The Wizard of Oz

Rating:
Summary: JUDY HARLAND`S FIRST MIRACLE FILM
Review: Judy Garland(1922-1969)(Frances Ethel Gumm) remains the greatest entertainer of the 20th century. And THIS film is the one that m a d e her. Unlike most vehicles, the ones with Judy stands the passing of the years. She is more than ever - a great artist - whose appeal never seem to diminish. The film THE WIZARD OF OZ 1939 is also a master- piece, produced by the greatest studio of the golden age, METRO-GOLDWYN-MAYER. I`ll give flower- greetings to the crew and cast. It`s an all-time

classic...

Rating:
Summary: Strictly kids fare
Review: Cute story, poor acting, poor directing, terrible singing....but then you know that. The DVD transfer is sub-standard. Picture quality is acceptable, but not better than VHS. Turn off your surround decoder or the whole movie comes through the center channel. I realize that this was a mono movie made in 1939, but surely a little time could have been taken to give it an AC-3 soundtrack. No extras on the disc worth mentioning. One more note: original theatrical presentation doesn't mean widescreen in this case. The original aspect ratio was close enough to 4:3 that the DVD was pressed as 4:3. Buy this disc if you don't mind your kids playing with the DVD player, otherwise wait for Ted Turner to broadcast it.

Rating:
Summary: The best family picture of all time
Review: For an amusing evening some time, sit down with someone else who grew up watching Danny Kaye introduce "The Wizard of Oz" every spring and try to list all the lines from this movie that have made it into the popular culture. I'll start the ball rolling with "I have a funny feeling we're not in Kansas any more," and you can take it from there.

While it's wonderful to be able to own this for home use... we recently had the immense pleasure of seeing this in the theater, in its restored glory. Our daughters (11 and 7) had seen the film many times at home, but our son Charlie, 2, had not.

When Dorothy opens the door in Oz and the world outside, for the first time in the film, is all in glorious Technicolor, Charlie's intake of breath could be heard throughout the theater, and his hushed "Ohhhh!" as he raised his finger to the screen was worth the price of admission. Yes, it's a magical place, over the rainbow.

Another fun evening's entertainment -- imagine what the film would have been like with some of the originally planned cast members. Buddy Ebsen would have been a fine Tin Man (as anyone who's seen him dance opposite Shirley Temple can attest). But as dear as Little Miss Temple is, I can't really imagine her as Dorothy; Judy Garland's wistful, longing, on-the-verge-of-maturity rendition of "Over The Rainbow" is such a motion picture icon that it's hard to imagine it done with the bright, sweet tone of "The Good Ship Lollipop" or "The Codfish Ball."

On the other hand, W.C. Fields, originally considered for the role of the Wizard, would have brought an even greater sense of charlatanism and trickery to the character. I can just imagine his gin-soaked drawl as he says, "Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!" And the languorous Gale Sondergaard, originally considered as the Wicked Witch of the West, could be perhaps the only villainess to bring more subdued, seething sexuality to her role than Glenn Close's incomparable Cruella de Vil. Just imagine, she might have been responsible for an entire generation of young men growing up with a series of complexes that Freud himself would have trouble pinning down.

But as it is... the film is really just about perfect. Yes, it's a filmed stage play in most shots, with relatively fixed camera positions and cuts that conveniently fade to black just as the actors are about to dance off the stage floor and crash into a backdrop. And none of that matters once Leo roars and the music starts; the film is magic, Oz is magic, and for the time that it's on the screen (large or small), that magic lives again for anyone who watches it.

Rating:
Summary: Of Course like everyone else in the world I saw it too!
Review: Just thought that someone need to write something about what has to be one of the best movies of all times! This movie has everything from a scuffy little dog, to a warty noised witch! If you have never seen this, you are deffinately one of the sadest individuals alive on the planet. So my recommendation to you would be to stop reading this and search for this DVD on Amazon. P.S . Dont stop with just one copy. i have a copy of the movie on everything from the old beta tapes to DVD!

Rating:
Summary: "I'll get you my pretty...and your little dog too!"
Review: It is highly doubtful that director Victor Fleming and the cast of "The Wizard of Oz" could possibly have imagined that their film recorded in 1939 would still be watched and endearing children and adults alike 64 years later! Film audiences in 2003 may flock to theaters to see the latest computer-generated special effects, but that has not diminished the power of this film that was created with special effects by people who never heard of computers, as well as filming in color which was still relatively new for both studios and audiences alike in 1939.

