Go See Disney's Into the Woods Movie (A Review) #IntotheWoodsEvent

Guys. I can't even tell you how incredibly exciting my Into the Woods press trip last week was! I am so fortunate to have been asked to visit LA for the #IntotheWoodsEvent and I can't wait to share every single last detail with you all - beginning with my review of Into the Woods today, and my interview with Meryl Streep, Tracey Ullman and Christine Baranski tomorrow! If there was an emoticon for SQUEE x Infinity, I would be using it right now. Okay, there's a lot of ground to cover so let's get started with my Into the Woods movie review, shall we?

About Disney's Into the Woods

Disney's Into the Woods is based on the musical written by the legendary Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, and was directed by Rob Marshall. A fun and modern twist on several classic fairy tales, Into the Woods actually combines the stories of Cinderella, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood and Jack and the Beanstalk into one complex story. There is a lot of music involved...and a lot of laughter!

The central characters are the Baker and his Wife, played by James Corden and Emily Blunt, who are sent on a mission to break a curse by a not-so-evil witch - the mission is what brings the other stories together, as the Baker and his Wife find themselves meeting the characters from the other fairy tales as they go...you guessed it, Into the Woods.

What I Thought About Disney's Into the Woods **mini spoiler alert**

I don't want to give away too much of the story, in case you've never seen the musical...but one of the things I really loved about Into the Woods is that each character had their own mini story within the story - Little Red Riding Hood meets the sly wolf, as we expect to see based on our childhood fairy tales. We see a very dramatic - almost creepy - scene between Red and the Wolf as he tries to talk her into leaving her path. The Wolf is played by Johnny Depp, so you can imagine what he brings to the scene. Let's just say that he makes a very good villain!

Of course while you're watching the movie, it's an entertaining scene and serves a purpose; it fleshes out the story of Little Red Riding Hood and sets the stage for the Baker to come into contact with her. But as I left the theater and really began ruminating on the different musical numbers, I realized that the Little Red Riding Hood song was about much more than pure entertainment: it was literally a lesson about what might happen if you allow someone to lead you astray.

Don't leave the path, folks. We all know what happens to granny, don't we?

One of my favorite Disney movies has always been Cinderella and I am pretty much jumping out of my skin in anticipation of Disney's live action Cinderella. So when I realized that Into the Woods included Cinderella in their story, I was really curious to see how they'd portray her - and it was totally different than the animated version we all grew up with. She's a real live person, with hopes and dreams, and quite frankly, a bit of a wishy-washy personality. Oh, she gets the prince all right - but after that, all bets are off. I'll let you discover this for yourself when you go see Into the Woods in theaters on Christmas day! There's a bonus surprise regarding the Wicked Stepmother and Stepsisters. You're going to LOVE IT.

Disney's Into the Woods is all about wishes and exploring the consequences of those wishes. Have you ever heard the old warning, "Be careful what you wish for?" That's Disney's Into the Woods in a nutshell. Somestimes bad things happen to good people, sometimes we make mistakes and have to pay the consequences, and sometimes we just have to buck up and take our licks and move on and make the best of things.

I really can't wait for you to read my post about my interview with Meryl Streep, Tracey Ullman and Christine Baranski tomorrow because they're commentary about the film really brings the whole messaging full circle.

A lot of people go to the movies after opening presents and having "dinner" on Christmas Day. If you are one of those people, I really, really hope that you go see Into the Woods - and if you're not one of those people, well, NOW is the time to start a new Christmas tradition! Disney's Into the Woods is the perfect movie for the whole family to enjoy, and while toddlers may not really understand what's happening, I think that even young kids will enjoy the singing and theatrical flair of the story!

Fun Facts About Into the Woods

Into the Woods premiered on Broadway on November 5, 1987, at the Martin Beck Theatre. The production, which ran for 764 performances, won Tony® Awards for Best Score, Best Book of a Musical and Best Actress in a Musical. Among other awards, the musical received five Drama Desk Awards,
including Best Musical.

The big-screen adaptation welcomes songs from the stage musical, including “Children Will Listen,” “Giants in the Sky,” “On the Steps of the Palace,” “No One Is Alone” and “Agony,” among others.

Get Social with Disney's Into the Woods!

Visit the Official Disney Into the Woods website!

Like Into the Woods on Facebook / Follow @IntotheWoods on Twitter  (#IntoTheWoods) and Tumblr and don't forget Pinterest!

GO SEE DISNEY'S INTO THE WOODS ON CHRISTMAS DAY!

Thank you to Louise of MomStart.com for her photos, and a HUGE Thank You to Disney for bringing me out to LA for the Into the Woods event! I attended as part of an all expenses paid media trip, but all opinions are my own.