Oz the Great and Powerful (DVD + Digital Copy)

UPDATE (6/14/2013): Refrain from buying the single 3D-disc version, because you have the option of purchasing the 3D disc for $5.99 on DisneyRewards.com with the combo pack. I discovered this when I went online to get the digital copy with my combo pack. It is for a limited time though, so keep that in mind. WARNING: ***SPOILER ALERT*** Some things discussed in this review could potentially spoil some of the film for those who have not yet seen it. Therefore, if you have not seen it, read onward at your own choice. Okay, first thing is first: This review is NOT about the packaging decisions made by Disney for this set or their decision to sell the 3D version separately. I agree with most that it is corporate greed and is quite despicable, but that is not what I am here to review because most everyone can come to that conclusion themselves without people ranting about it endlessly in the reviews. No, this review is an actual critique of the film, so if you are here to get a sense of whether the film's (and thus this set's) actual content is something you're interested in, this review is for you. Naturally, I saw the film in theaters and am writing this review based upon my viewing of the film and observations made during that viewing. I shall attempt to go over the positives and negatives associated with the film in a fair way that can allow others who have not yet seen the film to draw their own conclusions from hopefully. Before I get into specifics, I would like to take this opportunity to recognize that, given the material the film is coming from and the ENORMOUS shadow it had to work in from the 1939 film, one should not judge this film overly harshly. I think we all know that no Oz film is going to ever fully eclipse the much-beloved and universally cherished 1939 film with Judy Garland and Margaret Hamilton. Hence, to even try to overcome such a monumental production is a fool's errand, but so too is the idea of judging any new effort to reboot the Oz saga by comparison to the 1939 film alone. I myself have been a lifelong lover of the 1939 film, ever since I was a small child, and it remains one of the most beloved movies in my collection to this day. I came into this film knowing going in that it would not likely overcome the sheer splendor and magic of the 1939 film, but I also came into it with an open mind and a curiosity to see how they could potentially bring the Oz story into the 21st century. This is how I would suggest all who have not seen it yet to go into it: go in with an open mind and with no preconceptions about the film as best you can. PROS: 1) BRIDGING IDEAS FROM THE 1939 FILM WITH IDEAS FROM THE BOOKS: This film did an excellent job of paying homage to the original 1939 film in several ways (i.e. scenes in Kansas were in black and white while Oz was in full color, hints at Dorothy Gale's heritage and eventual coming, the presence and familial relation of the Wicked Witch of the West and the Wicked Witch of the East, foreshadowing the Wicked Witch of the West's weakness to water, the classic green-skin variation of the Wicked Witch of the West's look made popular by Margaret Hamilton, Glinda's use of bubbles for transportation, foreshadowing the presence of Dorothy Gale's three friends in Oz, the Wizard's illusions that allowed him to use a projection of his head to speak with authority, etc.) while also addressing several things that were absent from the 1939 film and yet present in the original novels (i.e. Dainty China Country, mentioning of the former King of Oz, Quadlings, Winkies, etc.) 2) ACTING: This is something that cuts both ways, as some actors/actresses were well-suited to their roles going in, while others clearly needed some time to grow into their roles. Examples of the former include Mila Kunis and Rachel Weiz, who give absolutely stunning performances as the Wicked Witch of the West (Theodora) and the Wicked Witch of the East (Evanora) respectively. I must take my hat off to Mila Kunis especially, who had HUGE shoes to fill in taking on the role of Theodora, the eventual Wicked Witch of the West, a role which had previously been immortalized by the performance of Margaret Hamilton in the 1939 classic. Kunis put a stupendous modern spin on the character while also paying homage to the foundations for the character that were laid by Margaret Hamilton more than 70 years ago, portraying Theodora in a way many girls like her today could empathize with initially while eventually transitioning her into the classic green-skinned Wicked Witch of the West we all know so well. The same goes for Weiz, who finally gives screen-viewers some insight into the character of the Wicked Witch of the East. She is portrayed as the elder and quite deceitful sister of Theodora who was adviser to and later murdered the last King of Oz so as to take control of Oz herself while framing his daughter, Glinda the Good Witch of the South, for the crime. Both delivered compelling performances that left me wanting to see more of them in the films to come, as did Michelle Williams, who also gave an outstanding performance as the Good Witch Glinda as well as her counterpart in Kansas, Annie, who is foreshadowed to be the mother of Dorothy Gale. I suppose the biggest test any actor or actress faces in portraying a character is leaving the viewer with the desire to see more of them in films to come, and I can definitely say these three more than cleared that bar definitely. 3) VISUALS: This film WOWED me with the visuals and bright colors shown throughout the film. Just as its great predecessor did before it, the film showed the contrast between black and white filming with colorized scenery, and the result couldn't have been more appealing. The bright colors and scenery of the Land of Oz nearly jump right out of the screen at you, and the effect will likely have kids oooing and ahhing over it for sure. The picture quality is simply amazing (see the China Girl for a prime example of this). 4) CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: While some may disagree with this, as an Oz enthusiast for over 25 years, I was pleasantly surprised and pleased by the character development over the course of the film. Some of the biggest and most well-done examples of character development in the film are that of Oscar Diggs (the Wizard) and Theodora (the Wicked Witch of the West). The film does a good job of showing the Wizard's transition from a petty con-man to the great and wonderful Wizard of Oz we were introduced to in the 1939 film. For example, we are shown that Oscar was originally a womanizing con-man and illusionist that had a dubious set of ethical standards. Over the course of the film, we see him mature and learn from his mistakes and their consequences (the hard way in some cases i.e. the transformation of Theodora). The other biggest example lies with the character of Theodora herself. We are shown the HUGE contrast with how she was originally compared to the version of her we are all most familiar with. In the beginning, we are shown she is a compassionate, beautiful young witch who has the best interests of Oz at heart. Having fallen in love with the Wizard upon his arrival in Oz, Theodora's heart is broken when her sister deceives her and convinces her that he has tried to court all of the three primary witches in Oz. It is at this moment of utter heartbreak that Theodora's tears leave burning scars on her face (foreshadowing her weakness to water that would one day be exploited by Dorothy Gale) and she is deceived into eating a green apple that her sister promises will remove all her heartache. This is however proven to be a deception, as the apple's effects cause Theodora's heart to rot and die, eventually disintegrating altogether. As a result, her face is distorted and her skin is turned a bright shade of green. Donning her now all-black attire including a black pointed hat, she assumes her new identity as the Wicked Witch of the West. Mila Kunis delivers a stunning performance to bring this character development to life for us, and it is a real treat to behold. These are just a couple of examples of the good character development over the course of the film. CONS 1) ACTING: As stated above, this cuts both ways. While the bulk of the cast did outstanding, I will say there is one example where this was lacking in particular. That rested with the titular character (Oscar Diggs) and its actor (James Franco). There were times throughout the film that one could tell Franco was perhaps not the best choice to portray the role of the Wizard. Some examples include over-the-top moments of dialogue ("Zim-zala-bim! Begone coward! Fear my greatness!") and his at times awkward moments in the role. However, I do feel that by the end of the film, Franco had found his stride and was finally comfortable in the role, especially by the time of the film's climax in the battle for control of the Emerald City. The biggest times I noticed this awkwardness/woodenness was earlier in the film, and it is true that initially I felt that perhaps another actor may have been better suited to the role of the Wizard. But by the end, I do feel Franco has grown comfortable and competent enough to continue in the role and perfect his handle on the character. 2) LACK OF A CENTRAL MORAL TO THE STORY: Whereas there was a clear lesson we learned alongside Dorothy during her experience in the Land of Oz depicted in the 1939 classic, it wasn't as clear in this film that there was a central moral to be learned from the story. Whereas Dorothy learned to appreciate and cherish what she already possessed in life, it is unclear what moral Oscar was to learn from his initial experience in Oz. I suppose we may learn that even though some of us may not feel important or powerful, our own personal strengths can make up the difference if we put our minds to it. Beyond that, I was left wondering what we as an audience were supposed to learn from Oscar's experience. It is clear he became a better man and finally learned from his mistakes in the end, but the overall lesson he was to learn was not entirely clear. 3) USE OF STRENGTHS: One of the biggest gripes I had with the film was not in what it lacked, but in what it did possess but which it did not use enough in my estimation. A very big example of this was with the character of Theodora. While we are given a decent amount of screen time to get acquainted with her in her original form as Theodora The Good, we are not given nearly as much time to see her in her classical form of the Wicked Witch of the West. Mila Kunis gave such a wonderful performance as Theodora, and yet when she was at her best and clearly having the most fun with the role (that of her wicked form), we were not given nearly as much screen time to see her fully in action. While Evanora and Glinda have their face-off, Theodora simply flees the city to the West on her recently-acquired broomstick. While it is clear we will see them all again including the Wicked Witch of the West, I still wish they would have given her more screen time to further demonstrate her effectiveness in the role of the witch. This was not the only example of this, but you get the picture. 4) OVER-RELIANCE UPON CGI: One thing that the 1939 classic proved was that it is possible to be highly compelling and visually stunning without Computer Generated Imagery. While the special effects in the film were quite attractive to the eye, there were times (especially over the course of the Wizard's journey through Oz) that it bordered upon overkill. The beauty of the 1939 classic was that we didn't have to have a lot of fancy special effects from computers to make us fall in love with the film. Not that all computer-generated effects are bad, in fact many genuinely did add to the visual beauty of the film. It is just a small complaint when they seemed a little over the top, such as when the Wizard was swept into the twister and transported by it to Oz. BOTTOM LINE: This was an excellent opening overall to a promising reboot of the Oz saga. As I noted in the beginning, no Oz-related film is ever going to fully eclipse the 1939 classic in the hearts and minds of the American public. However, considering the immense shadow cast over the film by the 1939 film, this film did a much better job than some would expect in measuring up in terms of quality and substance. It is easy to judge this film and others related to the Land of Oz by the standards of the 1939 classic, but that can at times seem a bit unfair, considering how monumental the earlier film is. If some are always looking for the perfection of the 1939 classic in every Oz-related film, I am afraid they will almost always be disappointed. If one can come into this with an open mind however, it is a HUGE treat indeed overall. For those that have not seen the film and are on the fence about it, I STRONGLY encourage you to give this film a shot. It puts a wonderful modern spin on Baum's classic stories, and that is something that is definitely to be celebrated. I am sure especially that somewhere, Margaret Hamilton is likely smiling about the new take on the character which caused her to be immortalized in cinema history.

