Into the Woods (2014)

Yup, a second mashup of kiddie folklore featuring Chris Pine in the same day. My family has a strange habit or inadvertent tradition of seeing unhappy musical movies on Christmas: Sweeney Todd, Les Miserables, even Inside Llewyn Davis in a pinch. I wanted us to see something else but was narrowly outvoted, partly on the basis of schedule. At least this one has a partly happy and victorious ending.

I'd seen the play as a teen and reacted as many viewers do: The first act is cute fun, but the second is uncomfortably dark to subvert the idea of "happily ever after." The junior version understandably drops the second act, thereby missing Stephen Sondheim's point. If you already know the story, you may well wonder why Disney would dare touch it. I figure the company has been trying to subvert its own history at least since Enchanted in 2007, no doubt inspired by the likes of Shrek. The results are usually pretty popular, but that doesn't stop Disney from reverting to standard fare, as evidenced by a trailer for a live-action Cinderella. In the case of ItW, things have been toned down slightly in questionable good-guy ethics and body count, but it still feels about as dark as Disney ventures.

I had doubted the wisdom in anyone adapting the play for the silver screen, because it wouldn't be the same without an intermission, which no longer flies in cinema outside of Bollywood. The play also has a narrator who gets involuntarily drawn into the story, naturally omitted from the movie. On the plus side, some phenomena, especially involving the cow or the giants, are almost impossible to depict well on stage. The only thing left on screen that brings to mind a stage performance is the wolf, who doesn't even try to look like a real wolf, just Johnny Depp with whiskers.

In terms of acting, there are no bad casting choices. In terms of singing, well, James Corden fails to impress us. But Depp, as fleeting as his role is, delivers. So does Meryl Streep eventually. Indeed, while I never cared much for the witch's "Last Midnight" before, this time it's finally given the right touches and produces one of the best moments in the movie, with only the comical prince duet "Agony" for competition on that score (no pun intended).

If you want a visual treat, keep looking. Even before the shift to a dark mood, there isn't much variety to the colors, and the "beautiful" characters seem run-of-the-mill. Once in a while, we get a nice special effect, but nothing you probably haven't seen before.

I might say it's an improvement on the play overall, tho fans will miss several cut songs, not least the "Agony" reprise and the pre-intermission "Ever After." The partial sacrifice of disturbing elements also comes with a partial sacrifice of humor. There was really no way to get me to dig ItW; at best I can enjoy bits of it and respect the decisions involved.