Film
Into the Woods
Sondheim's fairy-tale mashup, adapted by Disney with a starry, game cast. Act one stitches together Cinderella, Red Riding Hood and a cursed baker with witty, tongue-twisting lyrics; act two makes everyone live with what they wished for, and it gets surprisingly dark. Dense, funny, and structurally sly. Best for musical lovers who want their happy endings complicated, not just decorated.
If you liked this
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street2007
Same songwriter's dark gift, same starry pedigree, and Depp again — this time singing bloody vengeance instead of playing a comic wolf. Sung-through, gothic, gorgeous.
But Genuinely gory and bleak throughout, with no fairy-tale whimsy left to soften the horror.

Chicago2002
The film that proved stage musicals could be sexy, cynical blockbusters — sharp, jazzy, and wickedly funny about ambition, murder, and fame.
But Its cynicism is total; there's no ethical reckoning here the way Woods eventually demands one.

Enchanted2007
Disney gleefully mocking its own princess formula by dropping an animated heroine into gritty modern New York, songs and all.
But Much gentler and more PG than Into the Woods — the satire has charm but never draws blood.

The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
The Witch2016
Into the Woods sings its way through the idea of a witch's curse on a family; The Witch asks what that would actually feel like to live inside, with the irony and melody stripped away entirely.
The same premise distilled to its purest form — a family, a curse, something in the woods — but told with total dread instead of a single laugh line.
But Slow, austere, and genuinely frightening; there's no music or wit here to lean on.

More like this (8)
The Princess Bride1987
The gold standard for a fairy tale that winks at you while still meaning every romantic beat. Quotable, warm, endlessly rewatchable.
But No songs and barely any darkness — this is comfort adventure, not moral reckoning.

Les Misérables2012no page yet
The same director's instinct for big emotion and a sung-through score, with a starry cast going for broke on tragedy and revolution.
But Nearly three hours of grief and barricades — if you wanted whimsy, this will flatten you instead.
Hairspray2007
A bright, joyful stage-to-screen musical with a stacked ensemble cast and songs built for pure delight rather than moral complication.
But A completely different mood — sunny sixties pastiche instead of fairy-tale melancholy.

Beauty and the Beast2017
Disney's own live-action fairy-tale musical spectacle, lush and familiar, for when you want the songs without the irony.
But Plays it far safer and sweeter, with none of Woods' sting or self-awareness.

Shrek2001
The animated, crude cousin of fairy-tale deconstruction — broad, hilarious, and gleefully rude about the same tropes Woods handles with melancholy.
But Aimed younger and jokier; the stakes never come close to what Woods is reaching for.

Mary Poppins Returns2018no page yet
Emily Blunt again, this time in a big British musical fantasy, whimsical and wistful in a gentler key.
But Cosier and more nostalgic throughout — no curses, no consequences, just warm sentiment.
The Court Jester1955
Both films treat fairy-tale trappings as a costume for comedy and commentary; Court Jester got there first, using slapstick and song to send up chivalric myth much as Woods sends up Grimm.
Danny Kaye at his most dazzling, mixing medieval fantasy, mistaken identity, and dizzying wordplay decades before postmodern fairy tales were fashionable.
But The humor is broad, old-fashioned vaudeville — a world away from Sondheim's layered, knowing lyrics.

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters2013no page yet
Both films ask what happened after the story ended; Into the Woods answers with tragedy and consequence, this one answers with splattery action-movie payback.
What if the fairy-tale kids grew up into gun-toting, monster-slaying adults with trauma and a body count? Unapologetic, pulpy fun.
But It's dumb, loud, and violent on purpose — anyone hoping for wit or craft will be disappointed fast.
People
Cast
Anna KendrickCinderella
Meryl StreepWitch
Lilla CrawfordLittle Red Riding Hood
Emily BluntBaker's Wife
Johnny DeppBig Bad Wolf
James CordenBaker
Chris PineCinderella's Prince
Mackenzie MauzyRapunzel
Christine BaranskiStepmother
Tammy BlanchardFlorinda
Lucy PunchLucinda
Directing
- Rob MarshallDirector
- Ben HowarthFirst Assistant Director
- Lisa VickScript Supervisor
- Thomas NapperSecond Unit Director
Writing
- Stephen SondheimLyricist
- James LapineMusical
- Stephen SondheimMusical
- James LapineScreenplay
Production
- Bernard TelseyCasting
- Francine MaislerCasting
- Tiffany Little CanfieldCasting
- Angus More GordonCo-Producer
- Michael ZimmerCo-Producer
- Callum McDougallProducer
- John DeLucaProducer
- Marc PlattProducer
- Rob MarshallProducer
- Bertie SpiegelbergProduction Coordinator
- Hannah GodwinProduction Supervisor
- Angus More GordonUnit Production Manager
- Callum McDougallUnit Production Manager
Recommended by
The Princess Bride, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Shrek 2