Into the Woods (PG)
four stars
Dir: Rob Marshall
With: James Corden, Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt
Runtime: 125 minutes
CONFESSION time: Sweeney Todd apart, I was something of an ignoramus in the woods when it came to Stephen Sondheim. No funny thing had happened to me on the way to the forum, a little night music played but not to my ears, and merrily I did not roll along.
But after seeing this Disney version of the hit musical, I am a believer. Such is the joy to be had from this film version of the Tony Award-winning play by Sondheim and James Lapine.
The story throws several fairy tales - Cinderella, Rapunzel, Jack and the Beanstalk, Little Red Riding Hood, to name a few - into a heady brew stirred by Meryl Streep's wicked witch. The baker and his wife (James Corden, Emily Blunt) want a child, Cinderella (Anna Kendrick) desires love, Jack (Daniel Huttlestone from Les Mis) wants money, and so on. Into the woods they all must go, but what or who is lurking there?
There is a delicate point in any musical drama where the project swims or sinks like a brick, and that is when the characters open their mouths and do something unusual - to wit, sing. Some directors like to ease their way gently to the moment so as not to alarm the audience. Not Marshall, helmer of the Oscar-winning Chicago. He and his cast start at 100 mph and rarely let their foot off the pedal thereafter. What results is funny, surprising, and ultimately moving thrill ride, with the only downside that it warbles on for far too long. If not a fan of musicals, make that way, way, way too long.
It is not a surprise that the likes of Kendrick (Pitch Perfect) can sing beautifully and find her way around a lyric, nor is it a jaw-dropper that Corden is funny, or Streep can magic up a dramatic storm. But put all this together, and add some genuine delights, such as Chris Pine's supremely vain comedic prince and Emily Blunt's madcap baker's wife, and Into the Woods delivers on many fronts. Every line is exquisitely crafted, the action rockets along, and at the heart of everything is the music - complex, rousing, straight to the head and heart stuff. Hard to choose a favourite performance, but Blunt just about edges it. Magical.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article