Category: Comedies - Family - Gift Set - Movie - Musicals
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DVD The Wizard of Oz (Two-Disc Special Edition)
When it was released during Hollywood's golden year of 1939, The Wizard of Oz didn't start out as the perennial classic it has since become. The film did respectable business, but it wasn't until its debut on television that this family favorite saw its popularity soar. And while Oz's TV broadcasts are now controlled by media mogul Ted Turner (who owns the rights), the advent of home video has made this lively musical a mainstay in the staple diet of great American films. Young Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland), her dog, Toto, and her three companions on the yellow brick road to Oz--the Tin Man (Jack Haley), the Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr), and the Scarecrow (Ray Bolger)--have become pop-culture icons and central figures in the legacy of fantasy for children. As the Wicked Witch who covets Dorothy's enchanted ruby slippers, Margaret Hamilton has had the singular honor of scaring the wits out of children for more than six decades. The film's still as fresh, frightening, and funny as it was when first released. It may take some liberal detours from the original story by L. Frank Baum, but it's loyal to the Baum legacy while charting its own course as a spectacular film. Shot in glorious Technicolor, befitting its dynamic production design (Munchkinland alone is a psychedelic explosion of color and decor), The Wizard of Oz may not appeal to every taste as the years go by, but it's required viewing for kids of all ages. --Jeff Shannon
DVD features The Wizard of Oz DVD released in 1999 was loaded with extra features, but it's now safe to throw away that version in all its cardboard-package glory in favor of this new two-disc edition. First things first: All the bonus material from the earlier disc is there (with one small exception). That includes the Angela Lansbury-hosted documentary The Making of a Movie Classic; the outtakes and deleted scenes, including Judy Garland's "Over the Rainbow" reprise and the home-movie recording of "The Jitterbug"; the sketches and stills and composer Harold Arlen's home movies; the audio underscores and radio programs; the 1979 interviews with Margaret Hamilton, Ray Bolger, and Jack Haley; and other items too numerous to mention. (Some text introductions to the features have been replaced by narration by Lansbury, for whatever reason.) Brand-new to the 2005 edition is a sharp restoration using Warner's Ultra Resolution process and an accompanying featurette on how it's done. The technicians also discuss how the sound was remixed, though that would have been more effective had it included surround-sound demonstrations (the featurette is in 2.0). Other features on the new set include a commentary track by critic John Fricke supplemented by vintage cast interviews (he offers a lot of trivia, and debunks the myth that Shirley Temple was ever close to getting the Dorothy role); profiles of nine cast members and clips of other movies they appeared in (including Toto); a lightly animated 10-minute storybook again narrated by Lansbury; 2001 and 2005 behind-the-scenes featurettes; and a 1950 Lux Radio Theater broadcast. Oh, and if you were still wondering about the missing material mentioned above--the 1999 disc included one-minute excerpts of three early treatments of The Wizard of Oz. Those excerpts are not included in the two-disc special edition, but the third disc of the three-disc collector's edition includes the complete versions of those treatments and more. --David Horiuchi
Review(s): DVD The Wizard of Oz (Two-Disc Special Edition)
"THE WIZARD OF OZ" -THE ULTIMATE MUSICAL FANTASY!
