I saw The Wiz during its original touring production. That book is much truer to the 1900 book. Dorothy is a little girl who lives on a farm with her aunt and uncle in Kansas. OZ is a dazzling, fantastical place, with a mixture of African motifs and pop color schemes. The movie version, I think, ironically, WAS trying to play to the audience by casting Diana Ross and making it more 1970s gritty, like a New Hollywood movie. The problem was that instead of Dorothy being a farm girl from the Midwest ending up in a fantastical place, we got a Dorothy being a middle-aged teacher going from New York City to a slightly more fantastical New York City. It just didn’t have any punch. I’ve long avoided criticizing the film version too much, in part because my best friend’s aunt was a costumer on the production and she was my friend’s favorite relative. That aside, the film really didn’t do justice to the original book or the it’s own Broadway book. They also made a huge mistake not casting an actual tween or teenager in the role. Stephanie Mills was brilliant in the original cast, though might not have worked playing a kid on film at 22, but that still would have been 1000x better casting.
The movie version of _The Wiz_ unfortunately has its shortcomings, but it's not all bad. The music and visuals of the film are fantastic! I wish I could see the film in theaters, because there are some sequences that would probably blow me away seeing it on the big screen. In regards to Ms. Stephanie Mills, I wish she had been Dorothy, even at her age. The original play was absolute magic, and it's unfortunate the film doesn't capture all of it onscreen.
I agree. I saw the first national tour of THE WIZ in 1978 and loved it. My first thought was "This is pure children's theatre with R&B music and some adult-oriented humor thrown in. Then I saw the Godawful film version---saw it four times! (Was I glutton for punishment or what?) I recently rewatched on TCM as much of the film as I could force myself to watch--and the Godawfulness of it all still holds up. Time has not made it any better. I'm also one of the rare people who hated Harvey Fierstein's rewritten/updated script for 2015's THE WIZ LIVE. (And I typically LOVE Fierstein's work.) One unfortunate aspect of the MGM film's legacy is that in making Oz a dream, everyone who has since tackled Oz has piled on a pant load of psycho-babble in a misguided attempt to add depth to the story. But Baum's original story is so perfectly mythic that it doesn't need added depth. Just explore what is already there. (You don't need to turn the Wizard into a woman who is still dealing with an unhealthy past relationship and thus is somehow emotionally driven to be a humbug. What in the name of all that is Ozzy was that?!) I wish someone would produce a revival of THE WIZ using its original script and (here's an idea) cast AN ACTUAL LITTLE GIRL who can really belt out a song as Dorothy! You know, like when anyone produces ANNIE? They're not going to cast an 18 to 22-year-old or a 33-year-old woman (looking at you, Diana Ross) as that orphaned child. So why miscast Baum's orphaned child? As someone who lived and worked in theatre in NYC for 18 years, believe me, there are PLENTY of talented child actors who could play THE WIZ's Dorothy beautifully!
I absolutely hate this. I will probably not see this and save myself the heartbreak. Why couldn’t they make the movie in a period aspect like return to Oz. There has been no genuine good Oz movie since Return to Oz in my honest opinion. I have no hope for this beloved story anymore. I hate how they keep trying to modernise it. Just leave it be and set it in 1899/1900. They can leave the Ruby Slippers in I’ll let them have that change but that’s it!
Couldn't agree more!!! I don't understand these filmmakers at all. I think I also would allow the slippers to be ruby, only for audience expectations and how powerful that iconography is for _The Wizard of Oz_ in general.
The Ruby Slippers are owned and copywrited by Warner Brothers. They may not allow them to be used in this movie. Probably cost an arm and a leg to get permission to use them. This movie already sounds like a failure. Let them use the silver slippers. This version would tarnish the reputation of the Ruby Slippers.
Just re-watched your video and wanted to add... The message of the Wizard of Oz was NOT that Dorothy wants something better or that she was unhappy in Kansas. The little girl( maybe 6 or 7 at most) was caught up in the tornado and spends weeks( maybe months) trying to get home. No big moral, Baum disliked that about "old" fairy tales, just an adventure with people who care about each other and who learn some things about themselves.
It's just another indicator of how these "creatives" don't know what they are actually getting themselves into. I don't think every movie should be made by fans, but at least do your research!
