Comment Re:They'll either be unfaithful or uncinematic (Score 1) 249
The 1939 movie was created to offset Disney's "Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs." Disney had made a big hit with their children's film and MGM wanted one of their own. Reportedly, Louis B. Mayer was given the Wonderful Wizard of Oz book to review and he gave his go-ahead to start production. When asked how much the book he read, he replied "six pages." It wasn't the story he was after, it was Disney's thunder.
As for the main performers, only Burt Lahr was an original pick. Shirley Temple was the desired Dorothy, but she was under contract with Fox and was not allowed to make a film for MGM. W.C. Fields was chosen to play the Wizard, but he wanted no part in a children's movie. Buddy Ebsen was the original Scarecrow and Ray Bolger the Tin Woodman but they switched characters; Ebsen later developed a reaction to the aluminum powder in the Woodman's makeup and the role was recast with Jack Haley. Gail Sondergaard was slated for the Wicked Witch but was replaced with Margaret Hamilton, as it was decided that Sondergaard was too beautiful to be an effective witch.
One of the aforementioned "cherished elements" of the 1939 musical is the magical pair of ruby slippers. In Baum's story, Dorothy's enchanted footwear was a pair of silver shoes. Mayer wanted something that would shine in Technicolor and red was the ideal color. Another element, one of the best known, is the song "Over the Rainbow." It was considered too mature for a child to be singing and was cut from the film. Only after much argument from the writers was it reinstated.
Great material doesn't guarantee a great movie, great movie making does, but this film was panned by the 1939 critics and audiences. As pointed out by another response, it was not a success until its repeated television airings.
Allow me to add that the 1939 musical was not the first Oz film. Baum himself owned the Oz Film Company which released a silent version of the Wizard of Oz in 1925, starring Oliver Hardy as the Tin Woodman. I've seen it and it's bad. A much better Baum company film is the 1914 "Patchwork Girl of Oz" that features some very good visual effects for its time.
I'll also go on record with praises for "Return to Oz." It has many of the dark moments that appear in Baum's stories. The grand parade near the end of the film features many of the characters that appear in Baum's other Oz books, the Patchwork Girl and Sawhorse among them. It's fun to try to spot them all.
As for the main performers, only Burt Lahr was an original pick. Shirley Temple was the desired Dorothy, but she was under contract with Fox and was not allowed to make a film for MGM. W.C. Fields was chosen to play the Wizard, but he wanted no part in a children's movie. Buddy Ebsen was the original Scarecrow and Ray Bolger the Tin Woodman but they switched characters; Ebsen later developed a reaction to the aluminum powder in the Woodman's makeup and the role was recast with Jack Haley. Gail Sondergaard was slated for the Wicked Witch but was replaced with Margaret Hamilton, as it was decided that Sondergaard was too beautiful to be an effective witch.
One of the aforementioned "cherished elements" of the 1939 musical is the magical pair of ruby slippers. In Baum's story, Dorothy's enchanted footwear was a pair of silver shoes. Mayer wanted something that would shine in Technicolor and red was the ideal color. Another element, one of the best known, is the song "Over the Rainbow." It was considered too mature for a child to be singing and was cut from the film. Only after much argument from the writers was it reinstated.
Great material doesn't guarantee a great movie, great movie making does, but this film was panned by the 1939 critics and audiences. As pointed out by another response, it was not a success until its repeated television airings.
Allow me to add that the 1939 musical was not the first Oz film. Baum himself owned the Oz Film Company which released a silent version of the Wizard of Oz in 1925, starring Oliver Hardy as the Tin Woodman. I've seen it and it's bad. A much better Baum company film is the 1914 "Patchwork Girl of Oz" that features some very good visual effects for its time.
I'll also go on record with praises for "Return to Oz." It has many of the dark moments that appear in Baum's stories. The grand parade near the end of the film features many of the characters that appear in Baum's other Oz books, the Patchwork Girl and Sawhorse among them. It's fun to try to spot them all.
