Return to Oz

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Movie DVD

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You don't fool with Mother Nature, spit into the wind, remake Casablanca, or trash the land of Oz. Perhaps that is why the 1985 live-action sequel split critics and audiences alike. The 1939 classic musical is so beloved that it's almost impossible to imagine seeing Dorothy in shock therapy, a crumbled yellow brick road, the ruins of Emerald City, and the Tin Man turned into stone. But L. Frank Baum, the author of the original Oz books, portrayed just that with his continuing stories of Dorothy. When you get by these tough facts, the film version is solid entertainment for the over-7 set. Dorothy (a 10-year-old Fairuza Balk in her debut) is back in Kansas, where Aunt Em (Piper Laurie) is at the end of her rope: her niece is not sleeping and going on about a place called Oz. Therapy may be the answer, but luckily the scary clinic goes dark before Dorothy can be, er, cured (but the lead-up will scare the munchkins out of most kids). She wakes up in the land of Oz, now in tatters, and searches for its king, the Scarecrow. A new set of friends, including a tin soldier, a talking chicken, and a pumpkin man, help her against new villains, including Princess Mombi (Jean Marsh)--complete with a set of detachable heads--and the evil Nome King (Nicol Williamson with a great assist from Will Vinton's Claymation). The sole directorial effort of Oscar-winning editor Walter Murch is stuffed with marvelous effects that foreshadow later works by Tim Burton and the Henson non-Muppet films. --Doug Thomas


Product details:

Item number (ASIN): B0000DZ3EN
Actor: Fairuza Balk, Nicol Williamson, Jean Marsh, Piper Laurie, Matt Clark
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Brand: Disney
Category: DVD
Creator: David Watkin, Walter Murch, Colin Michael Kitchens, Gary Kurtz, Paul Maslansky, Gill Dennis, L. Frank Baum
Director: Walter Murch
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
Languages: English
Manufacturer: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Number Of Items: 1
Original Release Date: June 21, 1985
Package Dimensions: 60 x 540 x 750 (hundredths-inches)
Package Quantity: 1
Publisher: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Region Code: 1
Release Date: February 3, 2004
Running Time: 113, minutes
Theatrical Release Date: June 21, 1985

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Rating: - NOT a sequel to the musical...
...and if you view it with that understanding, you may be pleasantly surprised. Another very imaginative childrens' fantasy of the 80s (right up there with Labyrinth and The Never Ending Story). My 4 year old daughter loves this movie. Some reviewers here have complained that it is too dark, but I think children will generally prefer a dark, but emotionally honest, film to a condescendingly bright movie any day. Still, some kids are more susceptible to nightmares than other, so be aware that there are a few scenes that could give very sensitive viewers bad dreams.

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Rating: - Dark and weird, but fascinating
The cover of this DVD does a terrible job of preparing the viewers for what they're about to witness. The cover is bright, cheery and green: exactly what the movie is not. People who come into this expected a follow-up to the Judy Garland film, complete with song and dance numbers, are going to be severely disappointed. And possibly a little traumatized. Nonetheless, this is a very good movie...just not the sort of thing most people envision when they think about Oz. Our story begins with Dorothy--an actual child this time, not a teenager like Judy Garland--still obsessing over the "imaginary" world of Oz. She's carted off to a mental asylum by her concerned but misguided aunt and uncle, where she comes within a hairsbreadth of being subjected to primitive electroshock therapy from a creepy-looking machine. The opening scenes are filled with disturbing, dreary images of a prison-like mental asylum run by a deranged doctor...and this pretty much sets the tone for the entire movie. Even Dorothy's escape into Oz doesn't brighten her life much, as she's confronted with an almost post-apocalyptic vision of a desolate world with a run-down Yellow Brick Road and an empty city. Her friends are nowhere to be found. The villains in this movie are genuinely scary. Mombi collects severed heads and switches them with her own. The Nome King is a rock-monster who swallows people whole. Despite all this darkness, however, there are moments of poignant sweetness in Dorothy's friendships with Jack, Tiktok, and the Gump. And Belinda the talking chicken provides some welcome bits of comic relief without descending too far into silliness. I remember seeing this movie as a small child and being thoroughly freaked out by it, but the images and characters stayed with me over the years. Seeing it again as an adult, I was able to appreciate it as a unique artistic vision. Though it's really not for small children, it's still a remarkable story in its own right. It will inevitably be compared to the original Oz movie and expected to "follow in its footsteps," but as the movie isn't intended as a direct sequel, such comparisons aren't really fair. Definitely worth a watch. Just keep an open mind.

