List Price: $14.99You Pay Only: $11.99 You Save: $3.00 (20%)Prices subject to change.
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Binding: DVD
Brand: BALK,FAIRUZA
EAN: 0786936233780
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Widescreen, NTSC
Label: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Manufacturer: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Region Code: 1
Release Date: February 03, 2004
Running Time: 110 minutes
Sales Rank: 1458
Studio: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Theatrical Release Date: June 21, 1985
Related Items:
Editorial Review:
Product Description:
Dorothy finds herself back in the land of Oz, where she meets both new friends and new enemies.
Genre: Feature Film Family
Rating: PG
Release Date: 3-FEB-2004
Media Type: DVD
Amazon.com:
You don't fool with Mother Nature, spit into the wind, remake Casablanca, or trash the land of Oz. Perhaps that is why the 1985 live-action sequel split critics and audiences alike. The 1939 classic musical is so beloved that it's almost impossible to imagine seeing Dorothy in shock therapy, a crumbled yellow brick road, the ruins of Emerald City, and the Tin Man turned into stone. But L. Frank Baum, the author of the original Oz books, portrayed just that with his continuing stories of Dorothy. When you get by these tough facts, the film version is solid entertainment for the over-7 set.
Dorothy (a 10-year-old Fairuza Balk in her debut) is back in Kansas, where Aunt Em (Piper Laurie) is at the end of her rope: her niece is not sleeping and going on about a place called Oz. Therapy may be the answer, but luckily the scary clinic goes dark before Dorothy can be, er, cured (but the lead-up will scare the munchkins out of most kids). She wakes up in the land of Oz, now in tatters, and searches for its king, the Scarecrow. A new set of friends, including a tin soldier, a talking chicken, and a pumpkin man, help her against new villains, including Princess Mombi (Jean Marsh)--complete with a set of detachable heads--and the evil Nome King (Nicol Williamson with a great assist from Will Vinton's Claymation). The sole directorial effort of Oscar-winning editor Walter Murch is stuffed with marvelous effects that foreshadow later works by Tim Burton and the Henson non-Muppet films. --Doug Thomas
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Childhood Memories
I watched this movie as a kids and taped it off television when it was playing on the network, now that I have a clean copy where my brother hasn't taped over chunks of the film, I watch it more then ever. I am suprised how many of my friends have actually heard and/or seen the film too!
Rating:  - Scared me to death as a child.
Return to Oz is a film I watched when I was a child and even this fantasy gave me the willies, but I couldn't help but enjoy this bizarre child-like adventure. So much darker than the Wizard of Oz starring Judy Garland, Return to Oz stars Fairuza Balk who in some ways is more connivincing as Dorothy Gale. The good and evil characters are pretty scary, so probably this film should not be viewed by children under the age of 8. There is this one scene that still sticks out for me, where all the mannequin heads come to life, creepy as can be!!! Gotta give this '80s classic a viewing, it will trip you out, enjoy!
Rating: - the best way to travel down the Yellow Brick Road
As a fan of Baum's original works, this has always been my most favorite film version of his world.
And as a child of the 1980s, this film has always had nostalgic appeal. Yes, the film scared me as a child. But that very darkness, mixed with the light fairy tale images, the violence and the childish sense of logic and imagination, is also much closer to Baum's wonderful Oz.
The film comes from the Golden Age of Fantasy Films, the 1980s. The time when they knew how to make clever, visually-imaginative, and often dark fantasy films for children. Return to Oz is absolutely beautiful and perfect. The special effects and production design is better than most films today that are overly CGIed without the same heart and spirit as the Jim Henson company instilled in every film.
I know that the 1939 musical is considered an unparalleled classic, but it has a very plastic and staged feel. It lacks the spirit of Baum's works. Although Return to Oz is often criticsized (and, I believe it bombed at the box office at the time), it has a special place in the hearts of children who grew up with it, as well as fans of the original works.
First of all, the film much more accurately portrays Oz and is much more loyal to the books. Dorothy (perfectly portrayed) is the right age, for starters. Not only do many things more closely resemble the illustrations of the books (especially the characters and the Emerald City), but the world looks much more real and occupied ... Read More
Rating: - LOVE IT.
I absolutely LOVE this movie. When I was younger, we used to make a weekly trip to the video store and this is always the movie that I rented. I watched it almost daily for many years. There is another reviewer I saw that said that it would be insane to show this movie to kids, but I can say that as a kid who was obsessed with it, I came out unharmed and still love it. Buy this movie, you won't regret it.
Rating: - Psychologically brilliant... and a 5 star film at that
I don't often say something is perfect, but that's what this movie is. I don't know why I like Return to Oz so much. I like the MGM movie, I guess, and I've never really found the books captivating. Or even the anime series in the '80s.
This movie gets me for so many reasons. For one, it's so diverse in its intentions, and packs a load of hidden gems.
For one, it's a kids film... for adults. It's hard to explain. On its initial release nobody saw it because back then, kids saw mind-numbing kids movies, and adults saw mature films. It never mixed, so nobody really gave this a chance. But now, in the age of discovery and acceptance, it's a cult hit. Who would have guessed? Well, me. I saw this when it aired twice on television in the early '90s, and never forgot it. I went out and rented the badly damaged VHS tape in the late '90s and have loved it ever since.
But this DVD is... brilliant. It looks like it could have been made yesterday. Perhaps this is because the original version was not touched very often. The picture is breath-takingly sharp, and the 5.1 surround sound is perhaps some of the greatest I've ever witnessed, and I'm a bit of a picky perfectionist. The surround in the climax builds and builds. It's simply grand.
For a movie that has been shunned by Disney (their sort of illegitimate daughter), it sure is given the good treatment here, and rightfully so. It is in my opinion one of the finest movies ever made. It's dark, twisted just like the books, has a wonderful ... Read More
Browse for similar items by category:
|
