I think I’ve seen The Wizard of Oz all the way through on TV in the past but never in a theater. As I was watching it on the big screen for the first time I thought of all the things that were unique about this movie. It was by far, the oldest movie I’ve ever seen in a theater and certainly one of the very few in black and white and color. As I went through the movie, there were parts of it with special effects that would be considered rudimentary by today’s standards but back in 1939 were ground-breaking. Just the effect of color had to have been breath-taking when the door opens and the bright colorful images spring to life. The acting is a little hokey but it’s The Wizard of Oz, so who cares? Of course, it’s also not politically correct these days, but again, who cares? If you can’t suspend disbelief of a talking scarecrow, tin man and lion, you don’t get to cut down a story that is a little hard to believe.
I’ll say it again. See an old movie on the big screen and see if it feels different than watching it on a TV in your home. I gotta bet that it’s just a vastly different experience.
There’s a famous television listing for The Wizard of Oz, written by newspaperman Rick Polito, which goes like this: “Transported to a surreal landscape, a young girl kills the first person she meets and then teams up with three strangers to kill again.” It’s amusing because, despite not being the way that one usually describes The Wizard of Oz, it is, in fact, an accurate summation of the story. Accurate but misleading.
I think I’ve seen The Wizard of Oz all the way through on TV in the past but never in a theater. As I was watching it on the big screen for the first time I thought of all the things that were unique about this movie. It was by far, the oldest movie I’ve ever seen in a theater and certainly one of the very few in black and white and color. As I went through the movie, there were parts of it with special effects that would be considered rudimentary by today’s standards but back in 1939 were ground-breaking. Just the effect of color had to have been breath-taking when the door opens and the bright colorful images spring to life. The acting is a little hokey but it’s The Wizard of Oz, so who cares? Of course, it’s also not politically correct these days, but again, who cares? If you can’t suspend disbelief of a talking scarecrow, tin man and lion, you don’t get to cut down a story that is a little hard to believe.
I’ll say it again. See an old movie on the big screen and see if it feels different than watching it on a TV in your home. I gotta bet that it’s just a vastly different experience.
There’s a famous television listing for The Wizard of Oz, written by newspaperman Rick Polito, which goes like this: “Transported to a surreal landscape, a young girl kills the first person she meets and then teams up with three strangers to kill again.” It’s amusing because, despite not being the way that one usually describes The Wizard of Oz, it is, in fact, an accurate summation of the story. Accurate but misleading.