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Return to Oz
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Manufacturer: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Find all by Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Directed By: Walter Murch
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Theatrical Release: June 21, 1985
Average Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
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Retail Price: $14.99
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Starring: Fairuza Balk, Nicol Williamson, Jean Marsh, Piper Laurie, Matt Clark
If you loved THE WIZARD OF OZ, you'll love accompanying Dorothy on this second thrilling adventure based on L. Frank Baum's "Oz" books! Dorothy finds herself back in the land of her dreams ... and makes delightful new friends (like Tik Tok, Jack Pumpkinhead, and the Gump) ... and dangerous new enemies (the creepy Wheelers, the head-hunting Princess Mombi, and the evil Nome King). With every twist in the yellow brick road, you'll find awesome new surprises and special effects that will astound you!
User Submitted Return to Oz Reviews
December 2, 2008
10 yr old twins: 1 loved it - 1 hated it
OK - My kids loved Wizard of Oz so I picked this up for them. I have 10yr old boy/girl twins and a 4yr old boy. The boys LOVED it but my daughter HATED it! It is MUCH darker than the original movie, but follows the book much closer. I think my daughter was expecting the singing/dancing of the original movie. She was scared to death of The Wheelers and the whole head changing issue. The boys thought the whole movie was "cool" and not babyish. They liked that it was weird. My personal opinion of the movie? I have to go with my daughter on this one! Didn't like it a bit! I'd take the original Wizard of Oz hands down! Return to Oz is not for the scaredy cats by any means.
November 13, 2008
Enjoyment
I haven't actually viewed my purchase yet, but the condition I received it in was quite satisfactory. I am positive that I shall enjoy it. THANKS! :)
November 2, 2008
Astonishing, Original, and Funtastic Movie!
100 Snazzes on the 100 point Snazz-o-scale. Perfect!
-Return to Oz is a fantastic and phenomenal movie. It did flop at the time of its release, I'm sad to say. I recall one critic calling it grim and gloomy, saying they could have at least had a little "Over the Rainbow" in it. I also saw a Return to Oz float once at Walt Disney World, during the Main Street Electrical parade. It's a great parade but I think most people looked at the float and thought "What is THAT?"
-But it is a great movie nevertheless. The characters are wonderful; from Dorothy to her friends, Jack and Tic-Toc, to the villains, Mombi and the Wheelers. Mombi stealing lovely young maiden's heads for her own is a frightful prospect. And the Wheelers are very cool looking. They are men with wheels on their feet and hands, and they go tooling about on all fours. I wonder how long they had to practice to learn to wheel about like that?
-Dorothy is played by Fairuza Balk and she does an excellent job, especially noting she must have acted continuously with special effects men, puppeters, and just her imagination. All about her in Oz are wonderous creatures but very few humans at all.
-The character that steals the show though is the Nome King. I think he's one of the greatest villains ever put to film, right up there with Darth Vader. For much of the movie, you only hear him and don't see what he looks like, which builds his menace. You see his nomes. When you finally DO see the Nome King, he's a claymation character made of rock. This was way before computer graphics and he looks astonishing; a large, crowned, bearded face peering out of a wall or a side of a mountain. I do believe Will Vinton did his animation, and he and his company are experts at claymation.
-But the Nome King has more than looks going for him, he is arrogant, powerful, manipulative, short-tempered, selfish, and just plain mean. He has some superb lines.
"That's not fair!" Dorothy cries.
"No? Well it seems fair to me," the Nome King replies. "And MY opinion IS all that matters."
When Mombi arrives at the Nome King's throne room with the news that Dorothy Gale is in Oz and approaching, she gasps and then says "You already know?"
"I know everything," the Nome King replies confidently.
Some of have said it's not a child's movie, being too dark and scary. It may be for older children, but I think it's very enjoyable all the same, and you can't have really good good guys without really bad villains. In addition to the great characters and great special effects, there is also some wonderful humor. Dorothy discovers headless dancing maidens turned to stone in the ruins of the Emerald City.
-"That's just plain careless," notes Belinda, her talking chicken.
-Give Return to Oz a try, you will fall in love with it.
September 29, 2008
Return to Oz is the real deal!
This movie is the real deal! Check out "Ozma of Oz" and "The Land of Oz," which take place after the events in the "Wizard of Oz" to see how L. Frank Baum envisioned Oz and then compare them to this movie. Walter Murch, not only got the look and feel of Oz right, but he also got the personalities of these new characters correct. Watch this movie to learn what Oz was really like. Jack Pumpkinhead deserves our love as much as the Scarecrow! Bettina the chicken is more Dorothy's pet than Toto. Enjoy the diversity of L. Frank Baum's imagination! You won't be disappointed. This is a GREAT film!!!
I, too, had been brainwashed by the MGM-version of OZ, so much so that I wouldn't even read the OZ book series. It was in my 20's, while recovering from surgery that I started to read the L. Frank Baum books. I found them to be much richer, interesting, darker and with deeper personal relationships than the MGM Wizard OZ-lite version. I was hooked.
