Into The Woods

16 December 2014 | 2:32 pm | Guy Davis

"It doesn’t help that the performances rarely rise above the capable. Yes, even in the case of La Streep!"

Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s 1986 stage musical Into The Woods was something of an early adopter when it came to adding a question mark to the happily-ever-after conclusion of everyone’s favourite fairy tales.

Throwing new variations of doubt, deception, infidelity and insecurity into the stories of Cinderella, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood and the like into the mix allowed audiences to view the classics in a new and enjoyable way. It’s little wonder Hollywood has been trying to bring it to the screen for decades.

However, while the film version of Into The Woods has secured some tremendous talent (Chicago director Rob Marshall, Meryl Streep, Johnny Depp, Emily Blunt, Chris Pine and Pitch Perfect’s Anna Kendrick), something got lost in translation. It’s a Disney production, so that may explain why some of the show’s more adult themes or moral complications have been diluted, but the problems run a bit deeper. Marshall’s handling of the musical numbers is lacklustre and stiff, odd considering the vibrancy and imagination he brought to Chicago and even the uneven but occasionally electrifying Nine.  

As a result, Into The Woods plods when it should skip. It doesn’t help that the performances rarely rise above the capable. Yes, even in the case of La Streep!