Into the Woods is a very good musical. It is certainly one of Stephen Sondheim’s finest, most complex works, the musical combining great songwriting with a subversive, intricately woven story that explores the very human concerns at the heart of familiar fairy tale characters. This film adaptation does little to sully that reputation, though the final product falls far short of what it could have been. Into the Woods makes a series of bizarre choices that are only made bearable by the sheer quality of the musical on display.
The story largely follows the exploits of a baker and his wife (James Corden and Emily Blunt). They learn in the opening moments of the film that the reason they haven’t been able to conceive a child is that a witch (Meryl Streep) laid a curse on the baker’s family years ago. The witch offers them a chance to lift the curse by going into the woods to seek the ingredients for a spell. The quest finds the baker and his wife encountering a series of strange characters: a little girl on the way to see her grandmother in the woods, a boy selling his cow, and a young woman running away from a prince.
The story largely remains intact, though with a few notable omissions. The cuts are mostly taken from the second half of the picture, the resolution of the some of the characters left truncated and ambiguous. Fans of the musical will likely be disappointed that some of the most memorable numbers have been omitted. People unfamiliar with this particular story will still likely appreciate the overall cleverness of the narrative. In spite of what’s been left out, the movie still manages to get across the subversion of fairy tale morality.
But the film goes wrong in the presentation. As a film, it just doesn’t look very good. Director Rob Marshall forgoes the advantages of film language and puts on a very stage-y production. Many of the songs, for example, are shot with long, unbroken takes that mainly keep the camera on the faces of the actors. The succession of these shots makes many of the numbers visually uninteresting. It often feels as though the film just doesn’t have any coverage to show. And this is really strange, especially considering Marshall’s previous work. Chicago never lacked for visual energy. Into the Woods feels downright sluggish and lazy in comparison.
With the filmmaking mostly stepping out of the way, much is left on the shoulders of the performers. And it’s kind of all right. James Corden and Emily Blunt make a fine center for the story. Blunt is particularly good, the actress conveying a strong personality through all the theatrical trappings. Meryl Streep manages to ride out a character arc that feels a little rushed due to the cuts. Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine and Christine Baranski do fine work in their respective roles as well. The only really weak part of this cast is Johnny Depp, who seems to be little more than a bundle of affectations at this point. Thankfully he isn’t in the movie for very long.
Into the Woods is not a very good film, though it remains a very good musical. The merits of the songs and the story shine through the bland presentation. It just doesn’t feel like Marshall did enough to do justice to the material. At its lowest points, it feels like it could have just been a recorded performance of the stage play. Film, with all of its advantages, ought to be about trying to elevate the material somewhat. Into the Woods settles for a truncated reproduction. It isn’t terrible, but it ends up feeling a bit lazy.
My Rating:
