Review of The Wizard of Oz (1939) by Ivo F — 21 Apr 2014

Well, it's the 75th anniversary of the all-American classic The Wizard of Oz. No matter when you were born, grew up, and lived out your adulthood, you've seen this movie if you were born any time in the last two centuries. Nostalgic lookbacks don't always mean the film or piece of media you are looking back on a piece of art, but 'Oz' still holds it's own after three-quarters of a century have gone by. To say the story is almost pointless, it's simple and as well known as your own middle name. Dorothy Gale, a country girl from Kansas, desires something spectacular beyond her roots after getting into trouble when her beloved pooch Toto bites the Gale's wealthy neighbor Almira Gulch. Gulch swears to "destroy" Toto (probably euthanizing him or something) and takes him in a basket which he hastily escapes. Dorothy thinks of running away to avoid Toto being re-captured, and that's where they come across Professor Marvel, a psychic of sorts who reads in a crystal ball that Auntie Em, Dorothy's caregiver, is ill. Feeling guilty, Dorothy attempts to return home but a sudden twister comes upon Kansas which launches the Gale house into thin air and drops it into the land of Oz. Dorothy is flabbergasted with this new place, but at the same time she desires to return home after a Wicked Witch vows to get her newly acquired ruby slippers, which belonged to the witches sister. She is informed to go to the Wizard of Oz for help, and she follows the yellow brick road to do just that. On the way, she encounters colorful characters (Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion) who join her on her journey to Oz in pursuit of their specific desires.

The Good, The Bad, and The Review:

Good: Do I even need to say what's great about this movie? The acting for one is very legitimate, probably because it was done in a time before celebrities felt the need to give their own 'uniqueness' to characters rather than they themselves being the characters. Judy Garland is a perfect Dorothy, not quite gorgeous, but definitely not ugly either. Not too old or too young. She gives the right amount of charm that can never again be replicated in any other adaptation of this story. The same goes for a lot of the other characters, especially The Wicked Witch of the West. Easily one of the Top 5 Greatest Movie Villians of all time, this woman was the source of many of my childhood fears. Diabolical, sinister and just loving what she does, Margaret Hamilton puts a lot of effort into making this villain leave an impact.. So most of the strength of the plot comes from the main character and the villain, but the side characters are all memorable and far from filler room as they are in most modern productions. They all have distinct personalities, desires, and dreams. And the story does summarize with them creatively realizing that hidden talent and ability (smarts, love, and courage respectively). The visuals are still beautiful to look at, the 'twister', darkened sepia Kansas, and of course Oz. They were state of the art for the 30's and like many other old movies haven't lost their charm to this day. A lot of the Oz backgrounds have an innocent cartoon feeling much like something hand drawn by Disney. It's obvious to see that the Witch wasn't the only element in the film that 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarves' before it inspired. It's like something out of a dream, the picture perfect fantasy land we always go back to. Any modern day adaptation, including last years "Oz: The Great and Powerful" which I liked would overdose on CGI and other computer brilliance which while it looks nice it would be distracting enough to create a 'style vs. substance' war rather than tell the story. This film doesn't do that, obviously. Staying in the realm of the story arc while bringing out Emerald-like shine. The music and songs are also all memorable, "Somewhere Over the Rainbow", "Ding Dong, the Witch is Dead", "We're off to see the Wizard", "If I Only Had a Brain/Heart/The Nerve", all household favorites that also haven't lost their luster. The score also comes across like a dream, something so surreal it can't be real. The opening and closing montage just sucks you in with it's conservative graceful melody and helps us better relate to this relatively simple story.

Bad: I personally have always strayed from belief in a perfect movie, as films are carved with the hands of humans, imperfect beings with fickle whims. So naturally, in every work of art, someone is bound to find a flaw somewhere. However, there's nothing really to nitpick here. No noticeable plot holes or explanations that don't make sense. It is rather simple, but we expect it to be. It's simplicity is half it's charm. There's also nothing unnecessary in it, no superfluous character or detail or any slip up from a director or producer. If I find something wrong with it, I'll let you know.

Review: The Wizard of Oz is still as timeless, breathtaking, inspiring, and fun as it was in it's 1939 release. One of my favorite movies that I will surely return to in the future many times.