Imaginative, sweet and child-like

Rating: Null/10 (10 March 2019)

I trust that you all know at least the basics of the story. Young Dorothy (Judy Garland) gets pulled into a tornado, which whisks her away into the magical land of Oz, where she has to follow the yellow brick road to meet the wonderful wizard of Oz. Along the way she meets strange fellows and learns all sorts of things.
And well... it's really good. What else can you expect from an ageless classic such as this? I was especially impressed by how good the film looked. Especially given that it was shot before World War Two. Yes, sure, all the sets are obviously props, but they're such detailed, colourful and imaginative props. You can see the effort in them. And they contrast with the banality of Dorothy's home farm so nicely.
Come to think of it, Oz has a lot of similarities with Alice's Wonderland. They're both about their own logic, or the lack of it, to be more precise. Wonderland more so, but you can see shades of it in Oz as well.
Though, to talk about strange stuff, I do believe that the film can cause unintentional shivers down your spine. Kids will probably find the munchkin song about a dead witch charming and likable. As an adult I found the song more than a bit creepy. The dwarf and child actors with their heavy makeups and overly squeaky voices did not help.
Still, as soon as the yellow brick road portion of the movie starts, it picks up in quality. All three of Dorothy's travelling companions were utterly likable, but the best among them was easily Ray Bolger as Scarecrow. The way he moved alone was a sight to behold. You could easily believe that this creature had nothing but straw within his clothes, and not a single bone either.
The music and the songs were also catchy - even the dead witch one - I liked how dreamlike the story was and overall this is a very nicely made and executed children's film. It's a pity it took me this long to view it. I'm sure I would have loved it as a child.