I totally agree that this producer shouldn't change the starting place of where Dorothy comer from. I also don't like the fact he keeps saying that MGM's Wizard of OZ is the original when I have read all books of OZ and I saw a clip of the 1903 show thanks to a friend of mine.
Dear Louisianna Quadling, this Virginia Munchkin agrees with you 100 percent!!! As a playwright, I have NEVER understood why the screenwriters and directors who have tackled Oz since 1939, think they have to rethink, change, etc., etc., the SOURCE MATERIAL--meaning Baum's original 1900 and the remaining Oz books! The reason the MGM film succeeded was BEACUSE, unlike the previous 1910 and 1925 film versions, it stuck to the BASIC PLOT and stayed true to the characters. STICK TO THE BASIC ELEMENTS OF BAUM'S STORY. YOU WON'T GO WRONG. The MGM film succeeded because its basic plot and tone were pure Baum!
That is true. MGM's success can be seen in just the script. Sure, they expanded the Wicked Witch's role in the film, but (obviously!) it works. I do find it funny when people say that the people that made _The Wizard of Oz_ were "talented". It wasn't just talent that made MGM great, the filmmakers also understood the assignment unlike this hack!
I'd really love to see a series of Oz films that actually followed Baum's books. I want to see China Town, Jack Pumpkinhead, the Saw Horse, the Hungry Tiger, Billina, Ozma, etc.
There are certain iconic imagers that scream OZ. Dorothy's farm house being picked up and dropped on the WWE is one of them. If someone felt they HAD to modernize it ( no good reason that I can imagine) perhaps a trailer park in Kansas? Could someone one just stay true to the book? I admit the wizard's gifts were better in the movie, and sure the wicked witch makes a great foil throughout the film, but if we are re-imagining the story why not imagine it like the author wanted? But maybe we're preaching to the choir here.
I think us _Oz_ fans are stick of filmmakers thinking they can outdo L. Frank Baum, who was a genius compared to most modern "creatives". I wish we could just get a film that honored his vision. It's not like the original story is completely "outdated" because we're still talking about it today!
Who I would like to see, played the scarecrow in a remake of the movie the Wizard of Oz timothee chalamet and Dorothy being played by piper Rubio and Glinda, the good witch could be played by Anna friel and the wicked witch could be played by raven symone and Jaleel white could play the great Wizard of Oz himself and auntie Em could be played by Whoopi Goldberg and the tin man could be played by Ryan Reynolds and uncle Henry could be played by Morgan freeman and Jack Black could play the cowardly lion and Kevin Hart can play a flying monkey with Rob Schneider play a flying monkey to
The themes from the Oz books are timeless. I think a change in era can work, but California? The Bottoms? So, no tornado? Does Dorothy (assuming thats the character's name) OD on dope and go to Oz in this one? Ive pretty much given up hope for a decent Oz film. Even MGM sucked at telling the story. At least we have Return To Oz, guys lol. ❤
Yes we do have the fantastic _Return to Oz_ to go back to at anytime! I wish we had more films like that one! Don't understand _why_ it's so hard to create something like what L. Frank Baum envisioned!
@@LAQuadling but to be fair, even Baums films and plays were different than the books. I feel as though the only true telling of the story on film is the animated ones from the '80s. You know what would be cool, is to see a true to the book Land Of Oz. Tip's transformation would make MAGA heads rolll! Hahaha. It will be fun to see the new telling, but I doubt I'll be happy with it.
@LAQuadling So I had to laugh this morning when the news reported a funnel cloud in the Bay Area in California! 😂 I guess I stand corrected about tornados in California. ❤
@@chestyvulva out of curiosity I looked up where the director was born. It's the same location his "Dorothy" will be from in the movie. It sounds to me like she'll be a self insert than anything else...
