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Summary: ~:~mAdNeSs~:~
Review: This has been my favorite movie for a long time now. It's not becuz of the story itself or whatever but the visuals are just too much! I saw this for the first time when I was about 8 and even now, the imagery in this movie still puts me in a dream like state. I don't see how dorothy could have shrunk 2 feet and 8 years sine the original but hey? who cares? the visuals make up for everything =)
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Summary: Great movie but most definitely not for children
Review: I'm horrified to see this title back on shelves. I'll admit it. I thought it was a great movie when I saw it 10 years ago...but I have to warn parents about this. Although this movie may not seem all that scary, it can be traumatizing. I'm sixteen now (I saw it at 6) and I still won't be able to sit down and watch it. Between the halls of living heads, talking chickens and sanitariums, this movie will expose young minds to dark psychological treatment they shouldn't get for another 10 years. I know Return to Oz changed my childhood, and I want you parents to know that although it might not seem like it now, it may stick with your kids for a long time to come.
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Summary: A Film That Deserves To Be Re-evaluated -- Upwards
Review: Just finished watching Return To Oz, which arrived today. I'm still pondering it. The production values are first-rate, the conception and execution are absolutely stunning, and the music and cinematography are manifestations of some unspoken poetry. The drunken fanfares and weeping strings on the soundtrack, the poised, meditative composition of the shots, the way animatronics and claymation are used far more effectively in the absence of CGI than anything I've seen in the last four months, easily. It was courageous of director Walter Murch (who never worked in that capacity again, although he's since received Oscars and all sorts of other technical citations for his editing work on such films as The English Patient) to basically construct the film as a sort of tone poem to childhood, to the way a flat and unchanging Midwestern sky can crush a little girl's spirit.From what I can remember, the film was a financial disaster. The pre-Eisner-Wells Disney poured roughly $30 million into the production -- a fortune at the time. The money is all up on the screen, however. The sets are intricate and spectacular. Ultimately, this film lands somewhere between The Neverending Story and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen in my estimation. It doesn't descend into eighties camp the way the former seems to have in hindsight, but ultimately it's not quite as sophisticated or consistent as Terry Gilliam's work. You get the idea that Murch & Co. received pressure from the suits to push the film into a more kid-friendly direction (on a par with the execrable Judy Garland version), whereas their creative impetus drove them into dark psychological territory. The end result is striking.
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Summary: From an Oz Book Fan
Review: I grew up reading the Oz books, and have always loved the original Wizard of Oz. I feel like this film is no classic, but a worthy successor and very much underrated by the critics of the 80's. Fairuza Balk makes a charming, earnest and believable Dorothy who, as in the books, accepts everything, even falling a thousand feet from the sky, as part of the adventure ("It can't be helped now!") The music score by David Shire is my favorite film soundtrack, mixing Prokofiev-like themes with ragtime, true to the turn-of-the-century setting of the story. The movie is no scarier than the books, save that it may present certain aspects, such as the hall of heads, less matter-of-factly than as presented in the books. Overall, a visual and aural feast that deserves to be seen.
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Summary: One of the Best Disney Movies!
Review: I thank Roy Disney,Will Vinton and George Lucas for Creating This Spooky But Fantastic Film I Like Since "Star Wars" and "Roger Rabbit"! Princess Mombi and the Gnome King are Perfect Disney Villains! Dorthey Hugging Tic-Toc is So HeartWarming to Mothers and their Childrens! and I Love Happy Endings! the Special Effects Is So Cool! Thank You!
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Summary: Sugoi!!!
Review: I saw this movie about 10 years ago, and I still remeber it! I'm a big Wizard of Oz fan, and I have to say that this movie was even more creative and memorable than the orignal. A must have for anyone who was ever seven years old....even great for older people who still browse the kids and family section in blockbuster. ^^
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Summary: Finally, it's re-released...
Review: Perhaps one of the greatest film versions to be spawned by children's literature, RETURN TO OZ, unlike it's immensely popular predecessor, lives and breathes in a storybook realm. Through illusive special effects, a whimsical score, and true-to-life depictions of the inhuman characters, RETURN TO OZ becomes a dream unto itself, and surpasses, through its vivid style and mystical appearance, the poignancy of the MGM prequel. Fairuza Balk is outstanding as Dorothy; here, with her wide, questioning eyes and her neat little braids, she proves to be one of the most talented child actresses. She brings an air to the film that few children could have done: she gives it its life, and presents a much more picturesque Dorothy than fifteen year-old Judy Garland did in 1939. The film remains a masterpiece, despite harsh criticisms in reference to the films rather frightening scenes. The film is frightening, no doubt, but for a child now it is no scarier than the Wicked Witch of the West was for us when we were little, and the movie remains virtuous to Baum's story. It captures the wild, fantastic life of the books far better than the MGM version, and continues to be innocent and well-intentioned entertainment: far more imaginatively stimulating than some of the wackier and more violent children's movies that we see today. For anyone, RETURN TO OZ is marvellous: masterfully-acted, deceptively realistic, mystical, and thoroughly enjoyable. To view it is to make an ascent into a realm of storybook lore, it remains whimisical and fantastic, yet sometimes frightening, and always treated with the utmost seriousness.
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Summary: A must-see for any fan of the Oz books!
Review: I first saw this movie when I was about four years old. I liked it better than the 1939 movie... I still do! It is a wonderful adaptation of L. Frank Baum's 2nd and 3rd Oz books, "The Marvelous Land of Oz" and "Ozma of Oz." The best characters are Jack Pumpkinhead and Tiktok. At the end parade, if you look closely, you can find Oz characters from the Famous Forty Oz Books.
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Summary: The best "OZ" movie out there! A must-see !
Review: I am a serious "Oz" collector and this movie is my favorite. This tops the original "Wizard of Oz" for me. This movie is based on Frank L. Baum's third book "Ozma of Oz" and the movie is a wonderful adaptation. They couldn't have done it better. I recommend this movie to people of all ages who are still young at heart. Mrs. Kristin Krahmer.
Rating:
Summary: best comeback movie
Review: I saw this movie when I was younger and it was the best thing that I had seen since the original Oz. The wheelers, Tik Tok and Jack the Pumpkin Head were great characters that were taken from L. Frank Baum's wonderful novel. I highly recommend this movie to anyone who is young or young at heart.=^..^=
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