Wicked

**1️⃣8️⃣MOVIES FOR THE FIRST 18 YEARS OF MY LIFE —————————————————— Part 1️⃣8️⃣ ~ “Wicked” 🧹🫧💚🩷🎩🌷 Age: 17** 1️⃣8️⃣ Forever a theater kid and Wicked will forever be my favorite musical. 1️⃣8️⃣ In the summer of 2023 (it’s like the 100 time i mention that summer on this list) i got to go to NYC for a week with my family. And we wanted to also get some Broadway tickets. I was also considering “Moulin Rouge” or “Sweeney Todd”, but since i knew the Wicked movies were in production and it’s a more family friendly show, i chose this one. I still remember the night i purchased the tickets in my kitchen. 1️⃣8️⃣ And in august i got to see it live at the Gershwin Theater with Alyssa Fox and McKenzie Kurtz in the main roles. And my god how i loved it. I started crying from the overture cuz it felt so magical. I didn’t really know what it was about (based on the poster i thought it would be like a twisted retelling where Glina is actually the wicked one; i remember when i entered the theater and there was “Defying Gravity” written everywhere and i was like “there must be something going on with this phrase in the show”), but i didn’t expect it to be so… heartbreaking. After the show i was team Glinda, and my fav song was (and still is) “No Good Deed”. 1️⃣8️⃣ And Wicked is actually one of the very few musicals where i love every single song. Ofc i love some more than others, but i don’t hate any (not even “Sentimental Man”). The only other musica that i can say this about is Heathers. 1️⃣8️⃣ And that experience also got me into stage musicals and listening to soundtracks and watching slime tutorials. And now every time a big musical is produced in my country (not that often) i’m sure to secure a ticket. 1️⃣8️⃣ Fast foraward a year to the fall of 24 which was a huge moment for me (represented on this list by this film) because my most anticipated cinematic projects came out during that season (one per month). **September was Agatha All Along, October Joker: Folie à Deux and November *Wicked. And i love all these three projects sm (Joker FAD haters can respectfully shut up). I’ve seen AAA 3 times during that season, and Joker and Wickes* 10 times in theaters each (they both ended up being 11 times but for other reasons). 1️⃣8️⃣ And for this themed fall of 24, in November i watched a lot of Oz movies and i even read the “Wicked” book. My god was it traumatizing. Way more political, way more bloody, way more sexual, way more everything. And i was so surprised that Elphaba and Glinda weren’t actually that close and that Glinda wasn’t even that big of a charactee in the second half. And i also read “The Wizard Of Oz” that month cuz i haven’t actually read the full book before. 1️⃣8️⃣ Now i wasn’t really an Oz person before Wicked. Sure i knew the story as a kid, but i was more of a Wonderland and Neverland child. I did see the original 1939 movie a couple of times (my mom bought me the DVD and i watched it twice that day and then once or twice the next couple of days), but not that many times. I also kinda grew up with the Tok and Jerry Wizard Of Oz movie and Dorothy’s Return, but yet again they weren’t necessarily my favs. An Oz movie i really REALLY loved was…. *Oz The Great and Powerful… *I know EVERYONE hates that movie. And i know it can be a bit campy, but i still love it. So many cool references to the original story, loved Theodora’s backstory, the production design etc. The only bad thing about the film is that the main character is so unlikable. But it’s the Wizard’s backstory… what did you expect? The Wizard IS an unlikable character. 1️⃣8️⃣ I remember that morning in february 2024 when i woke up and the Wicked trailer was out. LOVED IT LOVED IT LOVED IT. I did fint it weird that out of my 3 fall of 24 projects, the last one to come out was the first one to get a trailer but eh. 1️⃣8️⃣ And the marketing for this movie? INCREDIBLE. Wicked and Barbie have the best marketing campaigns in modern cinema! The press tour, the merch, everything was exactly what it should’ve been. Also loved loved the roblox game and the freebies we got. 1️⃣8️⃣ **And being admitted to Shiz at 17 made up for not getting my Hogwarts letter at 11. ** 1️⃣8️⃣ The first time i saw Wicked in theaters i cried so much. Half cuz the story was sad and i also knew how part 2 ends cuz i’ve seen the show and half cuz i couldn’t believe i’m actually seeing the movie. We’ll skip the fact that the cinams in my country put the tickets on sale 2 days ago… And the screening i’ve been to was in a pretty small hall and there weren’t that many people and i went alone. But i was still changed for good. And yeah, of i’ve seen Glicked- starting with Gladiator II and then Wicked. Closest to Barbernheimber we ever got (but still so far). 