A Magical Journey with a Realist Twist

I'm not much of a "musicals" person, I feel I should say that now. Not for any particular reason - I found the opening of Mamma Mia pretty boring, I didn't stick around for the rest of the film, and I have yet to see Les Mis because... well, for no reason in particular, that actually looks pretty good. But the only musicals I've seen are Disney movies and Pitch Perfect. And now Into the Woods has joined that list.

Yes, I know it's a Disney movie, but being as it began as a proper Sondheim musical and isn't animated, I'm counting it as separate so there. Anyway, the basic plot is: a heap of different fairy tale characters find their stories intertwined and try to work everything out to the best result, but just as it's looking up for everyone disaster strikes. It's an interesting concept, if rather twee, but what really sells it is the over-the-top musical melodrama. Anna Kendrick has a great voice (of course) and makes a good Cinderella, and Chris Pine is fantastic and hilarious as Prince Charming - his duet with Billy Magnussen, "Agony", is one of the highlights of the movie. But I feel like Kendrick is sold short with the characterisation - yes, she's indecisive, but that seems to be as far as it goes apart from being the typical put-upon serving girl of Cinderella, she's a bit of a shallow character compared to, for example, the Witch, or the Baker's wife. And it says a lot that the two characters with the most depth are the villain and an unnamed character. The witch, in all fairness, has a whole song explaining her tragic backstory, whereas Cinders' story is more about a girl being thrust into a world she has never known, less about her character and more about her reactions.

But the real star is James Corden as the Baker. His songs aren't the big numbers of Chris Pine's and the Witch's, but he gets the heartfelt moments and his character evolves and grows throughout the whole story. His is the hero's journey: from average, ordinary human (a role to which Corden is well-suited) to a protector and a pillar of strength in the final fight, which he pulls off in a surprisingly believable turn (not that I'm saying Corden couldn't be heroic or anything... *cough*). And in a surprisingly dark finale, he is one of the most hopeful characters.

What I like about Into the Woods is it doesn't shy away from the dark parts of the fairy tales. Those horrible endings you've no doubt heard about? They're in this, and they're just as horrible, if not more so. And it draws on those dark parts, makes them darker, so that every action the characters take has a consequence. And all of this is framed in its own song, of course.

I could go on and talk about how Into the Woods explores the use of liminal space and magical realism, but that's an essay for my English classes, or at least Tumblr. Suffice to say, Into the Woods is fun, "Agony" is a fantastic song which never fails to put a smile on my face, and it's a great look at how fairy tales live up to reality and how the stories we hear are only ever part of the story. Some of the characters are a little thinly-developed but that's a result of their story arc, and the songs are great. I wouldn't call it a must-see, but it's a good laugh and if you thought the fairy tales weren't dark enough you really need to watch this.