Review of Return to Oz (1985) by Tyler B — 30 Dec 2009

Now the Wizard of Oz is a classic. I would rank this a cult classic. It was advertised as a sequel to the classic but it follows the book better than the movie. Its very dark and not really kid friendly. The witch was pretty creepy in the old one but the headless witch in this one was very creepy at one point. There are these bad guys called Wheelers in this and they just terrify me!

Its all about Dorothy and her return to Oz. In the beginning they want to do tests on her in a mental Institution! Along the way she meets a talking chicken, a wind up robot Tick Tock. A rocking horse flying thing and a Pumpkin guy. I believe they are fighting the headless witch and the Rock King, and they are trying to save the Scarecrow.

Being that this movie is dark, I can see why big fans of the classic would hate it. The wizard of Oz had a very fun feel. This one is dark but its closer to the book. I beleive that this movie is highly underrated for what it is and desereves a second chance. There are many differnt adaptions now (Tin Man, Wicked, OZ) But I think this is the best spin off/ sequel out there. In a sense Return to Oz is much more of a better adaption because the books follow a darker crazier pattern than the first movie did. Its noty perfect but its worth a watch. Enjoy it.