I do like how you kept saying there isn't a franchise because MGM made Oz "a dream," whereas in the books, it wasn't. Also, yes, I think where Dorothy is from and the time period are highly important. Recognizing a scarecrow and a woodsman and believing a lion is a forest creature are thoughts of a young child at the turn of the century. And to not know Baum did a stage play AND MOVIE of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz himself in 1908 is just...ugh! Does no one do research anymore? Heck! Even WICKED (the musical) did its research AND served the MGM fan base by giving Nessarose silver slippers that Elphaba inadvertently turns ruby while casting a spell to help Nessa walk which Glinda then gives to the unseen Dorothy. I'll stop here because I could make my own video about all your points and how much I agree 😂
It's certainly strange in our "age of information" how little people actually do research! Making sure that different types of fans are not only represented but also honored isn't exactly a "hard" thing to do. Your example is a great point! I'm sick of Hollywood creatives (and others...) trying to make themselves sound "smart" when in reality they have no idea what they are talking about.
I don't mind remakes of film adaptations of Baum's books, but the overall plot should stick to the source material. It seems like the filmmaker is using nostalgia to piggyback onto. Heck, they are now making horror films based on Mickey Mouse from "Steamboat Willie." It's nothing more than a cheap cash-grab.
I completely agree with you. This one especially feels very familiar with other new Hollywood projects where the creators are interested in telling their own stories and not adapting the source material. I looked up where Kenya Barris is from... the exact same location he has selected for his "Dorothy". She's sounding like a self insert more than anything...
I thought that finally thar would be a movie of the wonderful wizard of oz but yet Eugene no one cares about the book why can’t thar just be one movie adaptation of the book that’s all I ask for 😡😭
Apparently Oz can be anything but Oz which is creative and frustrating to it diehard fans , who want to see Oz as Oz and not some revisionist creation it’s all about who has the power to push a project on their terms and Maintaining public revenue for the studio profits once again Oz is being prisoned by the studio behind the curtain or crazed director 🤨 Also Diana put herself in position to be Dorothy ,Stephanie Mills was robbed and so was humanity, also I hate that Dorothy wouldn’t be from Kansas 😢 oh well Hollywood 🤨
It's definitely frustrating! I'm so tired of people going back to MGM as the standard, when the "source material" is _the book_ ! Oz has never been a reoccurring box office success story, so I wonder how much they foolishly sink into this new version.
To me Oz would be a great platform to tell a story of coming to age for girls and a story of queer found family and love. Tin man and scarecrow and Dorothy and Ozma. etc. It's only one part of the Oz stories, but as a queer women I want to see the Oz stories told faithfully but from a lgbt lens as i seem any young fans seeing the text that way. The best thing we have is the 2019 cartoon that is based off of the mgm film.
Last week I read an article about the director's vision for the so-called "remake." In reaction to his "vision" the last words of Joan of Arc came to mind, as she was being burned at the stake: "Jesus! Jesus! Jesus!"
We'll have to wait and see how the two WICKED films (2024 & 2025) do at the Box Office. That will indicate whether Barris' "re-imagining" even gets off the ground. This project has been in the works and stalled before Barris became attached to it. The comments from Screen Rant and Barris are basically 'word salad"; showing little to no understanding of OZ as a whole. If this movie is made, I predict it will play to an audience of one: Barris sitting alone watching it in a projection room. Nobody else asked for this, needs this, or wants this; but, as the OZ books are public domain, they are open for "free adaptation", unfortunately. P.S. Everything about the 1978 film version of "THE WIZ" bothers me.
Yes, that dreaded box office curse _Oz_ has looming over its head... we will definitely have to see what happens with Universal's _Wicked_ films. I'm also happy that most people are not interested in yet _another_ "reimagining" that doesn't respect Baum or Oz fans.
Most people are ignorant to the fact media outside of the first book and the movie. Most modern gen x and millienial gen z folks don't know of the Oz books. There is a growing fandom of ozians on tumblr though. due to the lgbt undertones of the series.
I saw The Wiz during its original touring production. That book is much truer to the 1900 book. Dorothy is a little girl who lives on a farm with her aunt and uncle in Kansas. OZ is a dazzling, fantastical place, with a mixture of African motifs and pop color schemes.
The movie version, I think, ironically, WAS trying to play to the audience by casting Diana Ross and making it more 1970s gritty, like a New Hollywood movie. The problem was that instead of Dorothy being a farm girl from the Midwest ending up in a fantastical place, we got a Dorothy being a middle-aged teacher going from New York City to a slightly more fantastical New York City. It just didn’t have any punch.
