Oscar Diggs is a magician and con man living in Kansas in 1905 – who when it is discovered that he is fraud – manages to escape an angry crowd. But instead of freedom by hot air balloon, he is sucked into a tornado – which transports him to a colourful land called Oz.
Believed to be the Wizard who was sent to save Oz, he is soon persuaded by two witch sisters Evanora, and Theodora (who has fallen in love with him) to help kill the wicked witch as she killed the king. He discovers that the witch they sent him to kill is actually Glinda the good witch. Now with the help of Glinda, Finley a flying lion, and China Girl – a doll made out of fine china.
Direction
Sam Raimi directs and gives a tour de force in filming techniques and styles. The opening act has Oz in Kansas in the early 1900’s and the the look and feel of the film mirrors that of the 1930’s film it is homaging. There is a black/white/sepia tone to it in ‘full screen 1:33:1 ratio .-
When Oscar gets to Oz, it changes to the more Hollywood 2.39.1 aspect ratio – with wide screen and full of colours.
Cast/Characters
James Franco as the lead role of Oz is sound. He seems to struggle with some of the more serious elements of the film, and comes across too comedic in these moments. He has done well in lead roles at other times (The Disaster Artist), but I honestly think he is better suited to supporting roles than leads.
Michelle Williams is also sound as Glinda in The Land of Oz (and Annie in Kansas). She too has done much better work in other roles. She is one of my favourite actresses, and found her to be almost held back from her full potential.
Rachel Weiss and Mila Kunis play Evanora and Theodora respectively. Kunis gets more to do than Weiss, and has plenty of fun later in the film. Despite Weiss’ character being the ‘more evil’ of the two – she either struggled with getting to the ‘zone’ or this was a purposeful notes from director Raimi. This was until the final battle between Evanora and Glinda.
Zach Braff gets an early on screen scene, and then plays the voice role of Finley throughout the film. Joey King too has an early role as a girl in a wheelchair, and voices China Girl.
Screenplay/Setting/Themes
Because one of the primary conflicts of the screenplay is the Theodora v Oscar narrative – this meant the inclusion of their ‘love story’ – and how she falls in love with him. It did feel contrived that she would fall in love so fast, and also fall into hate so fast after he essentially disregarded her feelings. It would have made a better villain arc if it wasn’t ‘over a man’.
I enjoyed the ‘you were there’ moments that included those from Kansas, who appeared in Oz too (Williams Annie/Glinda, Braff’s Frank/Finley and Kings young girl/China Girl.
There are also more references to the original Wizard of Oz, where Williams Annie is alluded to become the mother of Dorothy (she is going to marry a John and Dorothy’s parents were John and Ann in one of the novel sequels. There is also references to a lion (who attacks Finley early in the film) Scarecrows (Oscars farcical army) and minor tinman references.
I absolutely loved the animation of The Land of Oz, including Emerald City etc. It was full of colour and wonder, mimicking that of what we saw in the 1930s version, just with updated effects.
Despite the fact that throughout the film all those in The Land of Oz believing Oscar to be the Wizard sent to save him, it’s never confirmed or denied that he is in fact ‘the’ wizard. Him finding a sense of purpose, and actually caring about others for the first time – his moments with China Girl are the most touching. The film is about his identity, and “becoming” The Wizard of Oz
His showdown with Evanora and Theodora with simple conman trickery is well done as well, as he uses real world magic like smoke and mirrors.
Raimi regulars Bruce Greenwood, Ted Raimi and even his 1973 Oldsmobile Delta make an appearance.
Score/Soundtrack
Danny Elfman’s score is instantly recognisable, and considering that this film almost had a Tim Burton feel to it, his Gothic tunes feel right at home.
Overall
I liked this more than I thought I was going to. It had great effects, some even better filming techniques including impressive use of aspect ratio.
While some of the performances were just okay, this was still a strong recommend from me.
3.5/5
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