Set as a prequel to The Wizard Of Oz, Disney released Oz The Great And Powerful combining elements of the original beloved film as well as the literary work that inspired it as well as a few elements from the prequel novels Gregory Maguire. To that end Oz The Great And Powerful delivers.
James Franco is Oscar “Oz” Diggs, a small time stage magician in 1905. Through his own machinations and underhandedness, he winds up needing to make a quick escape in a hot air balloon. He winds up flying into a tornado, landing in the land of Oz, and falling, quite literally, into the middle of a prophecy that would put him on the throne.
Three witches are also at the center of the story. There’s Rachel Weisz is the advisor to the king, and has an agenda of her own. Mila Kunis is her younger sister and seems perhaps naive. Michelle Williams is the Wicked Witch that needs to be defeated, only her name is Glinda. Others who show up include Tony Cox, Zach Braff, Bill Cobbs, and since this is a film directed by Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell.
It’s pretty easy to see the special effects, especially with regards to the landscapes. So much green screen and computer imagery is used it almost takes away from the immersion. Despite this distraction you really get a sense of wonder with the land of Oz. We do visit more of the lands within Oz, creating a greater sense of the region.
As much as the film is about the wizard, this film is also very much about the three witches and their relationships. In many ways, Oz The Great And Powerful is a political thriller with the battle for the throne.
Rated “PG” for some thematic elements and scariness, this film really isn’t for younger viewers. There are some scary sequences and the love triangle is only part of what kids might find confusing. Even if you’re not a major fan of The Wizard Of Oz, there’s plenty to enjoy with Oz The Great And Powerful.
On Blu-ray the film looks solid, but for some reason stopped twice during playback in my player.
A number of decent special features are on the disc, none of them extraordinary though. It’s all 7-11 minute featurettes looking at various aspects of the making of Oz The Great And Powerful, such as the music, production design, etc. Really, however, these should all have been bundled together and expanded into one solid “making of” offering.
Disney once again offers the Second Screen option for additional content, but you absolutely need to use a laptop or tablet, one that has a microphone, in order to access it. I would have much preferred a more traditional “picture in picture” option with the ability to swing that over to a second screen if I wanted to. This doesn’t give viewers options, but instead limits them.
Oz The Great And Powerful is a fun, if a little intense, magical prequel to the beloved film. It doesn’t replace the books, and it really does forge its own path, but it is well worth checking out.