an enchanting film that offers a family-friendly adventure set in the magical land of Oz. The movie provides a captivating storyline that balances excitement with moral lessons, making it suitable for children and adults alike. The visual effects are stunning, creating a vibrant and whimsical world that draws viewers into the story while keeping the atmosphere light-hearted and fun. Kids will appreciate the colorful characters and settings, while adults can enjoy the film’s clever nods to the original “Wizard of Oz” and its underlying themes of courage, kindness, and personal growth. The film features valuable messages about self-discovery, teamwork, and the importance of doing the right thing, making it a great conversation starter for families. As the protagonist, Oscar Diggs, transitions from a selfish magician to a hero who learns to care for others, children can witness his character development and understand the significance of empathy and bravery. The supporting characters, such as the kind-hearted China Girl and loyal Finley the flying monkey, add to the story’s charm and provide positive role models for young viewers, highlighting themes like friendship and loyalty. Additionally, “Oz the Great and Powerful” maintains a family-friendly tone throughout, with humor that appeals to all ages and action scenes that are thrilling without being too intense for young viewers. The film’s PG rating ensures that it avoids overly scary moments, making it suitable for a family movie night. The balance of humor, magic, and meaningful messages allows families to enjoy the film together, creating a shared experience that is both entertaining and insightful. It’s a movie that invites families to explore the land of Oz while reinforcing valuable life lessons along the way.

