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The clever way in which four classic fairy tales are blended
together in new musical film ‘Into the Woods’ makes for an overall magical
experience. Beautiful cinematography reminiscent of many an animated Disney
classic combines with wonderful music and outstanding performances from many
members of the film’s all-star cast, including James Corden, Emily Blunt and
Anna Kendrick – on the whole, it is
splendid, with the first half being especially well-done. One of the only problems
with the performances occurs due to the fast nature of the songs, meaning that
some of the younger actors are hard to understand at certain points.
As similar as it is to various classic fairy tale films, it
takes a darker turn in the third act and it is hard to decide whether this
section works for or against the film as a whole. On the one hand, it poses
many interesting moral questions not seen in most musicals. Whilst its
predecessors simply finished on ‘happily ever after’, Into the Woods goes
beyond the final page of the fairy-tale books, which is an interesting and refreshing twist. On the other hand, the fact that essentially two stories are being
told means it drags on for far too long, with the third act especially lacking
in real structure.
Generally, the complexity and messages of the third act make
up slightly for the length and structural problems - but if just a few songs or
scenes had been cut, it would have fixed the problem easily.
On the whole, Into the Woods is a joy to watch, even if it
does go on for just a bit too long.
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