I’ve long avoided criticizing the film version too much, in part because my best friend’s aunt was a costumer on the production and she was my friend’s favorite relative. That aside, the film really didn’t do justice to the original book or the it’s own Broadway book.
They also made a huge mistake not casting an actual tween or teenager in the role. Stephanie Mills was brilliant in the original cast, though might not have worked playing a kid on film at 22, but that still would have been 1000x better casting.
The movie version of _The Wiz_ unfortunately has its shortcomings, but it's not all bad. The music and visuals of the film are fantastic! I wish I could see the film in theaters, because there are some sequences that would probably blow me away seeing it on the big screen. In regards to Ms. Stephanie Mills, I wish she had been Dorothy, even at her age. The original play was absolute magic, and it's unfortunate the film doesn't capture all of it onscreen.
You should watch the Little Fox version on UA-cam . It’s almost identical to the book
@@forrestdupre87 I will, thanks!
I agree. I saw the first national tour of THE WIZ in 1978 and loved it. My first thought was "This is pure children's theatre with R&B music and some adult-oriented humor thrown in. Then I saw the Godawful film version---saw it four times! (Was I glutton for punishment or what?) I recently rewatched on TCM as much of the film as I could force myself to watch--and the Godawfulness of it all still holds up. Time has not made it any better.
I'm also one of the rare people who hated Harvey Fierstein's rewritten/updated script for 2015's THE WIZ LIVE. (And I typically LOVE Fierstein's work.) One unfortunate aspect of the MGM film's legacy is that in making Oz a dream, everyone who has since tackled Oz has piled on a pant load of psycho-babble in a misguided attempt to add depth to the story. But Baum's original story is so perfectly mythic that it doesn't need added depth. Just explore what is already there. (You don't need to turn the Wizard into a woman who is still dealing with an unhealthy past relationship and thus is somehow emotionally driven to be a humbug. What in the name of all that is Ozzy was that?!)
I wish someone would produce a revival of THE WIZ using its original script and (here's an idea) cast AN ACTUAL LITTLE GIRL who can really belt out a song as Dorothy! You know, like when anyone produces ANNIE? They're not going to cast an 18 to 22-year-old or a 33-year-old woman (looking at you, Diana Ross) as that orphaned child. So why miscast Baum's orphaned child? As someone who lived and worked in theatre in NYC for 18 years, believe me, there are PLENTY of talented child actors who could play THE WIZ's Dorothy beautifully!
@@robbiefl58the 2015 version is better.
If it's not broken, don't fix it
When it comes to Oz films, it's always been broken.
@@chestyvulva😂😅😂
Should Idiris Elba voiced the Lion the way he voiced Shere Khan from 2016 Jungle Book?
I absolutely hate this. I will probably not see this and save myself the heartbreak. Why couldn’t they make the movie in a period aspect like return to Oz. There has been no genuine good Oz movie since Return to Oz in my honest opinion. I have no hope for this beloved story anymore. I hate how they keep trying to modernise it. Just leave it be and set it in 1899/1900. They can leave the Ruby Slippers in I’ll let them have that change but that’s it!
Couldn't agree more!!! I don't understand these filmmakers at all. I think I also would allow the slippers to be ruby, only for audience expectations and how powerful that iconography is for _The Wizard of Oz_ in general.
The Ruby Slippers are owned and copywrited by Warner Brothers. They may not allow them to be used in this movie. Probably cost an arm and a leg to get permission to use them. This movie already sounds like a failure. Let them use the silver slippers. This version would tarnish the reputation of the Ruby Slippers.
Just re-watched your video and wanted to add... The message of the Wizard of Oz was NOT that Dorothy wants something better or that she was unhappy in Kansas. The little girl( maybe 6 or 7 at most) was caught up in the tornado and spends weeks( maybe months) trying to get home. No big moral, Baum disliked that about "old" fairy tales, just an adventure with people who care about each other and who learn some things about themselves.
It's just another indicator of how these "creatives" don't know what they are actually getting themselves into. I don't think every movie should be made by fans, but at least do your research!
I totally agree that this producer shouldn't change the starting place of where Dorothy comer from. I also don't like the fact he keeps saying that MGM's Wizard of OZ is the original when I have read all books of OZ and I saw a clip of the 1903 show thanks to a friend of mine.