Watched this with the grandbabys.. sooo good!

Good storyline and acting.

Spoiler alert: If you haven't watched it already, I might spoil some of it for you with what I'm about to say. I could barely get through the first half hour, and I did so griping and swearing because it seemed so bad, and I had just spent $5 renting the HD version. I thought about walking out of the theater, marching up to the ticket counter, and demanding my money back, only the theater was my living room, and I couldn't bring myself to write Amazon such an email. I went to bed picking apart what I had seen and finding all the problems with bad acting, terrible dialogue, and weak story. The next day, I forced myself to sit down and finish it for no other reason than the money I had spent. I sat there with my arms crossed and a pouty look on my face thinking the next hour and a half would be torture, but before I knew it, I was laughing, and I even ended up shedding a few tears. I should add to this that it was the 4th of July, and I am relatively patriotic, and this movie has a patriotic theme with the land of Oz fighting for independence from the rule of the witches. And it is entirely possible that I might have been slightly intoxicated (I'm going to watch it again soberly today to see if I have the same feelings :-) I like Zach Braff, but I think of him as a television guy, and while I enjoyed Garden State, I don't think he has learned how to think like a movie actor yet. It was partly his lines in the first thirty minutes of this movie that made me hate the movie so much. The dialogue just seemed so badly written. But it was Braff who rescued the movie for me when I started watching on the second day, and his character of Finley the monkey got me to laugh. Then the China Girl entered, probably my favorite character in the movie. What really saved the story for me was Glinda, and this is what gets to the heart of my problem with the story. I guess Oz is supposed to be a shady guy with a good heart at his core, and my life has taught me more and more not to trust shady guys, even when I believe they are good at their core. Knowing they are good deep down does not redeem them for me, and as long as they keep lying, tricking, manipulating, and pranking, I do not want them anywhere near me, and I will respond with anger if they try to trick me. But then, I was raised by a US Marine who had absolutely no patience for BS. My sister idolized Judy Garland, and has a collection of Wizard of Oz memorabilia, so I am pretty familiar with that movie, and I know that Oz is revealed to be somewhat of a s****** in the end, and that is apparently where the character is supposed to find its core of meaning and arc. So as I'm watching them delve further into Oz's character, I'm waiting for it to redeem itself, and in the end, he doesn't end up revealing greatness, just goodness, but what I wanted was greatness, at least if he is to become king (err, rather, wizard). If he is at best just a good guy, then fine, he should take the role of a secondary character, but if he is to become king, he's going to have to impress me on a whole nuther level beyond magic tricks. Can you imagine if Aragorn from the Lord of the Rings ascended to the throne of Middle Earth by means of double talk and slight of hand? My other problem again centers around the character of Oz, or rather, the person they chose to play him. I guess I just do not like James Franco, or I have yet to see him play a role that I like. I kept hoping they would just focus the camera on one of the beautiful actresses and leave him out of the shot because his appearance just rubs me the wrong way. They apparently asked Robert Downey Jr. to play the role, and I wonder if I would have liked it more with him, but I suspect the weak character would prevent me from enjoying it played by any actor. When Glinda entered the story, I breathed a sigh of relief that we had finally found a strong character. I read the following quote from producer Joe Roth on Wikipedia: "...during the years that I spent running Walt Disney Studios -- I learned about how hard it was to find a fairy tale with a good strong male protagonist. You've got your Sleeping Beauties, your Cinderellas and your Alices. But a fairy tale with a male protagonist is very hard to come by. But with the origin story of the Wizard of Oz, here was a fairy tale story with a natural male protagonist. Which is why I knew that this was an idea for a movie that was genuinely worth pursuing." Does he really think Oz is a strong male protagonist? A strong man walks around lying, cheating, and tricking people? A strong man becomes king only through dumb luck, and despite his own cowardice? There are two strong characters in this entire story, and they are Glinda and the China Girl. The China Girl proves herself to be a bad ass in spite of how fragile she is. Glinda amazes me with her patience with Oz, and the ability to bring out the best in him, however pathetic his best is. That she believes in him causes me to wonder if I should be more patient with and forgiving of the s****** in my life, and that is where the story redeems itself for me. I'm giving it five stars because of Glinda, the China Girl, the visuals, and the character of Theadora - while I couldn't be more bummed that they made Mila Kunis so ugly, I can't keep from hoping that she will some day find her goodness and beauty again, even though I know full well how her story ends. I was worried about Mila early on in the story because her dialogue seemed to bad, but I thought she did well with the role once she turned green. And I got over my gripes about terrible dialogue when I realized it was probably necessary for this type of fairy tale, although I can't help but wonder if it could have been just slightly better written. One last thing, I don't appreciate Sam Raimi making me jump out of my skin with all of his sudden scares. I am a sensitive person, and tend to be high strung, and I have never been a fan of horror movies, although I did think Army of Darkness was pretty cool. He lulls you into a sense of peace and quiet and then surprises you by suddenly throwing a loud and scary monster in your face, and I just don't appreciate that.

