Disney Plus has added a bunch of new titles today, which should make for great viewing as we head into the week before Christmas. Among other things, the haul includes a star-studded musical that, despite being much-hyped when it came out a few years ago, is often overlooked nowadays. Seeing as it’s currently up on the streaming site, though, maybe it’s time for it to receive a reappraisal.
The movie in question is 2014’s Into the Woods and is based on the hit stage show from Stephen Sondheim, offering up a retelling of various famous fairy tales woven together, with a packed cast of A-listers bringing the mythical characters to life. The subplots all connect thanks to the overarching narrative which sees a baker (James Corden) and his wife (Emily Blunt) forced to venture into the dark forest to collect spell ingredients for an evil witch (Meryl Streep). There, they encounter the likes of Cinderella (Anna Kendrick), Prince Charming (Chris Pine) and Little Red Riding Hood (Lilla Crawford).
As we all know, the tale of the aforementioned character involves the Big Bad Wolf, and that iconic role is played here by Johnny Depp, with the star providing a scene-stealing turn as the zoot suit-wearing predator. Into the Woods marked a reunion between Depp and director Rob Marshall as well, after the pair previously collaborated on Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Of course, the A-lister has also appeared in a Sondheim adaption before this one, as he featured in 2007’s Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.Â
Despite being a fairy tale musical produced by Disney, Into the Woods is actually a lot darker than you might think, as it offers a revisionist take on the well-known stories that twists some of the happy endings we’re all familiar with. Still, feel free to give it a go on Disney Plus from today, as it’s well worth checking out.