1️⃣8️⃣ And i got chills from the intro. The overture is so good, with Glinda’s public announcement and the flying monkeys escaping the castle. OMG. There are many sad scenes in this film, but No One Mourns The Wicked must be the saddest. The only time you won’t cry during this scene is when you see it for the first time (for me it was on Broadway). So enjoy that first time. 1️⃣8️⃣ And yeah yeah, you know the drill, i’ve seen in 9 more times in theaters that month (with family and friends or alone), and then i’ve been to the cinema to watch it again in January cuz i was having a bad week. 1️⃣8️⃣ And i actually didn’t expect it to be such a phenomenon. I thought only theater kids and arianators will watch it. Yes, the marketing was amazing, but the general public has a tendency to hate musicals. But i’m so glad people loved it. And i’m so glad straight white men didn’t treat it the way they treated Barbie. Bc the main friendship>> 1️⃣8️⃣ During that time i also realized how many people don’t know the Oz story. So many of my friends didn’t know the Wicked Witch of the West melts, the Wicked Witxh of the East is crushed by Dorothy’s house etc etc. WTF? 1️⃣8️⃣ This is one of those movies that is about EVERYTHING. So many themes: friendship, dictatorship, racism, bullying, fascism, love, animal cruelty, loss etc etc etc. 1️⃣8️⃣ And they all come together in an amazing world with amazing costumes and music. The production design is actually INSANE. Out of this world. 1️⃣8️⃣ But what makes this film stand out to me are the characters. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the main 5 characters sm. Even Boq and Nessa IN THIS ACT! I really don’t get the hate for them. If yall hate them NOW i can’t wait to see what you think of them in act 2 :D 1️⃣8️⃣ But the character that i connect to the most is Fiyero. I love everything about him. I resonate with his escaping mechanism. His dancing. His queerness. His hidden personality. And there isn’t a better actor to play him than Jonny Bailey. I love Jonny sm as well. He will always stand up for our community and for what he believes in and he’s one my fav celebrities. And Jonny actually made me fall in love with Fiyero, cuz i must admit based on the show he wasn’t necessarily my fav character. Plus, my fav Oz characters are the Scarecrow and Chistery. Idk why i mentioned that, it has nothing to do with Fiyero… :)) 1️⃣8️⃣ A couple of weeks ago i got to enter in a Hot Topic shop (that’s a huge deal for me cuz i don’t live in the USA) and i bought a Fiyero shirt :) 1️⃣8️⃣ As Jonny said: “A lot of people love Wicked. A lot of people need Wicked.” 1️⃣8️⃣ I used to be more of a Glinda person than an Elphaba, but recently i started realizing maybe i’m both and maybe that’s the best way. And ironically enough, my favorite colors are pink and green.** ** 1️⃣8️⃣ I know this movie is super long… but there are two cut scenes that i wanted them to keep in. The poppy field friend group scene. Hello? It was in the trailes. And ofc i want a montage scene of my fav characters hanging out on a reprise of “Dancing Through Life” (AND Jonny Bailey shirtless). I hope and pray they’ll use it in the second part. And i also wanted Boq and Elphaba’s heart to heart from the train platform to make the final cut. Cuz in the book Boq and Elphie are much closer than Elphie and Glinda. And i wanted to see that friendship in the movie as well, cuz it wouldn’t made Boq’s arc in the sequel even more gut wrenching. 1️⃣8️⃣ This is my Infinity War and Endgame and i CAN’T WAIT FOR FOR GOOD. I cried so much that morning when i first saw the trailer. I will not survive that film. I will die in that theater. 1️⃣8️⃣ I said before how i think the first part will be more popular (no pun intended) than the second one, cuz the first one is more cheerful and fun and that’s what the general audience wants, but now i feel like the second one will do just as well. Ofc, it’s one full story, one movie can’t exist without the other. But the difference in themes is huge. The first one is centered around high school life, friendships, crushes etc. The second one is a commentary on fascism, speaking up and losing everything you love. 1️⃣8️⃣ And even if Shiz is actually a propaganda university, during the first part if felt so welcoming. Like everyone was accepted there. No matter your sexuality, race (unless you were green), disability etc etc. It seemed like such a safe place. 1️⃣8️⃣ When i first saw the first movie i was a bit sad i didn’t have a “for good”. And i hoped i’ll find one till part 2 comes out. I thought i did at some point, but i was wrong. Turns out i probably won’t have a “for good” to watch part 2 with, but it’s fine. Bc now i started to like myself. And even tho you can’t be your own “for good”, it’s better to like yourself than to hate yourself <3 *️⃣ Now this series is over and i can’t express how much it meant to me. To spend my last summer as a kid rewatching and reliving my first 18 years through the movies that shaped them. It was such a special project and exeprience, a way to cherish who i am as a person. And this series also got me back into Harry Potter i can’t believe that. Rediscovered so much of myself, not as i see those 18 films now, but as i saw them when each and every one of them was my favorite. ️⃣ I actually didn’t reawatch any of the films of this list in the last couple of months (unless there was a speical day, like the Barbie* anniversary), to wait for this project. *️⃣ And now my birthday is in 4 days and i can’t believe i’m turning 18, this feels unreal, i’m a bit in denial. This is the last movie i watch as a kid, ending it on a strong note. I love every single one of these 18 movies and they’ll always be a huge part of who i am <3