Review of Into the Woods (2014) by Timothy E — 08 Apr 2015

Into the Woods is a whirlwind of a musical, in which a witch literally disappears into a whirlwind several times while singing.

It's a fun wish-mash of various fairy tales, woven together to tell the story of a barren couple on a quest to find items the witch needs to break a spell. She turns out to be Rapunzel's wicked stepmother, whose eternal youth was lost when the magic beans (from Jack and the Beanstalk) were stolen from her garden. The curse she put on the family of the man who stole the beans causes the wife of his son the baker, and our protagonist, to be barren.

Driven by their desire to have a child, the unhappy couple ventures into the woods to find the items specified by the witch.

Along the way we meet Little Red Riding Hood, who is a loud-mouthed little thief and an uncouth brat. She's actually pretty funny. The wolf who sweet-talks her in the woods is played (in a brief role) by Johnny Depp.

One of the items the couple needs is a cow, which they obtain from Jack in exchange for the magic beans. But ultimately terror is brought down upon the kingdom when the beanstalks give passage to a giant.

Cinderella becomes a key player when one of the items needed by the witch is a golden shoe. Cinderella's story is a little different than what we're used to; the fairy godmother is the spirit of her actual mother, and there is no ticking clock at the ball; she simply runs from the prince out of embarrassment that he might discover the truth of her lowly identity. And yet she continues to return to him for the ball the following nights, and runs away each time.

The music is masterfully written and performed. It's like watching a broadway production. The form of the songs and tunes is similar to Sweeney Todd. There are few real songs that you'll be humming later. This isn't Mary Poppins. Rather, most of the dialogue in the film is sung.

The relationship between the baker and his wife is bizarre. He initially doesn't want her help on his quest, and makes it about himself. But in the woods he changes. It comes off a little contrived as his character needs something to change for. His wife is also briefly changed by the forest when she is momentarily seduced by the charming prince; the one who is out searching for Cinderella. Cinderella later discovers his advances on the baker's wife, and calls out his hypocrisy. In his defense, he says he was raised to be charming, not sincere.

There is much to love about this film. You'll get a lot of laughs, especially in a ridiculous duet with prince charming and his friend who is wooing Rapunzel, where they sing about their tortured love, prancing about a waterfall.

But ultimately the story and music falls a little flat. It's a fun ride, but we never really care about it. We get some laughs, and we are entertained. But it doesn't leave us with much.

As Neil Patrick Harris quipped, Into the Woods is about Meryl Streep sending people on a quest to find the items she needs to win another Oscar.