The film opens with a travelling circus in 1905 Kansas where we are introduced to the small-time stage magician, Oscar "Oz" Diggs (James Franco). Oz is hardly an ideal citizen... in fact he's a selfish, swindling, and womanizing con artist who could care less about anyone other than himself. His life suddenly takes a dramatic turn, when aboard a hot air balloon, he is whisked away by a tornado to the magical land of Oz. Soon after arriving, he meets Theodora the Good Witch (Mila Kunis), who tells him of an alleged prophecy that told of a man who would fall from the sky and rescue the citizens of Oz from the Wicked Witch... an evil being bent on controlling the land. Soon afterwords, he is introduced to another two witches, Evanora (Rachel Weisz) and Glinda (Michelle Williams) all whom relay the prophecy. When Oz discovers that killing the Wicked Witch would entail a mountain of gold plus the kingdom's throne, he immediately accepts the offer. Soon after beginning his mission, Oz comes to realize that not all is as seen, and that some of the witches may be scheming against them. With the kingdom's fate in his hands, Oz must learn to be a better man in order to save the land and become the great and powerful Wizard of Oz.
As I mentioned before, Sam Raimi seemed like an odd choice to direct a big budget family flick. The director of The Evil Dead... not exactly the usual choice for a whimsical fantasy flick (by Disney nonetheless). The more I thought about it though, the more I realized just how he might actually work. First off, what makes Raimi such an enjoyable filmmaker, is his child-like enthusiasm for the medium. On top of having a strong ability to direct action scenes as well as a good eye for visuals, he approaches every movie with passion and gusto (with the exception of Spider-Man 3, though that was mainly due to executive meddling), resulting in some very memorable works.
Most of his trademarks are present here in Oz, from ghastly looking monsters, his crazy POV camera shots, and even a Bruce Campbell cameo (because movies today need more Bruce Campbell). Unfortunately, given the setting of the film, Raimi's Oldsmobile does not make an appearance. Even with the limits of a family flick, the film is so quintessentially Raimi, that the plot is basically Army of Darkness set in the land of Oz. Not joking, it features a man who falls from the sky out of his own world into an unfamiliar locale, is presumed to be a prophetic savior of sorts, accidentally creates/awakens a great evil, and ultimately ends up leading an the good citizens of Oz in a battle against the evil forces. The overall plot might ring a little TOO similar to Army of Darkness at times, but it didn't bother me too much because AoD is an awesome movie and this film features enough little twists and unique touches to keep it interesting. There are some memorable scenes, a few nice little shout outs to the classic 1939 movie, and like I said... a Bruce Campbell cameo. Honestly though, Bruce Campbell automatically makes any movie like 10 times more awesome. There aren't any huge surprises or shocks but overall the story works.The acting is a bit of a mixed bag, but I can honestly say there were no truly awful performances. James Franco reunites with Raimi for the first time since Spidey 3 as the "Great and Powerful Oz." Franco is a good enough actor, though at times his age (or at least his youthful appearance) is a bit distracting. His acting is decent enough I suppose, but certainly nothing special. I remember hearing that Hugh Jackman and Christoph Waltz were both considered for the part, and they probably would been better cast. Rachel Weisz does a suitable job as Evanora the Witch, though I think her character was supposed to have a big surprise reveal that I saw coming as soon as she appeared. Mila Kunis is probably the most disappointing as she often comes off as a little too awkward and stale to make much of an impression. In her first couple of scenes, she just looks too uncomfortable and confused to convey her character adequately, and while she improves a bit later on in the flick, I won't deny that I expected more. Michelle Williams also appears as Glinda the Good Witch, and while this isn't one of the Oscar nominee's better roles, I have no real issues with her. Zach Braff has his moments voicing a "good" flying monkey named Finley while the young actress Joey King makes a strong impression voicing a girl made out of China glass (appropriately named China Girl). While this isn't exactly a mind-blowing cast, I doubt many will have any major problems with these actors.
A lot of the flick's hype was based on the re-appearance of the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, one of cinema's all time greatest villains. Margaret Hamilton's performance in the 1939 film is so iconic that there was no chance in hell anyone was going to top it... or even equal it really. Because of this, it's not really fair to compare the two films.
To reveal the actress who does eventually become the Wicked Witch would be a spoiler, but I will say that she does... okay. Maybe it was the raised expectations or the inevitable comparisons to the 1939 movie but while I won't say I was bummed about her role here, I will say I was hoping for a bit more. I guess in the long run, Sam Raimi seemed like the ideal director to resurrect this character. I mean, the guy has been responsible for some kick-ass witch characters in the past. Many of his previous villains have even taken inspiration from the Wicked Witch (the possessed girlfriend in Evil Dead II, the witch in Army of Darkness, the Gypsy in Drag Me to Hell, even the Green Goblin in the first Spider-Man). Maybe I just went in expecting too much... though I can say that it was cool to see the Wicked Witch return in all her cackling glory, and while she isn't as memorable as before, she still makes a suitable villain.The final thing to mention is the film's visual aesthetic... and this is where the film truly succeeds. This version of Oz takes many cues and inspiration from the 1939 movie, but it's very much it's own creation as well. As expected, there's a lot of cgi, not all of which admittedly looks perfect, but it's nonetheless creative and often well-rendered. The cgi used to create the China Girl in particular is some of the better animation I've seen in recent memory.
None of the effects come off as overbearing and most generally seemed to compliment the story as needed. The 3D effects are some of the best seen in some time. It's not Avatar but they do their job much better than many films. One nice touch was how, in a tribute to the original movie, the Kansas scenes are shown in black and white and in a 4:3 aspect ration... that was clever. The finale in particular is one of the most memorable segments. This is the point where Raimi goes gung-ho with his "Raimi-isms" and manages to show off some of his best talents and memorable images. There are also some solid make up effects and the well-made costumes you would expect to find in high concept fantasy movies like this. It's a little too early in the year to say for sure, but I would not be surprised to see this movie included on the Oscar ballot for best visual effects. We shall find that out next year. Overall, it's a very nice looking movie. If visuals are your thing, I can assume that you will leave happy.I was worried that this movie would end up becoming like Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland... i.e. a nice looking but otherwise awful movie (btw, I REALLY hate that movie). Fortunately, that's not the case here. Oz is an imperfect but creatively realized and very entertaining family film and a worthy entry to the Oz films. It's nothing remarkable, but if you're looking for an enjoyable movie that both adults and kids will like, this is a good option. Check it out!
My Score: 3.5 out of 5!
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