Dear Louisianna Quadling, this Virginia Munchkin agrees with you 100 percent!!! As a playwright, I have NEVER understood why the screenwriters and directors who have tackled Oz since 1939, think they have to rethink, change, etc., etc., the SOURCE MATERIAL--meaning Baum's original 1900 and the remaining Oz books! The reason the MGM film succeeded was BEACUSE, unlike the previous 1910 and 1925 film versions, it stuck to the BASIC PLOT and stayed true to the characters. STICK TO THE BASIC ELEMENTS OF BAUM'S STORY. YOU WON'T GO WRONG. The MGM film succeeded because its basic plot and tone were pure Baum!
That is true. MGM's success can be seen in just the script. Sure, they expanded the Wicked Witch's role in the film, but (obviously!) it works. I do find it funny when people say that the people that made _The Wizard of Oz_ were "talented". It wasn't just talent that made MGM great, the filmmakers also understood the assignment unlike this hack!
I'd really love to see a series of Oz films that actually followed Baum's books. I want to see China Town, Jack Pumpkinhead, the Saw Horse, the Hungry Tiger, Billina, Ozma, etc.
I would love movies based on Baum's books too, but I'm very doubtful it will ever happen.
There are certain iconic imagers that scream OZ. Dorothy's farm house being picked up and dropped on the WWE is one of them. If someone felt they HAD to modernize it ( no good reason that I can imagine) perhaps a trailer park in Kansas? Could someone one just stay true to the book? I admit the wizard's gifts were better in the movie, and sure the wicked witch makes a great foil throughout the film, but if we are re-imagining the story why not imagine it like the author wanted? But maybe we're preaching to the choir here.
I think us _Oz_ fans are stick of filmmakers thinking they can outdo L. Frank Baum, who was a genius compared to most modern "creatives". I wish we could just get a film that honored his vision. It's not like the original story is completely "outdated" because we're still talking about it today!
Kenya is remaking The Wiz, not The Wizard of Oz.
Warner Brothers doesn't own the rights to _The Wiz_ (Universal does) so we're going to get a strange mix of probably both.
Who I would like to see, played the scarecrow in a remake of the movie the Wizard of Oz timothee chalamet and Dorothy being played by piper Rubio and Glinda, the good witch could be played by Anna friel and the wicked witch could be played by raven symone and Jaleel white could play the great Wizard of Oz himself and auntie Em could be played by Whoopi Goldberg and the tin man could be played by Ryan Reynolds and uncle Henry could be played by Morgan freeman and Jack Black could play the cowardly lion and Kevin Hart can play a flying monkey with Rob Schneider play a flying monkey to
The themes from the Oz books are timeless. I think a change in era can work, but California? The Bottoms? So, no tornado? Does Dorothy (assuming thats the character's name) OD on dope and go to Oz in this one? Ive pretty much given up hope for a decent Oz film. Even MGM sucked at telling the story. At least we have Return To Oz, guys lol. ❤
I love abstract views of Oz, but it's usually never in the form of film. 😂
Yes we do have the fantastic _Return to Oz_ to go back to at anytime! I wish we had more films like that one! Don't understand _why_ it's so hard to create something like what L. Frank Baum envisioned!
@@LAQuadling but to be fair, even Baums films and plays were different than the books. I feel as though the only true telling of the story on film is the animated ones from the '80s. You know what would be cool, is to see a true to the book Land Of Oz. Tip's transformation would make MAGA heads rolll! Hahaha. It will be fun to see the new telling, but I doubt I'll be happy with it.
@LAQuadling So I had to laugh this morning when the news reported a funnel cloud in the Bay Area in California! 😂 I guess I stand corrected about tornados in California. ❤
@@chestyvulva out of curiosity I looked up where the director was born. It's the same location his "Dorothy" will be from in the movie. It sounds to me like she'll be a self insert than anything else...