This is one of my favorite movies. Will get the books to read, but this film is amazing!!!

I am a great fan of L. Frank Baums book THE WONDERFUL WIZARD OF OZ, and I loved the MGM version as well though many changes were made to the story. In the book, OZ is a real place, not a dream. But the marvelous production by MGM was so good a person cannot quibble over little changes. Magical, surreal, beautifully filmed and acted, and a wonderful cast as well. I thought Bert Larr really stole the film; funny, loveable and yet heroic, In my opinion this film, now owned by Warner Bros, was MGMs finest hour (or should I say 2 hours). Warners even talked about a remake with the original script. I do not suggest that, but perhaps added Oz tales from later books could be done. This new film is good, well photographed, good special effects and the cast was ok though I thought the witches were rather sexy. But I only gave it three stars because first it suffers from what all pre-sequels suffer with and that is we already know what is going to happen in the future. There are no surprises in this one, though the settings of Oz are quite beautiful. I know they were trying to be faithful to the MGM version yet updating the original with motion pictures new technologies. That works ok, but I still think there was not enough originality in the story. We all know the Wizard was a charlatan (like Patrick Jane?) and then there were the little Munchkins ready to sing and dance. enough with that! I do think the film was kind of odd in some ways, but I think for those who loved the original film and are young at heart, they should get this movie. Like all my DVDs I get them from AMAZON. UPDATE: 7-12-15 I just watched this film in its entirety on Sci Fi channel: Yes, I have the DVD that I got from Amazon some time back, but I never saw it in the theater and watched the DVD on my computer that gets a great HD quality pic, but I wanted to see it in full screen HD on a big set of mine, so I did. As I have stated before, the quality of the production is superb, colors brilliant much like the original Techicolor 3 strip process used on the MGM production. But like many pre-sequels, this film has major flaws. It is enjoyable though perhaps a bit long with some dragging scenes, but I think it is worth watching if you are a Baum-a-holic as I was and still am ( I got all his and other authors writings of OZ including TIN MAN) and the special effects are at times stupendous. But there is little in the way of surprises; we all know how it will end. And some of the characters are weak, such as Glinda, the good Witch of the South. And peace never returned to Oz unlike they claim in this film. Lots of eye candy, but some goofy moments as to how the Witch of the West became green. No match for Mrs. Coffee that's for sure. Admittedly I do not like the Disney Company, and I mean I DO NOT LIKE them. I loved Walt but those who took over the company nearly ran it into the ground. Remember Isner who tried to pretend he was Disney. They have turned the corner to the better recently with fine efforts with ONCE UPON A TIME & WONDERLAND and the new version of ALICE; we shall see. Only 3 stars for this mixed bag.