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Rating: - return to oz
i'd like to start off by saying this isn't exactly a sequel, obviously judy garland isnt in it, and obviously this time around its a lil 9yo girl instead of a 16yo girl. But the story is still great, even though this movie got extremely mixed reviews. i'm on the side that fell liking it. From what i've read, this movie falls a lot darker then the first movie. Its more in tune to the original books, than its first movie counterpart. but it still has that great magical feeling to it. i honestly suggest people purchase this dvd, its worth the buy. the ruby slippers from movie one, do make a come back. and i thought i saw glinda the good witch of the north in one scene but that was explained to be... anyway as for the features in this dvd, its also dubbed in french, like thats a real popular language here ugh, spanish would of been preferred. there is an interview with the actress who played dorothy that was made in 2002 i believe. this dvd also includes the original theatrical trailer, and a few tv spots. this movie runs a total 1hour 40minutes. and if you didnt already know, this movie isnt really for kids, its for teenagers and adults or even people who've seen the original wizard of oz as kids and who are now adults. give this movie a try, i'm sure you'll enjoy it all.

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Rating: - Wonderful movie...but...
I love this film...so close to the great books of Baum. However after finally getting it on DVD, the film quality is not good...the colors and picture are not crisp and clean...not sharp...it almost looks like a video transfer...what a shame! Such a beautiful production full of color. Am I crazy or is this a dud transfer? They say this movie is scary...well delve into the books...they are scary and divine!

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Rating: - This movie is entertaining, but badly marketted and surprisingly dark
I distinctly remember this movie being marketted as a sequel to the Judy Garland classic "The Wizard of Oz." I was excited about that as a seven year old, as I already loved that movie. However, after I left the theatre I was scared and confused, as it does not resemble its more upbeat and famous predecessor hardly at all. Starring Fairuza Balk("Almost Famous"), Nicol Williamson, Jean Marsh("Willow")and Piper Laurie this is a moderately entertaining movie. Generally best viewed by older children and adults, it finds Dorothy Gale undergoing shock treatment at a turn-of-the-century(19th to 20th)mental hospital for her insistent stories about Oz. A mysterious girl assists in Dorothy's escape from the cruel hospital, and eventually Dorothy is back in Oz, albeit a very different Oz. I now know it was studio politics which insisted this movie be marketted as a sequel to the original Garland film. This was a foolish mistake as it underlined comparisons between the movies, and didn't allow this one to breathe on its own merit. It does indeed have merit, as being the only major studio movie I know of to feature L. Frank Baum's original characters Princess Mombi and The Nome King, among many others. Substituting for The Wicked Witch of The West and The Wizard, respectively, Mombi and The Nome King make the scariest components of these predecessors seem tame and quaint. Mombi, in particular, harbors a grotesque collection of disembodied heads which she periodically alternates on her own body. This feature should have made this movie automatically rated PG-13 instead of the PG it is in the United States. To be fair, though, I'm not 100% sure the PG-13 rating was in existence when the movie first came out. This movie has significantly grown on me over time. Now that I've read some of the original "Oz" stories by Baum, I have more respect for it than I ever had before. This movie is much truer to the spirit of those works than the Judy Garland movie ever was, and in a certain light, even makes that great film look bad for its whitewashed deviations from the source material. This movie is lacking in one serious respect, though, and that is in the storytelling flexibility that makes a good movie a great one. In the end, it's just too dark and serious for its own good.

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