"The Wizard of Oz" was based upon the children's novel "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" written in 1900 by L. Frank Baum (1856-1919). The story is about a young girl named Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland) who is being raised by her Aunt Emily 'Auntie Em' Gale (Clara Blandick) and Uncle Henry Gale (Charley Grapewin) on a farm in Kansas. After getting upset that her dog Toto (played by a dog named Terry) might be taken away because of the ramblings of their neighbor Miss Almira Gulch (Margaret Hamilton), Dorothy decides to run away. However, Dorothy and Toto are caught in a horrific storm that whisks them away to a magical land called Oz where she meets people and characters that nothing like what she knew in Kansas: Glinda the Good Witch of the North (Billie Burke), the Scarecrow (Ray Bolger), the Tin Man (Jack Haley), the Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr), the Wicked Witch of the West (Margaret Hamilton), and many others. (The film's cast had approximately 200 people.)

One interesting aspect to the film was that scenes in Kansas were filmed in black and white, while scenes in Oz were filmed in color. This was the first time that many audience members had seen a film done in full color in 1939 and the transformation from black and white to color is still dramatic today. Actor Frank Morgan plays five different roles in the film (including Professor Marvel), and several other cast members play dual roles (Margaret Hamilton, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley and Bert Lahr). Songs used in the film include the following:

* "Over the Rainbow", sung by Judy Garland. This became Judy Garland's signature song and is probably the most famous song from the film.
* "We Welcome You To Munchkinland", sung by the many cast members playing the Munchkins.
* "Follow the Yellow Brick Road", sun by the many cast members playing the Munchkins.
* "If I Only Had a Brain", sung by Judy Garland and Ray Bolger.
* "We're Off to See The Wizard", sung by Judy Garland and Ray Bolger.
* "If I Only Had a Heart", sung by Jack Haley (and off-screen voice of Adriana Casselotti).
* "If I Only Had the Nerve", sung by Bert Lahr, Judy Garland, Ray Bolger and Jack Haley.
* "The Merry Old Land of Oz", sung by Frank Morgan, Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Bert Lahr and the cast members of the Emerald City.
* "If I Were King of the Forrest", sung by Bert Lahr, Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, and Jack Haley.

Overall, "The Wizard of Oz" is one of the best films of all time and deserves a resounding 5 out of 5 stars. This film will continue to entertain for many decades to come and is well worth having your collection. If you want to try something different, play Pink Floyd's album "The Dark Side of the Moon" while watching the film instead of listening to the film's normal soundtrack. Also, the DVD contains many extras, including outtakes and excerpts from the 1914 and 1925 silent film versions.

Rating:
Summary: My All Time Favorite...
Review: I have watched this movie maybe 2 million times since I was a small child. Frankly, I never get tired of it. There is a review from someone who apparently didn't like the movie. They should be locked up and have it played continuously. I think anyone who does not like this movie probably has serious childhood issues!!

Rating:
Summary: There's No Place Like Home
Review: Everybody has a favorite movie and "The Wizard of Oz" is mine (and I'm sure I'm not alone in that sentiment). This is a timeless masterpiece as witness its' continuing popularity with successive generations. Younger fans might not be aware of this but the movie used to be shown exclusively once a year on TV and countless households made a family event of watching it together. It has everything; good acting, great cinematography, fantastic music, creative innovations, great props and scenery, and a terrific storyline. Some dismiss this as a children's movie but it appeals to all ages because of its' timeless message.

I mentioned that the acting is good. I didn't feel comfortable with a stronger superlative but it's hard to fault any of the characters. Certainly Bert Lahr, as the Cowardly Lion, steals many a scene with his fantastic performance. Margaret Hamilton is a fantastic Wicked Witch of the West. The others play their roles as they were meant to be played. Let's face it, the title role was not meant for the likes of Spencer Tracy or Marlon Brando. Although I can somewhat envision it, the Scarecrow was not a role for the likes of Jimmie Stewart. The casting was, perhaps, better than the acting itself. The only real debate is whether Judy Garland or Shirley Temple would be the better Dorothy Gale. A case could be made for Miss Temple but then "Somewhere over the Rainbow" would be synonymous with "On the Good Ship Loli-Pop" and "Animal Crackers in My Soup". I prefer the way Miss Garland belted it out.

