Into the Woods: A Review

I'm not entirely sure why Fairy Tales have become such big business in recent years. It seems like every other weekend there's some new movie or TV show offering a twist or reinterpretation on the stalwart stories of the Brothers Grimm. Maybe it has something to do with a mass psychological need for stories of simple morality, where good deeds are rewarded and wickedness punished, in light of the current morally gray and complex culture we find ourselves in at the moment. Who knows, I'm a film critic not an anthropologist. But it's not surprising that with the renewed interest that we'd eventually get a film version of the original subversive take on classic Fairy Tales, Stephen Sondheim's musical Into the Woods. Presented with all the pomp and star power Disney can provide, the new adaptation is an uneven but nonetheless enjoyable outing at the movies.

And just to be upfront, this review is based on only the new film. I haven't seen the original stage production so how good of an adaptation it actually is, I have no idea. That established, our story primarily follows a Baker (James Corden) and his wife (Emily Blunt) in a standard fairy tale setting whose greatest wish is to have a child. A Witch (Meryl Streep) has cursed the Baker's family though, because his father stole from her garden years ago. But the Witch informs the couple that she will lift the curse if they can bring her four specific items before the blue moon in three days time. So the pair head off, um, into the woods to collect them, crossing paths with Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack (of beanstalk fame), and Rapunzel whom are all chasing after their own wishes. As all these characters help & hinder one another, everyone eventually reaches their happily ever after. But as the consequences of their time in the woods come home they all begin to wonder, just how happy are they?

Little Red Riding Hood (Lilla Crawford)
heads, uh, into the woods.

The major flaw of Into the Woods, and something that's a failure of adaptation, is how truncated the plotlines feel. My research indicates that several songs were cut and Sondheim's musicals are known for conveying a great deal of story through the musical numbers. So without those songs it feels like important parts of the various stories are missing. It's not as obvious in the first part of the film when the plot is dealing with the well-known fairy tales we all know and most of the focus is given to the Baker and his wife, but once the plot moves into original ideas it's very noticeable. Like the characters tell us about situations they've been in and how they're reacting to it, but it falls flat because we the audience didn't see it. That can work in theatre because you only have a limited stage to work with, but in film there's no excuse for having the characters just tell us things. You have to show it. Because of this, the arcs the characters go through over the course of the film fell half thought out and changes come out of nowhere.

This failure to adapt to the medium transfer also affects how the film is shot. The presentation is very stagey, sticking to the same few locations and director Rob Marshall shoots them like they're sets. Meaning that how the camera shows the location makes them look like fake instead of like real locations that exist outside of the camera. The cinematography likewise feels more theatrical than cinematic, favoring a cool blue light for most of the film as though a tinted stage light is hanging overhead. This kind of obvious artifice wouldn't be much of a problem if the filmmakers didn't mix the fake woods with real woods, which creates an unwanted visual contrast for the audience. And if the real, on-location woods didn't look better than the fake woods.

The Witch (Meryl Streep) being weird.
She is really odd, even for a witch.

But if the film fails on those accounts, it succeeds with its acting and music. The cast is incredibly game for the winking fairy tale silliness and it's here that sticking more to a theatrical approach helps. It gets somewhat melodramatic but musicals being allergic to subtlety means all the major players get a chance to show off and most of them having the singing ability to back it up. James Corden and Emily Blunt have great chemistry that makes their marriage very believable, Chris Pine gives a great self-parody as the womanizing Prince Charming, and Anna Kendrick makes Cinderella a convincing doormat. But the standout for me is newcomer Lilla Crawford as Little Red Riding Hood, who demonstrates both a great singing voice and excellent comic timing.  Oddly the only weak point is Meryl Streep as the Witch. For someone who has that many Oscar nominations, she gets really over-the-top even for a musical and her singing could use a bit more polish. But she also gets all the funniest lines so I guess it's a wash.

The music is overall excellent, not surprising for a Sondheim production. It's all very well performed, even Meryl Streep isn't half bad, and the sound mixing makes it all sound great. My only complaint is that the score doesn't seem particularly varied, many of the songs sound similar musically. But that's more a critique of Sondheim's style, he uses the songs more to convey character and plot than create memorable catchy tunes. Plus as I said, they're well-performed enough that it doesn't matter. If nothing else, you'll be humming the title song for the rest of the night.

Into the Woods is an interesting film that just can't seem to escape its theatrical origins. Its story structure and presentation would better fit a filmed stage production than a feature film. But if it fails technically, it makes up for it creatively. The cast is wonderful, deftly handling both the comedy and drama of the piece along with the singing. And the music fits for a Broadway classic. It's a good not great time at the cinema, even if at the end of the day you'll be remembering the music more than the movie.

Final Score: 3/5