I do like how you kept saying there isn't a franchise because MGM made Oz "a dream," whereas in the books, it wasn't. Also, yes, I think where Dorothy is from and the time period are highly important. Recognizing a scarecrow and a woodsman and believing a lion is a forest creature are thoughts of a young child at the turn of the century. And to not know Baum did a stage play AND MOVIE of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz himself in 1908 is just...ugh! Does no one do research anymore? Heck! Even WICKED (the musical) did its research AND served the MGM fan base by giving Nessarose silver slippers that Elphaba inadvertently turns ruby while casting a spell to help Nessa walk which Glinda then gives to the unseen Dorothy. I'll stop here because I could make my own video about all your points and how much I agree 😂
It's certainly strange in our "age of information" how little people actually do research! Making sure that different types of fans are not only represented but also honored isn't exactly a "hard" thing to do. Your example is a great point! I'm sick of Hollywood creatives (and others...) trying to make themselves sound "smart" when in reality they have no idea what they are talking about.
I don't mind remakes of film adaptations of Baum's books, but the overall plot should stick to the source material. It seems like the filmmaker is using nostalgia to piggyback onto. Heck, they are now making horror films based on Mickey Mouse from "Steamboat Willie." It's nothing more than a cheap cash-grab.
I completely agree with you. This one especially feels very familiar with other new Hollywood projects where the creators are interested in telling their own stories and not adapting the source material. I looked up where Kenya Barris is from... the exact same location he has selected for his "Dorothy". She's sounding like a self insert more than anything...
I thought that finally thar would be a movie of the wonderful wizard of oz but yet Eugene no one cares about the book why can’t thar just be one movie adaptation of the book that’s all I ask for 😡😭
I don't know. It's a shame we seem to always get handed something we don't want.
Apparently Oz can be anything but Oz which is creative and frustrating to it diehard fans , who want to see Oz as Oz and not some revisionist creation it’s all about who has the power to push a project on their terms and Maintaining public revenue for the studio profits once again Oz is being prisoned by the studio behind the curtain or crazed director 🤨
Also Diana put herself in position to be Dorothy ,Stephanie Mills was robbed and so was humanity, also I hate that Dorothy wouldn’t be from Kansas 😢 oh well Hollywood 🤨
It's definitely frustrating! I'm so tired of people going back to MGM as the standard, when the "source material" is _the book_ ! Oz has never been a reoccurring box office success story, so I wonder how much they foolishly sink into this new version.
@@LAQuadling I feel you all we can do is hope for the best 🙏
@@LAQuadling : True! Even MGM's "OZ" did not make money until, at least, 20 or more years later.
To me Oz would be a great platform to tell a story of coming to age for girls and a story of queer found family and love. Tin man and scarecrow and Dorothy and Ozma. etc. It's only one part of the Oz stories, but as a queer women I want to see the Oz stories told faithfully but from a lgbt lens as i seem any young fans seeing the text that way.
The best thing we have is the 2019 cartoon that is based off of the mgm film.
Was that cartoon _Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz_ ? I never watched it.
I just do not want another "Oz the great and powerful"
Me too! That film didn't know what it wanted to do, and in the end was a bunch of nothing.
Last week I read an article about the director's vision for the so-called "remake." In reaction to his "vision" the last words of Joan of Arc came to mind, as she was being burned at the stake: "Jesus! Jesus! Jesus!"
LOL!
We'll have to wait and see how the two WICKED films (2024 & 2025) do at the Box Office. That will indicate whether Barris' "re-imagining" even gets off the ground. This project has been in the works and stalled before Barris became attached to it. The comments from Screen Rant and Barris are basically 'word salad"; showing little to no understanding of OZ as a whole. If this movie is made, I predict it will play to an audience of one: Barris sitting alone watching it in a projection room. Nobody else asked for this, needs this, or wants this; but, as the OZ books are public domain, they are open for "free adaptation", unfortunately. P.S. Everything about the 1978 film version of "THE WIZ" bothers me.
Yes, that dreaded box office curse _Oz_ has looming over its head... we will definitely have to see what happens with Universal's _Wicked_ films. I'm also happy that most people are not interested in yet _another_ "reimagining" that doesn't respect Baum or Oz fans.
All the same I’ll stick with The Muppet version.
Complete waste of money on a film certain to 💣
Most people are ignorant to the fact media outside of the first book and the movie. Most modern gen x and millienial gen z folks don't know of the Oz books. There is a growing fandom of ozians on tumblr though. due to the lgbt undertones of the series.
I've never explored Tumblr. I'll have to check that out.