Words cannot describe the joy of watching this beloved classic as a child. In the day of "tonight's special ABC, NBC, or CBS movie event" films like "The Wizard of Oz," "The Sound of Music," and "Gone With The Wind," were truly TV magic. Remember these films were not readily available on vhs or dvd as they are today. And movie theaters did not show them after their initial release. "The Wizard of Oz" is one of the most sweet and inspirational films that has ever been produced. Judy Garland's "Dorothy' is played to perfection and the songs are pure magic. The movie plays as a stage production, an MGM musical extravaganza, and a dreamlike fantasy that sweeps the viewer over the rainbow and into one adventure after another. We join Dorothy as she encounters her fantastic friends, The Scarecrow (Ray Bolger), The Tin Man (Jack Haley), and The Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr) all characters are played with brilliant performances. The b&w sepia tone of the beginning, as Dorothy struggles with the cruel Ms. Gulch (Margaret Hamilton) who comes for the beloved Toto, is a wonderful idea, as many films were filmed in b&w at the time. This helped add to the beauty of the colorful Land of Oz, as Dorothy leaves the b&w interior of the farm house, which has just crash landed in the glorious Land of Oz, and steps into the bright and shiny world of Technicolor Oz. Glinda, the Good Witch of the North, is played wonderfully by Billie Burke, (who I also loved in The Man Who Came to Dinner). Glinda comes to Dorothy's aide throughout the movie and protects Dorothy from Margaret Hamilton's Wicked Witch of the West. Margaret Hamilton plays a really wicked Wicked Witch! She's so believable in this part and also does well in the film's opening scene as Ms. Gulch. This is one of the most beautifully filmed movies, not only of the late 1930's, but of Hollywood's cinema history! I don't believe David O' Selnicks masterpiece, "Gone With The Wind" has been taken as good of care as this film. "Gone With The Wind" was made the same year as "Oz," which was 1939, and deservingly won all the major categories at the Oscars. However, as I recently watched the 4-disc collector's release of "Gone With The Wind," I couldn't help but notice several flaws, including color smears that wobbled down the screen (especially in the "evening prayers" scene), glitches and sound clicks from time to time. I must say this 3-disc edition of "The Wizard of Oz" is totally amazing and well worth the price. The dvd's are awesome in picture quality and sound! The color picture cards and the booklets are a very nice addition for die-hard collectors of "Oz" memorabilia, like me! If you're a classic cinema buff or a long time fan of "The Wizard of Oz," this dvd release is a must!
This Film is an Outrageous Sacrilege!!!!!!!
Many people will consider giving this movie such a low rating a sacrilege.This is understandable because so many people have grown up watching this film.I too loved this movie at a certain period of my life.The period between my birth and when I turned ten.That was when I read the book.The book is perhaps one of the greatest literary works ever created.It has now been awhile since I first read it,but I still remember the excitement I felt with each new chapter.I finished it in a few short hours.Since then,I have reread it several times,and each time it has been just as enjoyable.It is a true classic that people of all ages can enjoy.My brother reads as little as possible, but even he loved it.The movie,on the other hand,has gotten worse with each subsequent viewing.It deters from the book in almost every way possible.It makes a mockery of each character through a combination of poor writing and horrible acting.Judy Garland is an absolutely abominable choice to play the plucky heroine,Dorothy Gale.In the book,Dorothy was a little girl of about eight or nine and she was brave and clever.In the film,she is whiny,cowardly,fretful,and slightly stupid.She is also portrayed as being around fifteen.Making her this old distorts the book and her older age doesn't fit with her childish behaviour and appearance.Besides wrecking the book,this movie when looked at clearly is a terrible film.Don't misunderstand me,I am a fan of musicals.However,this film made for an atrocious musical.Practically every single song was ANNOYING!!!!!Also,the "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" number did not suit the plotline as it was in the book.This brings me to the BIGGEST,MOST AWFUL,distortion of them ALL!!!In the book,Dorothy really went to OZ!!!!!Not only that,she returned to Oz several times in other OZ books.Eventually,she even moved there to live!!!In making the whole experience a dream,the entire story of OZ was destroyed.Having said that,this movie receives a 1 in my opinion.Even so,I realize that many people will persist in liking this movie despite my words of wisdom.If they do sill consider this movie a favorite after reading the book,then the 3-Disc DVD is the edition to purchase.The features look good and the picture is restored.As for me,I will spend my money on better things.
The wonderful wizard of Oz
This is an excelent movie. I saw it with all my family and we enjoy it very much. Is full of magic and is very special to wach.
Related DVD's The Wizard of Oz (Two-Disc Special Edition)
When Julie Andrews sang "The hills are alive with the sound of music" from an Austrian mountaintop in 1965, the most beloved movie musical was born. To be sure, the adaptation of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II's Broadway hit has never been as universally acclaimed as, say, Singin' in the Rain. Critics argue that the songs are saccharine (even the songwriters regretted the line "To sing through the night like a lark who is learning to pray") and that the characters and plot lack the complexity that could make them more interesting. It's not hard to know whom to root for when your choice is between cute kids and Nazis.
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