I loved this movie, from the beautiful stars to the gorgeous visuals, there's so much to love in this package. No, I don't feel the movie is a perfect match for the original, but considering the amount of time separating this movie with the first Wizard of Oz film, they've done a great job in giving you that same sense of Oz and it's strange environments. I was really impressed with the shift in focus from Dorothy to the Wizard himself. Having grown up with the original movie, and only seeing it once a year or so when it came on public television, the Wizard of Oz was more of an event than it was a simple movie. It was in the same category of movies as Frosty the Snowman or Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer. It's for this reason that I really enjoyed this movie. It was able to remind me of those years long ago spent in front of a small black and white television, yet impress me with the visuals coming from a 4K 3D TV. Trust me, having experienced that amount of change really makes a huge impression on the viewer! It's hard to explain it to someone that's never seen a black and white television, so I don't think I'll try. Just know, if your lucky enough to have only been around long enough to see Television on large 16x9 sets, your going to be a bit confused to just how impressive the visuals are in this movie. It's only we older folk that remember what television was like so long ago. I was a child of the seventies, and my television at the time was likely less than 20 inches, I'd venture closer to 13, so owning the new sets with 55+ inches of brilliant color and crystal clear images is breathtaking! When you add in 3D, well, your in another world altogether! This is that type of movie. The story doesn't have to be Shakespearean, the visuals alone will keep you glued to the set, but thankfully, there is some good story in there. Now, it's not all roses and butterflies. Personally, I feel James Franco didn't spend enough time trying to make the role feel authentic, spending far too much time playing around. Perhaps that was the intention, but I just felt that he went a tad overboard with certain aspects of his character. He was a bit too cruel to the poor monkey that saved him from his nightmare, and to see that flip to just how caring he was to his porcelain friend was a bit strange, but of course, when looking back at the original movie, the wizard was a bit strange there as well, so perhaps it's all simply in my own head. I'll admit up front, i can't judge Mila Kunis fairly as she's so breathtakingly beautiful that she can do no wrong for me, so I won't even try:) Rachael Weisz was great throughout, making me feel she genuinely cared about her role in the movie, so those two are cast perfectly for my taste in films. If you liked the original film and always wanted to see more, but from a different perspective, give this movie a shot, you may come away surprised at what you find.

Buena pelicula

Was hard to find in store but got it here

Bellissimo film per tutti sia grandi che piccoli, speriamo che James Franco torni a interpretare film per le famiglie tipo Robin Hood oppure L'Alba Del Pianeta Delle Scimmie.

ce film est magique un petit prestidigitateur OZ se retrouve au pays d'Oz et tout le monde le prends pour un grand magicien et il doit combattre une méchante fée une image splendide au couleurs chatoyantes sans fausses notes claire comme du cristal nette sans bavure de nuit comme de jour des décors féeriques GRANDIOSE Une 3 d pharaonique profondeur abyssale vertigineuse des hauteurs magnifiques des jaillissements énormes des oiseaux des fleurs et bien d'autre choses sortent de vôtre écran une SPLENDEUR Le son un DTS AUDIO MASTER 5.1 magnifique aucunes enceintes ne travaillent pas étourdissant envoutant SUBLIME le caisson de basse lui aussi n'est pas en reste en un mot GRANDIOSE La vo en dts 7.1 AUDIO MASTER PLUS PUISSANT et sublime des effets spéciaux majestueux une image 2.35 ne génant aucunement pour la 3d sublime je n'ai trouvé aucuns défaut à ce film j'en aurais bien pris pour 1 heure de plus pourtant il dure plus de 2 heures foncez et vous retrouverez vôtre âme d'enfant cordialement

Excellent movie. A follow up of the original.