A crossover of fairy tales

‘Into the Woods’ movie review

By Jerrison Oracion, Senior Columnist

4/5

Based on the hit musical by composer Stephen Sondheim (Sweeney Todd) and playwright James Lapine (The Moment When), the film version of Into the Woods follows the story of a baker (James Corden) and his wife (Emily Blunt) who wish to have a child. Before they can, they need to find four items for a witch (Meryl Streep) who in exchange will end the curse on them.

As they journey into the woods in search of a white cow, a red cape, yellow hair, and a gold slipper, they meet familiar fairy tale characters including Cinderella (Anna Kendrick), Prince Charming (Chris Pine), Little Red Riding Hood (Lilla Crawford), and Jack (Daniel Huttlestone) from Jack and the Beanstalk.

The film’s first half features a lot of great songs and classic fairy tale moments. Johnny Depp’s portrayal of the Wolf is fantastic but brief—the movie could have shown more of him. The film’s stars who aren’t known for singing all sing well in the movie.

However, Into the Woods’ second half causes the film to go downhill when it takes a dark turn and reveals that not all fairy tale characters get a happy ending. While the film is interesting, it focusses a lot on the baker and his wife when it could have shown more of the other characters’ stories.