The Wizard of Oz celebrates seventy years in style
By Phillip Sayblack
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
The Wizard of Oz is one of the greatest films to ever grace the silver screen. It has transcended generations for seventy years now. In celebration of that anniversary, Warner Brothers has released a 70th anniversary edition of this “wonderful” movie. This new edition of “Oz” is outstanding both as a box set, and standard dual disc DVD. The standard double disc set is impressive, and well worth the money. It is chock full of extras, including featurettes such as “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: The Making of a Movie Classic”, and “Memories of Oz” (which was a special aired by Turner Classic Movies) among so much more. For those people who are much more avid “Oz” collectors, Warner Brothers has also released a box set loaded with plenty of extra memorabilia. This box set, along with the standard double disc DVD are mirrored by a blu-ray edition, as well.
For those who are just fans of the movie (and who isn’t), the standard double disc edition is a wonderful addition to any movie library. Its primary featurette, “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: The Making of a Movie Classic” is the best of the included features. Narrated by famed actress Angela Lansbury, it gives an in depth history lesson on the making of the movie. Among the tidbits of information included in this feature was the trouble involved in merely casting the movie. A hint for those who didn’t know this: Almost all of the cast that audiences have come to know were not the first choices for the roles. This includes Judy garland. Shirley Temple was actually the first choice for Dorothy. The primary feature is not the only one narrated by Lansbury. She also narrates another miniature film history lesson in the trailers originally used to promote the movie. Before each trailer, she gives audiences a background on each trailer, explaining the importance of how each trailer was made.
Another nice feature added to this set was in the audio vault feature. It includes old radio show pieces that promoted the movie. Each one is one more piece of the overall history behind the movie. It gives fans an even larger look behind the scenes at just how big the movie was, and how much went into promoting it. Along with these radio shwos are some deleted scenes, including the full original dance scene by Ray Bolger when Dorothy first meets the Scarecrow. It helps audiences appreciate just why that scene was shortened.
The Wizard of Oz is by and large among the greatest movies in the history of Hollywood. It is a movie that has transcended generations, and will continue to do so for probably seventy more years or more. That is the main thing that is echoed throughout the special features of this outstanding DVD. And while this will likely not be the last time the movie is re-issued, it will continue to be a movie worth buying on every anniversary to come.
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