When this movie came out, I was enthralled and amazed. There were other people who loved the original stories as much as me! Fairuza Balk is an age-appropriate Dorothy; Dorothy did have a pet chicken named Bettina that is featured in many of the "Oz" books who talked and eventually decided to remain in Oz; the importance of Jack Pumpkinhead cannot be overstated for the rest of the "Oz" books and is an interesting statement on certain stereotypes (which I won't mention because it would be a spoiler); the storyline of how Oz had changed while Dorothy was gone can be seen as commentary of how Kansas had changed after the twister and on how much Dorothy had changed as a result of her visiting Oz; etc. While many people have commented on how scary the movie is, there are also girl-positive, funny and very magical parts to this movie. While it is not appropriate for the very young (and neither is the "Wizard of Oz" for that matter), it is perfect for ages around ten and older. They read, see and hear of more frightening events daily. My suggestion to you is: Go ahead! Give it a try! :) I don't think you'll be sorry!
FOOTNOTE: Prior to Return to Oz's opening, Disney released a "Making Of" documentary that showed how they filmed the claymation of the Gnome King (this was a very novel technique then), how the witch transferred the different heads, how the heads had different expressions while in the closet, the workings of Tic-Toc (who I fell in love with), the animation of the Gump (another lovable creature), how the costumes of the Wheelies were made and the how the actors moved in the costumes and more details. The documentary also presented some amazing-but-true urban myths about the two Oz movies, such as: Fairuza Balk, Walter Murch and Ray Bolger believed that the land of Oz truly existed. Another story was that the coat worn by Frank Morgan, when he played the traveling salesman in "The Wizard of Oz," was bought as a thrift store so that it had that look of wear and dirt. In order to fit Frank Morgan, a seamstress inverted a sleeve and found the name "L. Frank Baum" embroidered inside! This had the effect of totally freaking out the set of the MGM studio, while others felt like they now had L. Frank's blessing. I remember that Frank Morgan himself relayed this story in the documentary. Ray Bolger was very old and possibly, one of the last main characters to be alive at the time of this documentary. He was propped up by pillows and it looked like it took some effort for him to talk. However, he told the story of how, when he auditioned, he pleaded to be considered for the role of the Scarecrow. When asked why, Ray answered something like, to have more time with Do-ro-thy, of course. (You remember the way he said the name "Dorothy," right?) There were other very cool remembrances that I'm sure I've forgotten. But this documentary really helped bridge the MGM-Oz with the Disney-Oz. If anyone knows where to get this documentary, please, please contact me.
September 9, 2008
Dorothy Takes A Little Trip Back 2 OZ!!!
Return to Oz is pretty good, but it can NEVER beat the original! Dorothy recieves a key from the scarecrow and tries to get back to Oz. No one believes her, so Auntie Em takes her to an asylum to help her. During a lightning storm, 'someone' helps Dorothy escape, and she gets transported back to Oz. With the help of totally new friends, Dorothy flies to the Nome King's mountain to figure out what happened to the Scarecrow. Soon, the Nome King challenges Dorothy and her new friends to a little game; Scarecrow has been turned into an ornament, and if they pick the right one, the Scarecrow will come back, but if they guess wrong, they will turn into ornaments as well. The problems I have with this movie is The Emerald City isn't the same, the yellow-brick road is silly. If you love the original classic, you might like RETURN TO OZ!!!
p.s. When I was about 5 or 6, my cousin, aunt, and I would act out a scene from this movie. It's when Dorothy takes the powder of life from Momby!
September 4, 2008
Childhood Memories
I watched this movie as a kids and taped it off television when it was playing on the network, now that I have a clean copy where my brother hasn't taped over chunks of the film, I watch it more then ever. I am suprised how many of my friends have actually heard and/or seen the film too!
September 4, 2008
Scared me to death as a child.
Return to Oz is a film I watched when I was a child and even this fantasy gave me the willies, but I couldn't help but enjoy this bizarre child-like adventure. So much darker than the Wizard of Oz starring Judy Garland, Return to Oz stars Fairuza Balk who in some ways is more connivincing as Dorothy Gale. The good and evil characters are pretty scary, so probably this film should not be viewed by children under the age of 8. There is this one scene that still sticks out for me, where all the mannequin heads come to life, creepy as can be!!! Gotta give this '80s classic a viewing, it will trip you out, enjoy!
July 11, 2008
the best way to travel down the Yellow Brick Road
As a fan of Baum's original works, this has always been my most favorite film version of his world.
And as a child of the 1980s, this film has always had nostalgic appeal. Yes, the film scared me as a child. But that very darkness, mixed with the light fairy tale images, the violence and the childish sense of logic and imagination, is also much closer to Baum's wonderful Oz.
The film comes from the Golden Age of Fantasy Films, the 1980s. The time when they knew how to make clever, visually-imaginative, and often dark fantasy films for children. Return to Oz is absolutely beautiful and perfect. The special effects and production design is better than most films today that are overly CGIed without the same heart and spirit as the Jim Henson company instilled in every film.
