• If you want songs that will get stuck in your head that you can sing along to, this won't really be the best one for you. It gets much too complex to be hum worthy.
• Perhaps a little too many things got smushed into this. Now, this is likely because it translates better in the on-stage version, but near the end it seems like a little bit too much is going on and the story gets a bit muddied.
• If you love feel-good, happy musicals, run the other way. This one gets quite dark, as it shifts halfway through to become entirely the opposite of the traditional fairytale movie.

Final Thoughts
I did end up enjoying this, but I was disappointed in it in very random ways. I felt like Meryl Streep and Johnny Depp were simply "okay," and a few plot points weren't the strongest (ex. the giant felt sort of like a cop out). From what I've read though, it seems like some of my issues are likely resolved in the original musical. All in all, I think it's a great way to get into Into the Woods, and to be introduced into darker musicals.