A Journey Through Magic and Morality
From a circus magician named Oscar ‘Oz Diggs, he is flown away to the Land of Oz but he encounters three power wielding witches. Through ambition or personal development he utilizes illusion to become the better wizard he wants to be.
In essence, the film provides an examination of the human condition and illustrates how one could achieve redemption through illusion. Its spirit is primarily a carnival and a film noir at once –one is playful, the other serious, but both are suspenseful.
James Franco’s Oz embodies a narcissistic yet sympathetic ‘rogue.’ Rachel Weisz, Mila Kunis, and Michelle Williams give dimension, making witchcraft compelling stuff to watch. It depicts characters illustrating elements of human personality, beginning from innocence to greed embodied by a wonderful cast.
The talented director Sam Raimi brings his touch to the film and combines humor with horrific motifs. Raimi succeeds in visually telling in the story in a spectacular manner that is rich with possibilities.
Music by Danny Elfman complements the magical aspects of the film while also offsetting the sentimental notes with melodic tunes.
The film uses 3D cinematography to pull the viewers into the wonderful world of Oz. Finally, the use of colors and shots creates the sensation of realism about the movie’s fantasy to show the audiences that these places are real.
The movie also has good set design where the flow between the real world and fiction is seamless. The very appearance of the fairy-tale town of the Emerald City can be named as a gross visual originality.
Oz looks fairytale-like with the help of special effects. From the tornado to the flowers, every effect is as delightful as it is plausible, enhancing the magical realism of Oz.
In term of storytelling, the film smoothly moves between the picturesque landscapes of Oz and more character oriented scenes.
It might be lengthy, but the pacing is consistent and does not leave the audience bored or disinterested while the necessary background information is given before the action.
The movie’s script also has a great sense of humor More efforts in character creation could have been put to lack of stereotype in some instances.
Inclusively, Oz the Great and Powerful does hold a splendid vision, but it is a little predictable sometimes. It is an olfactory and visual feast that pleases and amuses while it evokes a theatrical motion picture based on illusion and virtue.