I know that the 1939 musical is considered an unparalleled classic, but it has a very plastic and staged feel. It lacks the spirit of Baum's works. Although Return to Oz is often criticsized (and, I believe it bombed at the box office at the time), it has a special place in the hearts of children who grew up with it, as well as fans of the original works.
First of all, the film much more accurately portrays Oz and is much more loyal to the books. Dorothy (perfectly portrayed) is the right age, for starters. Not only do many things more closely resemble the illustrations of the books (especially the characters and the Emerald City), but the world looks much more real and occupied than the 1938 version. The mood of the film is also much closer to Baum's works, mixing silly childish logic and imagination (building the Gump) with darkness and danger of a child in a strange world (the fear of turning into an ornament or to stone or having your head cut off). The film is just as magical and mystical as Baum's books.
Second, I love seeing Oz as "fallen". The Yellow Brick Road reclaimed by nature. The Emerald City crumbling and the people all turned to stone. The Gnome King's palace where people are turned into ornaments. The theme, ironically, of the story is trying to return home doesn't always meet your high expectations and desires. Fits for a film constantly compared to the 1938 musical. Even in a fairyworld, things change and fall away.
This DVD is in widescreen, which is the only way to ever see any movie. There are some cool special features, including a recent interview with the star, Balk. But, best of all, is the film itself, and being able to revisit a childhood favorite for all of us that grew up in the 80s.
July 7, 2008
LOVE IT.
I absolutely LOVE this movie. When I was younger, we used to make a weekly trip to the video store and this is always the movie that I rented. I watched it almost daily for many years. There is another reviewer I saw that said that it would be insane to show this movie to kids, but I can say that as a kid who was obsessed with it, I came out unharmed and still love it. Buy this movie, you won't regret it.
June 27, 2008
Psychologically brilliant... and a 5 star film at that
I don't often say something is perfect, but that's what this movie is. I don't know why I like Return to Oz so much. I like the MGM movie, I guess, and I've never really found the books captivating. Or even the anime series in the '80s.
This movie gets me for so many reasons. For one, it's so diverse in its intentions, and packs a load of hidden gems.
For one, it's a kids film... for adults. It's hard to explain. On its initial release nobody saw it because back then, kids saw mind-numbing kids movies, and adults saw mature films. It never mixed, so nobody really gave this a chance. But now, in the age of discovery and acceptance, it's a cult hit. Who would have guessed? Well, me. I saw this when it aired twice on television in the early '90s, and never forgot it. I went out and rented the badly damaged VHS tape in the late '90s and have loved it ever since.
But this DVD is... brilliant. It looks like it could have been made yesterday. Perhaps this is because the original version was not touched very often. The picture is breath-takingly sharp, and the 5.1 surround sound is perhaps some of the greatest I've ever witnessed, and I'm a bit of a picky perfectionist. The surround in the climax builds and builds. It's simply grand.
For a movie that has been shunned by Disney (their sort of illegitimate daughter), it sure is given the good treatment here, and rightfully so. It is in my opinion one of the finest movies ever made. It's dark, twisted just like the books, has a wonderful cast, BEAUTIFUL music, and an eerie "make up your own mind" twisted logic where reality is concerned. Is Dorothy dreaming it all up, or is it real? Sort of a Pan's Labyrinth situation, really. I'm a bit of a downer, I think that it's all in Dorothy's head, and this makes me sad because I think of what she would have gone through in her later life suffering from these mental problems. Clearly she has no real friends besides from Toto.
The hidden gems as I mentioned above, aren't all that hard to find, if you're perceptive. For instance, in the asylum, there is a shot of HEAD Nurse Wilson standing next to a door with the number '31' printed on it. Nurse Wilson's neck is covered by her dress, so all you see is her HEAD. Later in the movie, the Oz-counterpart of Wilson, being Mombi, keeps her original HEAD in cabinet 31.
Another instance, Doctor Worley continues to dapple with electricity and wishes to become a sort of electrical 'marvel'. In Oz, his counterpart is the Nome King, who is a marvel himself, a magician of sorts... who longs to be 'human'. The exact opposite of his Kansas counterpart. Which brings us to Ozma... Some say she is Dorothy's counterpart, which is why they only meet at the beginning and end of her journey. This could be why Ozma is only seen through mirrors. Perhaps this is how the two wind up in Oz, by disappearing in the reflective waters of the river. I don't know. This is just theory. Anyway, all of the characters in Oz, minus Billina the hen, have their own sort of counterparts in Kansas. You've just got to keep your eye out for them in the 20 minutes leading up to the dramatic escape from the asylum.
So yes, Return to Oz. Quite a brilliant film from a psychological stand-point. Quite a terrifying film on most other points. Eerie is the word, actually. Either way, it far surpasses the original movie, and anybody who disagrees is not a fan of the books, or the original plot, and quite frankly is just a grump.
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