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The Wiz (30th Anniversary Edition w/ Bonus CD)
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Manufacturer: Universal Studios
Find all by Universal Studios
Average Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
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Retail Price: $19.98
Online Sale Price: $12.45
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Ease on down the yellow-brick road with the 30th Anniversary Edition of The Wiz, starring superstars Diana Ross and Michael Jackson! Relive all of the magic of this beloved musical when Dorothy is whisked away to the enchanting wonderland of Oz, where she encounters the Scarecrow, the Tinman and the Lion. The Wiz features spectacular musical numbers from legendary producer Quincy Jones and an all-star cast including Lena Horne, Richard Pryor, Nipsey Russell and Ted Ross. With a digitally remastered picture and the unforgettable soundtrack in new 5.1 surround sound, it's an experience of the land of Oz unlike anything you've seen before!
User Submitted The Wiz (30th Anniversary Edition w/ Bonus CD) Reviews
March 16, 2010
Entertaining Remake
Reading through the first dozen or two of the reviews, I see that it is not necessary to compare this version with the one made in the late thirties starring Judy Garland, Bert Lahr, Jack Haley, Ray Bolger, and, with Margaret Hamilton, featured as the nasty neighbor-wicked witch, a role for which she is still remembered....by those old enough to have lived with the film but young enough to still remember anything. It seems doubtful that Lahr, Haley or Bolger are remembered either, for that matter.
At any rate, seeing this film for the first time in 2010, I found it to be entertaining, the cast talented, the songs competently written and quite well done, the dancing suitably vigorous,and the spectacle colorful. I would admonish one reviewer that we no longer consider 34 (Diana Ross' age at the time of making the film) to be middle age. Happily, she is supposed to be 24 and shy, thus, deglamorized as she is when not singing or dancing, she fits the bill. Playing a fifteen year old, however, as did Garland, would have been a stretch. Michael Jackson invested his role with some of his later famed charisma, but stayed within the confines of the role quite well. Nipsey Russell, was, what a watcher of his successful TV show would have expected, quite good.
In a different world entirely, was the Good Witch, played by the incomparable Lena Horne. Even in this walk-on role, doing her one song, she seems, to a fan of several score years, one of the very best entertainers to have emerged to prominence in the forties (though her career began earlier than that). What a loss to the public was the race barrier of the day which killed any chance she had to be one of the great stars of Hollywood. Very good to see her here, lending her spirit and voice to the film.
On two points, at least, this film fails to create the same sentimental aura which made the MGM earlier version memorable down the years: first, the score, though above average, did not have the impact of that by two of Broadway/Hollywood's best, Harold Arlen (music) and E.Y. Harburg(lyrics). When they were attuned to the setting for which they wrote, they were Hall of Famers; second, of course, the Wiz could not achieve that sentimental but
not cloying effect that the first film managed. Perhaps, it was a change in what audiences would tolerate in the forty years between the making of the first and the second.
In sum, this is an entertaining, truly FAMILY, film, in the best sense of the word. Diana Ross is an admirable star, her supporting cast, quite competent. Buy it for the kids and watch it with them.
March 9, 2010
DVD
Product was excatly as described. Received product on time. Will purchase from this vendor again.
March 4, 2010
Great movie!
This was one of my favorite movies when I was young! The songs in it from when I was a child still linger with me today. I bought this movie so I could share it with my children now. On top of that MJ is in it and he will be forever missed!
March 3, 2010
uhmmmmmmmmm
A little weird, I mostly just wanted to see Michael Jackson as a teenager doing his first movie. I loved that -seeing him sing and dance and interact. He was so talented. Why didn't we appreciate him, why didn't we reach out to him, embrace him in his later years?? Almost all geniuses tend to get a little weird when they move on from their prime and they cannot overachieve anymore, or out do what they have done. Their physical appearanace changes, new people come into the spotlight and nudge them over-it is not in their character to accept those normal life experiences. HIs brothers went on to live normal lives, but for Michael, it was not possible. Show biz WAS his link to life, he could not adapt.
February 19, 2010
This film doesn't stand the test of time.
It was great to see Michael Jackson's first film role, and he was great as the Tin Man, but the film as a whole doesn't stand the test of time. Some of the dance numbers just seem to go on and on and on without moving the story forward. This type of indulgence was typical of the time in which the film was made-the 70's (very over-the-top). And, for all her talent and brilliance, (and I think she's amazing) but Diana Ross was just horribly miscast as Dorothy. Also, we buy DVD's because we want the extra's and this DVD doesn't contain any, other than the theatrical trailer, (which really isn't an extra). For a 30th anniversary re-release they should have gone back to the director or producer for commentary; or at least some of the living cast members. The digital remastering did enhance the picture quality, but over-all the film as a whole was just "ok." I didn't love it, but didn't hate it.
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