Saturday, March 9, 2013

Oz: The Great and Powerful review


OZ: THE GREAT AND POWERFUL: 
THOUGH IT LACKS SOME OF THE CHARM OF THE ORIGINAL 1939 WIZARD OF OZ FILM, OZ IS AN EXCITING AND ENTERTAINING TRIP DOWN THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD!
By Nico Beland
Movie Review: *** out of 4

DISNEY
(From left to right) Mila Kunis, James Franco, Michelle Williams, and Rachel Weisz in Oz: The Great and Powerful

We all remember the 1939 MGM film, The Wizard of Oz. It was a technological masterpiece with its beautiful set design, colorful cast of characters, and the first movie of many people. Many years later, Disney finally released their own take on Oz in the trippy and action packed, Oz: The Great and Powerful, from director Sam Raimi (Spider-Man trilogy) and the producer of Alice in Wonderland and Snow White and the Huntsman.
            James Franco (Spider-Man trilogy, 127 Hours, Milk) plays a magician in Kansas who comes in contact with a powerful tornado and ends up in the colorful world of Oz. There he meets three witches, Theodora (Mila Kunis-Family Guy, Ted, Black Swan), Evanora (Rachel Weisz-The Lovely Bones, The Deep Blue Sea, The Bourne Legacy), and Glinda (Michelle Williams-Blue Valentine, Shutter Island, Brokeback Mountain), a china girl (voiced by Joey King), and a talking winged monkey named Finley (voiced by Zach Braff-Scrubs). Everyone in Oz thinks he’s the wizard they’ve been waiting for to fall from the heavens to defeat the Wicked Witch (NO SPOILERS!). He sets off on a journey with the china girl and the monkey to defeat the Wicked Witch, with a few surprises along the way.
Oz: The Great and Powerful was very entertaining, plenty of impressive special effects and 3D, a darker tone that I thought was very unique, colorful set design, and very likable characters. Though the film may not be quite as charming and memorable than the original Wizard of Oz, it more than makes up for it with boosting some thrilling action sequences, comedy, and even some drama. 
I wouldn’t say it was better than films like The Avengers, Life of Pi, or The Dark Knight Rises but the movie is still very enjoyable and should entertain adults just as much as kids. It’s a perfect film to take your older kids to see, though it may be frightening for younger children. 
It was actually a little better than The Hobbit, I know I can’t take that back but I’m sticking to my words, it was actually better than The Hobbit! Enjoy this wonderful trip to Oz because you’ll most likely want to visit it again. 

No comments:

Post a Comment