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Let's make a little background. I am a huge fan of sci-fi, adventures and romantic-comedy genres, but cartoons are very special to me. As a cartoon lover, Disney movies -and Disney brand in general- are such a genre that always delights me. So, since I was a child, I was acustomed to all what my parents put on TV about Disney. So,it was inevitably caught by the influence of Disney's "freak movies-era", mainly by two movies: The Watcher in the Woods and this one -Return to Oz. Of course I was watched the musical classic -The Wizard of Oz, with the star-icon Judy Garland- and I must said I really enjoy such movie. But this one, Return to Oz, is the one who had put its influence in most of the things I remember as a child, and whose really terrific and vivid scenes influenced in my creative development. So, when I'd got the chance to acquire this movie from Amazon, I had no doubt about the purchase. Wonderfully, the product got at home in less than ten days -the web page says it usually takes between two or three weeks to arrive home-, a very good surprise. Well, I just waited one day to open the package and release the DVD case. I was so delighted: the movie I used to watched as a child almost 23 years ago, was in my hands again, and in the best quality it is available to be acquired. So, since the moment I put it on the DVD player, I got totally hypnotized, as memories from the past came to my mind: since the first scene, when the main titles appears on the screen, in bright-green colors, as the camera makes a paneo of the Dorothy's room troughout the mirror -what a intriguing movie intro!- was just the beginning to a sea of thoughts, sensations, recurrent visions which have with me since then, etc... all of that came to me, in seconds. I couldn't believe it then and now, that I finally got the movie, that movie that accompanied me as a child, and now as a young adult, I am thrilled as the first day a watched it, but I can appreciate it more now, because I can see, in detail, all the backgrounds, the special effects, scene sequences, and of course the dialogues and characterizations. WHAT A GREAT MOVIE IS THIS ONE!! And, what can I say about the high-intensively vivid scenes, as the one in which Dorothy is chased by the Wheleers in a ruined Emerald City, until she gets into the princess Mombi's palace; or when she meets princess Mombi, passing trough the Hall of Heads, until she stole the Powder of Life from the cabinet in which the main head -princess Mombi's head itself- is kept in there, and screams "DOROTHY GALEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!" with that really scary yell?? Or when she is inside the Hall of Ornaments, in a very desperated situation to look for the ornament in which the Scarecrow -the ruler of Oz at the moment the Emeral City was taken- was converted by the Gnome King? Oh, we have dramatic scenes, too! One of the most touchy in the movie is when Dorothy, after been grabbed by Mombi, is taken to a room in the top of her Palace -apparently a child's room, surrounded by toys but garbage, too; once in there, she takes a slow look of the room and, suddenly, Dorothy -exceptionally well played by a very young Fairuza Balk- stops while the camera guides the spectador to what Dorothy is looking directly: a big paint in which our beloved characters the Scarecrow (with his crown), the Tin-Man and the Cowardly Lion are in there, smiling to her, just in the moment we feel what Dorothy is experimenting in that specific moment: a vague nostalgia about their friendship, and the lack of strenght because she -and us, as we form part of the movie, too- cannot do anything to find a way to save them -all in Oz was became into stone- and the sadness invades us... but then, a crisp of strenght appears when Dorothy realises that the Gnome King's mountain is straigh ahead -takin a look from a big window- and, surprisingly, Jack Pumpkinghead appears on screen... and then, the idea of scaping and save Oz gives us a light of hope. Wow!! What a great movie is this one!!
Well, after these words, I just can recommend you this movie, touchy, scary, but, all in all, magical and realistic, closer to the Frank L. Baum's vision of what Oz is presented in his books, and a movie for all ages -well, maybe not for little ones ;). I mean, even with the wave of technology we can appreciate nowadays, if your children watch this movie now, we can swear it was made using the best technology currently available -but avoiding cgi ;P. In fact, this movie was made using the best technology avaiable then -based in Animatronics, miniatures, etc.
Please, to all of you who have grown with Disney, or just if you are a geek sci-fi-movie fan, take a look to this sparkling cult gem. You will get astonished!!
And, of course, buy through Amazon. It is really secure and fast. I live in Mexico, so find such kind of movies is a bit difficult, but TG we have Amazon; nice delivery service and good prices. Highly recommended to find and buy products. And about the movie, just give you the chance to purchase and watch it :D -a reminding and a refreshment of what great movies are made of!!
Thanks for reading this review!!
Return to Oz
| Additional DVD options | Edition | Discs | Price | New from | Used from |
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DVD
February 3, 2004 "Please retry" | — | 1 | $11.50 | $3.18 |
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DVD
August 10, 1999 "Please retry" | — | — | $18.87 | — | $5.99 |
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DVD
February 3, 2004 "Please retry" | — | 1 |
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Reviews with images
this film is a pretty good extension of the story
While it's no match for "The Wizard of Oz", this film is a pretty good extension of the story. It is based on another L. Frank Baum book, "Ozma of Oz". Six months after returning from her first journey to Oz, Dorothy is languishing in the unfinished house that a beleaguered Uncle Henry is supposed to be building. Auntie Em thinks shock treatments will help shake Dorothy out of her doldrums. The Kansas scenes are again a stark contrast to the bright world of Oz. There are more villains in Kansas this time and they match some of the characters in the land of Oz.The three characters from "The Wizard of Oz", Scarecrow, Tinman, and Lion have small roles, but the main characters besides Dorothy are Jack Pumpkinhead, Tic Toc, and Gump. The villain is The Gnome King and he is a dark, scary adversary. He is assisted by Momby, a witch with 31 heads to choose from, and The Wheelers, a very scary gang of squeaky-wheeled pseudo-humans.Fairuza Balk made her film debut as a much sadder version of Dorothy. She did a good job considering her age and the impossibility of filling Judy Garland's ruby slippers.The story has some similar plot twists to the original but throws in a few surprises and manages to keep the viewer intrigued. I gave it four stars because I liked the characters, especially the villains.
Top reviews from other countries
Donis
Hace falta que todas las ediciones vengan subtituladas o dobladas
Reviewed in Mexico on January 2, 2024
Cliente Amazon
un ricordo di infanzia. cercato per tantissimi anni
Reviewed in Italy on January 14, 2017