Tuesday, August 20, 2013

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Today's film is The Wizard of Oz. It's an overall cute film for kids with memorable songs.  I will give it a 7/10.


After reading the books and seeing the movies, I noticed that Dorothy is similar to Alice from Alice in Wonderland. In the book, Dorothy is a young girl like Alice, but is portrayed by the year old Judy Garland in the film.  Dorothy lives in dull, gray Kansas while Alice lives in dull Victorian England.  Both want excitement and adventure in their lives.  Both dream of a magical land where anything can and will happen.  Alice goes to Wonderland while Dorothy goes to Oz.  Both fall a long way to get there.  Dorothy falls, along with her house, and lands in Oz, while Alice falls down a rabbit hole.  Both lands feature talking, human-like animals.  Both lands feature an evil woman (The Queen of Hearts and the Wicked Witch) who want to destroy them.  Both Dorothy and Alice overcome their opponent.  Being tired of this excitement, they want to go home, and it turns out it was all a fantastic dream.
The Wicked Witch is misunderstood and Glinda is a real jerk.
I felt bad for the Wicked Witch.  Even when I first watched this when I was little, I felt bad.  She lost her sister.  The first thing she does when she appears is ask who killed her sister.  I have three sisters so I understand.  Glinda the Good Witch is a jerk to her and threatens that someone may drop a house on her too.  Dude, that lady's sister just died and you're going to make that remark?
Glinda established herself as a jerk right as she entered the film.  She asks Dorothy if she is a good witch or a bad witch.  Dorothy is confused because she is just a little girl, not a witch at all.  Glinda reveals that she is a witch, and not only that, a good witch.  Surprised, Dorothy was not expecting this because Glinda doesn't look like any witch from any story.  Glinda explains that "only bad witches are ugly".  If I was Dorothy, I'd be like, "bitch, you just asked if I was a bad witch".

All the Wicked Witch wants is her deceased sister's shoes.  That's all.  Glinda magically places them on Dorothy's feet.  Then, forces her to walk all the way to the Emerald City.  She does not offer her a ride on her magic bubble, and certainly does not tell her about the heel-tapping secret.  She knowingly places Dorothy in danger because the Witch is desperate to retrieve her heirloom.  And, Dorothy unwittingly kills the Witch while trying to steal her broom!  Both of their lives were in danger and everything could have been avoided if not for Glinda.  Glinda is playing a sick game and is enjoying it.  This movie is kind of messed up.

In the book, her shoes are silver.  The filmmakers wanted
to show off the color film technology and thought red
would stand out more.

2 comments:

  1. Interesting angle on the "good" witch. Never thought of it like that, but of course you are right.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think both witches have good and bad traits. Glinda is good, yet can be a jerk. The Wicked Witch is bad, but cares about her sister. So I really don't see a villain in this movie.

      Delete