Oz the Great and Powerful

Disney’s Oz the Great and Powerful pales in comparison to the 74-year-old, enduring MGM classic The Wizard Of Oz. There is no new Judy Garland revelation, no Technicolor miracle, no song that penetrates your brain everlastingly, let alone the creation of a new mythological legend. Oz the Great and Powerful regurgitates some sections, and takes two hours to ask questions that are basically irrelevant. Why is the great wizard the least magical person in the whole of Oz? How do the witches divide the quarters of the compass? The comparison to Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland is more apt. That mediocre adaptation of a fantastic story also relied on colourful, imaginative sets, silly characters, tons of special effects, and 3-D. Disney made a fortune with Alice in Wonderland, and Oz the Great and Powerful is intended to do the same. Sam Raimi was recruited to guarantee the multi-million dollar project’s success. The director of Spider-Man does his job well. Perhaps even better than Burton. He can’t fix the feeble, boring story, but his CGI and 3-D are excellent. Oz is dazzling and looks amazing. He has mastered the art of illusion like no other.

None of this can be said of the film’s hero. Oz (James Franco) is an egotistical fairground conjurer who chooses the grand life over the good life. On the run from the wife he’s betrayed, the charlatan gets whisked away in a tornado that transports him from Kansas to Oz. Three witches coerce him to save the land from the wicked witch. The three sisters do not agree on who this wicked witch actually is. The witches might have been strong characters. After all, Rachel Weisz, Mila Kunis, and Michelle Williams know what they’re doing. But for the thousandth time, women have to watch while the (horrible) man saves the day.

Oz the Great and Powerful ●●
US, 2013, dir.: Sam Raimi, act.: James Franco, Rachel Weisz, Mila Kunis, 130 min.