We're off to see the Wizard! The Wonderful Wizard of OZ! This movie is so magical!

Rating: 9/10 (10 May 2014)

Directed by Victor Fleming, the 1939 musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, is probably the most well-known and commercial adaptation based on the 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. While the film is so dated, it's still watchable even today becoming part of American pop culture. The film is known for its use of Technicolor, fantasy storytelling, musical score and unusual characters. The movie starts out amazing black and white, with Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland), a young farm girl who lives with her Aunt and Uncle, in Kansas in the early 1900s. She decide to run away, due to Dorothy's dog Toto, biting a neighbor. Before she can get far, a tornado comes up, carried her and her house to the Technicolor world of Oz. Dorothy find out that the only way to get home is to find the Wizard (Frank Morgan). With help from Gilda, the Good Witch of the North (Billie Burke) and some new friends on the way, like Scarecrow (Ray Bolger), Tin-Man (Jack Haley) and Cowardly Lion (Bert Lehr), they make their way to the Wizard on the dangerous yellow brick road, where the Wicked Witch of the West (Margaret Hamilton) is looking for revenge for Dorothy accidentally killing her sister. All the actors were wonderful in their roles, playing multiply complex parts, bringing the comedy and music and dance alive. Still, it was bit over the top. All the actors also play the farmhands in the beginning, making you wonder if all this Oz was just a dream. That was the main different between the film and the book. There were other things that the film change, such in the case of Dorothy's age. Shirley Temple was originally wanted for the role, but since they couldn't get her. They got Judy Garland and had to change the age from 7 to 16. They even wanted the blonde curls that Temple is famous for. The wig was top heavy and kept getting mess up, so they took it out, and went with Garland's natural hair. It's creepy in a way, that Dorothy was literally based on Frank Baum's daughter that die in childbirth. Frank Baum was known for his medium spiritual belief, and you see it in the character of Professor Marvel (also Frank Morgan). It's believe that the Wizard character represent fault power leader. The Wizard can be allegory to what Baum thought was fault power leader at the time, such as President McKinley who introduce the Gold Standard, in which many historians believe was represented by the Yellow Brick Road. Oz is indeed: an abbreviation that stands for gold, a hot political topic of the day where people were rallying for fixed gold and silver ratios. Some believe that, the Wizard in the film represent Franklin D. Roosevelt who was known to make illusions to sound strong and look powerful, when trying to present the New Deal to Americans at the time. Emerald City is allegory to Washington D.C that looks like money, but in the end, the film, it was dull white. If the novel, Emerald City look was based off the White City in the 1893's Chicago World Fair. Then 1939's Emerald City was the New Deal, Washington D.C. Then, all of Dorothy's friends could be presented as Coxey's Army, an group of unemployed workers made out of farmers (Scarecrow), laborers (Tin-Man) and free silver supporters (Cowardly Lion). It is said that the Lion represents 19th century politician William Jennings Bryan, who was viewed as someone having a load roar, but no power or bite. Honestly, in the book, the Bimetallism Ruby slipper were really silver. There were a lot of things that wasn't in the film that was in the novel such as the visit to China Country, Queen of the Field Mice, the battle with Giants Spiders & Kalidahs, and the attack of the armless Qualdings. Talking about missing limbs. Civil War vets with prosthetic limbs were inspiration for the Tin-Man. There is a tale that Tin Man was indeed a munchkin named Nick Chopper. The screenwriters wanted Tin Woodman to be a hardened criminal so heartless he was sentenced to be placed in a tin suit for eternity. The torture of being encased in the suit had softened him and made him gentle and kind. Wow, that's really dark. Another dark urban legend claimed that, in the film, a Munchkin could be seen committing suicide by hanging by the neck from behind a prop tree and swinging back and forth in the left background, but it was just a bird. There were a lot of weird rewrites, like a spoiled, selfish princess in Oz outlawing music and others. The role of the Wicked Witch of the West was also enlarged for the movie. While, the Witch of the West in the novel was less evil. I think this role fit the film, well. Mad props to Hamilton for continuing the role after getting badly burn during production. There are at least 44 major differences between the book and this movie. Nevertheless, the film was far more faithful to Baum's original book. Still, they almost cut the most famous song from the movie, 'Somewhere over the Rainbow' written by E.Y 'Yip" Harburg. Glad, they kept it. The song "The Jitterbug," was instead delete. The film footage for the song been lost, but you can find the 'Jitterbug' footage rehearsals on newer DVDs version. I still dig the other songs. "Ding! Dong! The Witch is Dead" "We're Off to See the Wizard" and "The Merry Old Land of Oz" are some of my favorites. The movie always have great special effects, and top production value for the time. Still the story is lacking an overall moral and there were lot of not necessary extra scenes that could be cut out. Overall: a great movie that will forever be known as one of the greatest movies of all time. I have to agree.