Return to Oz (1985)

A Great Film that Deserves Better
I wish I could give this release five stars. Unfortunately, Disney decided this was a movie on-par with the other bargain films that is made up of mostly their disastrous 70s films.

Anchor Bay did a much better job with the release of this film. Their version had nicer menus, cover art that was pulled from the original theatrical poster, and even a card inside of the unedited theatrical poster. The big drawback was that it was not a 16×9 transfer (Disney had such little faith in DVD back then that they licensed a lot of films out to Anchor Bay for release and forced their distaste in 16×9 transfers onto the third-party companies).

Here, we get the Fairuza Balk introduction and interview and TV spots from the Anchor Bay release. In addition, we get a 16×9 transfer this time.

This film, though, is VERY dirty. It's in need of some TLC. Dusts and scratches are everywhere. Maybe we'll get the love it deserves on a Blu-Ray release - if such a thing ever happens. On top of that, there are some making-of documentaries from the film's release that could easily have been added without too much more work. Seeing how they fit somebody into Tik-Tok and Dorothy & Friends sliding down those tracks during the filming of their escape from Mombi are some of my earliest memories of TV watching as a child.

Now, for the movie. It is based more on what Oz is than the MGM film. Oz was a fairyland, but it was a bit gruesome at times. They gave us a real Oz.

Fairuza Balk is, so far, my favorite Dorothy -- one of the few to be the right age for Dorothy, too.

However, the big complaint I have are elements that forced people to compare it to the MGM film. Three major elements invented for that musical return to Oz: people and elements in Kansas appear as characters in Oz, Ruby slippers, and ending up all being a dream.

While it's fine for people and elements in Kansas to parallel Oz, the other points are too big of a change when you try to do things faithfully. Just take [[ASIN:B00005JO4H The Muppets' Wizard of Oz]] for example. People in Kansas returned as people in Oz. But they stayed true with the Silver Slippers and ending it as a real place and not a dream.

In a way, trying to bring the elements of two books doesn't do much better for the knowledge of the books. Mombi is actually a lot more of Princess Langwidere with only a few elements of Mombi left intact. Tik-Tok has a bit of Omby Amby thrown in to make him the Royal Army of Oz. Probably for simplicity, Ozma is never Tip.

Still, I love this film as it is the best example of Oz on film yet. Especially since things such as Tim Burton's Oz television series keep getting lost forever.

I'd love to see somebody that cared for the books to take the time to translate the 14 Baum Oz books into film faithfully... however, I'm sure nobody will ever try it in the foreseeable future.

Return to Oz
This was one of my childhood movies that I loved to watch again and again..... If you loved the first movie(the wizard of Oz) and have some background of the books you will love to continue the story of Oz with this sequel. Warning for young children their are some mild dark parts of the movie, "The wheelers" and " Princess Mombie" may be a little much for young children... So parents pre-screen and decide for yourself. I was a brave child and was not phased by them at all.

An excellent movie - edgier and darker than the 1939 film
Like almost everyone else in the universe, the 1939 movie, "The Wizard of Oz", evokes fond memories from my childhood. Because this movie is one of the most beloved films of all time, I would never have believed that anyone would have the audacity to create a sequel, but somebody did. Released in 1985, "Return to Oz" continues the story of Dorothy Gale (played perfectly by Fairuza Balk in her cinematic debut) after her return from the land over the rainbow.

Since sequels rarely match the quality of the originals, I probably wouldn't have wanted to see this movie if not for the overwhelmingly positive reviews here on Amazon. My curiosity was piqued, so I rented the movie and watched it last night. All I can say is, "Wow".

The story begins six months after Dorothy taps the heels of her Ruby Slippers and returns to Kansas. She tells Auntie Em and Uncle Henry all about her trip to Oz. Of course, being the average skeptical adults, the relatives don't believe her, especially since Dorothy lost the Ruby Slippers during her return voyage and has no proof that her stories are real.

Concerned about her mental health, Dorothy's well-meaning relatives borrow money to send Dorothy to the clinic of Dr. Worley, who has recently discovered a miraculous new medical treatment - electroshock therapy. Dr. Worley convinces Auntie Em that a round of cranial electrical currents will solve Dorothy's delusions, so Auntie leaves Dorothy in Dr. Worley's care. Luckily for Dorothy, a mysterious girl arrives just in time to help her escape the clinic and, through a series of events, Dorothy ends up back in Oz.

Dorothy finds that Oz has changed since she was last there. The Munchkin village is gone and the Yellow Brick Road is in tatters. She finds the Emerald City in ruins and all of its inhabitants turned to stone. The city is under control of "The Wheelers", nightmarish creatures with wheels in place of hands and feet. Dorothy escapes from them with the help of a mechanical man, Tik-Tok, but soon falls into the clutches of the evil Princess Mombi. This part of the movie may disturb small children because Mombi has a huge walk-in closet which contains an assortment of heads. Yes, heads. Mombi changes her head like other people change shoes and wears different heads depending on her mood. (She has quite a collection which she has gathered from people who probably weren't too thrilled to part with them.)

Dorothy discovers that the destruction of Oz was caused by the Nome King, who has also captured the Scarecrow. She escapes from Mombi with the help of several new friends and they travel to the Nome King's mountain to free the Scarecrow and restore Oz to its former glory.

The script for "Return to Oz" is based on two of the original L. Frank Baum books: "Ozma of Oz" and "The Marvelous Land of Oz". It's been a while since I've read any of the Oz books, but this movie seems more faithful to what I remember of the mood and tone of the books than "The Wizard of Oz".

Three things that I really liked about this movie are:

1) The characters don't suddenly burst into song. As much as I liked the music in "The Wizard of Oz", it's nice to watch an Oz movie where the story takes precedence over the choreography.

2) This movie is edgier and darker than the first one. The Wheelers are on the verge of insanity and are truly frightening (at least until Tik-Tok beats them silly). Mombi is also pretty darn scary. The movie also includes the Deadly Desert, where contact with the sand will kill any living creature. We see that happen, too.

3) 1980s animatronics and claymation bring several well-know Oz characters to life. This wouldn't have been possible in 1939. In addition to Tik-Tok, we meet the Nome King and his minions, Jack Pumpkinhead, and the Gump, a creature with the head of a moose, a sofa for a body, and palm leaves for wings. As impressive as CGI (computer-generated-imagery) is in today's movies, there's a realism about human actors interacting with physical characters that just can't be duplicated using a blue screen.

I highly recommend "Return to Oz". I suggest that you come in with no expectations that this movie is an extension of the original. "Return to Oz" stands on its own and there's a lot to enjoy here. However, I suggest caution if showing this to young children - they may have nightmares in which the Wheelers and a headless Mombi are coming to get them.

-- Michael Mihalik, author of [[ASIN:0978545702 Debt is Slavery: and 9 Other Things I Wish My Dad Had Taught Me About Money]]