The cinematography was certainly innovative. I can only recall one other movie in which the contrast of black and white was used to any effect ("Schindler's List" with the young girl in the red coat). I may be forgetting an obvious example but it seems that movies were either black and white or color and never a mix. The scenery and the props are a part of cinematic history. We all know about the ruby slippers and the yellow brick road. The music is beautiful from the opening credits to the closing ones. "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and "Ding Dong the Witch is Dead" are know to all. Personally, I love the Munchkin's welcoming song to Dorothy as much as any of the music. And speaking of the munchkins, they are just another of the many creative touches in this movie. It was no small feat to amass so many adult dwarfs and midgets.

However, it is the story that makes the movie such a timeless masterpiece. This is a story about persons in search of what they don't have only to discover that they had it all along but didn't realize it. The Scarecrow thought that, because there were things that he didn't know, he must not have a brain. He learns that knowledge is a journey rather than an end. The Tin Man thinks that his loneliness is because he doesn't have a heart. He discovers that love exists in our relationships and loneliness exists in being alone. The Cowardly Lion confuses fear with cowardice only to discover that courage is action despite fear, not instead of it. Dorothy felt the need to wander off to find a better place. She soon discovers that there's no place like home. How many of us spent years trying to find ourselves before we, too, discovered the same message. These are all important lessons in life and we all share the joy of Dorothy as she wakes up in her own bed happy to be home at last. The fact that this makes us wish, secretly, that were children again does not make this a "children's movie". Watch it with the whole family (and a box of Kleenex).

Rating:
Summary: The Wonderful Movie of Oz
Review: I have been enchanted as I now watch the movie as an adult. It is not just a story about a girl from Kansas trying to get back home - actually, that was added into the movie: "There's no place like home" wasn't in the book even. I think it was a story of things that we want, and that we imagine these things may be granted by the Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The scarecrow wants a brain, the tinman a heart, and the lion courage. On their journey off to see the wizard, they encounter the wicked witch of the west - who is determined to get the ruby slippers off of Dorothy's feet. Now, the thing I am puzzled by is at the beginning, Glinda is the one who reminds the wicked witch about the shoes. Then she is the one who places them on Dorothy's feet: "There they are and there they'll stay." Had she not had the shoes, her journey to the wizard would not have been so troublesome. Not to mention that the "good witch" sent Dorothy on a journey to a phony wizard. I wonder now if there was some kind of irony in that - since she was also the one who in the end tells Dorothy that all she has to do is click her heels together and say "there 's no place like home." While the movie is totally a classic I love and will watch over and over again, I am wondering about the book: Were the "ruby slippers" (which were silver in the novel) as magical - and - if there was no "no place like home" in the novel then I am wondering how Dorothy got back to Kansas. I think that because each time I watch this film I realize something new, it will always remain one of my favorite movies ever.

Rating:
Summary: An OZ-some DVD Experience
Review: Like most baby boomers, I've watched this film dozens of times in the past on broadcast TV, then VHS tape, then LaserDisc ... but I had never actually SEEN "The Wizard of Oz" until this newly restored DVD came out. It's an amazing transfer. The sepia-tone Kansas sequences are startlingly sharp and clear, and the Technicolored world "Over the Rainbow" is truly dazzling. I found myself fascinated by details I had never noticed before: the glittering corn stalks in the Scarecrow's field; the mirror-like floors of the Emerald City; the polished buttons on the guardsmen's uniforms. Incredibly, even the individual grains of red sand in the Witch's hourglass stood out and glistened! All these minor-but-sumptuous visual details served to heighten the magical spell that the film has always woven, enhancing the performances, the story, and the music.

The DVD extras are a mind-boggling embarrassment of riches. The "Making Of" documentary hosted by the incomparable Angela Lansbury is worth the price of the DVD alone, but there's so much more: an international poster gallery, interviews with cast members, deleted scenes, production stills, radio clips, etc, etc. There's enough material to keep even the most casual viewer fascinated for hours, and a true Oz buff will be occupied for days!

If you only bought a DVD player to watch this one disc, it would well be worth the expense. Treat yourself, and fall in love with this classic film again ... for the first time.

Rating:
Summary: A Timeless Classic
Review: As a child this movie wowed and amazed me just as much as any new 2005 film. That is really saying something when you consider that it was made seventy years ago. It truly is timeless in that it has held up better than any movie ever made.

If you have not seen it, you really should. I am surprised Hollywood has never tried to remake this one. I really hope they never do, because the original is so great.