hbenthow
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"Oz the Great and Powerful is a 2013 Disney movie, directed by Sam Raimi, which tells the story of carnival magician Oscar Zoroaster Phadrig Isaac Norman Henkel Emmannuel Ambroise Diggs (whose friends, or, should I say, acquaintances - considering that he's not good at making friends and worse at keeping them - call him Oz for short), who, upon fleeing his carnival in a hot-air balloon to escape the strongman husband of one of his illicit lovers, is whisked away by a tornado to a land, which whether by coincidence or design, is also called Oz. There, he embarks upon a grand adventure which leads to him becoming the legendary Wonderful Wizard of Oz, and a better man to boot.
I thought James Franco was good in the title role. Could someone else have played the part better? Possibly so. But he wasn't anywhere near bad, and it's refreshing to see someone other than Johnny Depp getting the lead role in this type of movie. The role of a conniving carnival magician fits Franco like a glove, and he had just the right balance of smarminess and likability. He seemed a bit awkward at times, but that worked, because Oz is out of his element in Oz.
Mila Kunis was very good as Theodora before and during her transformation, but afterward......not so much. She had the laugh down pat, but her screaming and facial expressions were more awkward than scary. It seems as if the Wicked Witch of the West was somewhat out of her acting range. She was perfect as the innocent, naive Theodora, and is most likely good at playing evil characters who are creepy in a subtle way. But as a hyperactive witch who screams every line at the top of her lungs, she seems embarrassingly out her element. Her shouting just isn't very scary. It's like the Wicked Witch equivalent of Christian Bale's Batman voice (not in sound, but in effect). Her makeup didn't do her any favors, either. There was some fear that if they made her makeup too scary, it would frighten children too much. So, several changes were made to tone down the creepiness. The end result looks like nothing more or less than a green Mila Kunis with arched eyebrows. In still pictures, she actually looks very impressive. The arched eyebrows and green contact lenses give her a subtle creepiness. But in motion, the eyebrows look stiff and inexpressive, the contact lenses don't make much of an impact one way or the other, and the overall minimalistic approach to the makeup doesn't work nearly as well for the pretty Mila Kunis as it did for the crone-like Margaret Hamilton. The makeup also seems to be hindering her facial expressions, as she looks as if she's acting with only her mouth and a small part of her face near her nose. I'm hoping that her performance might be the type that grows on one with rewatches, but I don't know....
Fortunately, Rachel Weisz was there to save the day. She portrayed Evanora with the kind of larger than life, deliciously evil zest that you rarely see these days. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that her performance turned Evanora into one of the best villainesses in Disney history. And since Evanora was the main antagonist of the movie, she managed to take a lot of the sting out of the disappointment caused by the lackluster portrayal of the Wicked Witch of the West. Interestingly, when Evanora becomes a wrinkled hag at the end, her makeup is very impressive. Why didn't they have the sense to make Mila Kunis' makeup that good?
Much of the rest of the cast was great as well. Michelle Williams did Glinda more than justice. She brought the character to life with a wonderfully sincere sweetness, and never came across as sappy. She also played Annie (Oz' true love back in Kansas) very well. China Girl was a great scene-stealer. The special effects used to create her were so good that she looked like she was made of real china. Her mannerisms and facial expressions were equally impressive, and the voice acting by Joey King (who was also great as the corresponding wheelchair girl character) was even better. I was afraid that Finley the flying monkey (voiced by Zach Braff) would be annoying, but he was actually pretty good. Braff also was good as Frank, Oz's assistant back in Kansas. Knuck (played by Tony Cox) was pretty annoying, though. He was less an actual character than he was shtick manifested in human form. Mercifully, he didn't have much screentime.
Director Sam Raimi brought a great sense of style to the movie. From the creative opening titles sequence onward, "Oz The Great and Powerful" is full of stylistic flair, plenty of heart, and just enough brains to make it all come together beautifully.
The 3-strip Technicolor-inspired color palette and Robert Stromberg's production design are eye-popping. While there is indeed a ton of (almost all well-done) CGI, there were, in total, nearly 30 actual sets built for the movie. This brings a refreshing sense of realness to many scenes. For example, when China Girl begs Oz to let her come along on his witch hunt, the Yellow Brick Road, the stalks of corn, and the wooden sign are all real. Only China Girl, Finley, and the sky are CGI. A few scenes had no CGI whatsoever. And even in the CGI-heavy scenes, the foreground is almost always a practical set. As a result, there aren't any moments where the actors look as if they are confused as to where they are or what is in front of them. They always seem perfectly integrated into the world, because they were rarely ever in an empty blue-screen room.
Danny Elfman's score is excellent. From the eerily beautiful theme used for the music box and Theodora's waltz, to the Wizard's heroic fanfare, memorable melodies abound.
As a whole, I find "Oz The Great and Powerful" very enjoyable. While the Wicked Witch of the West is disappointing and a few bits of humor come across as annoying, the other elements of the movie more than make up for it. It has a great sense of fun, is sometimes surprisingly touching, and unlike Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland", the story, although simple and a bit silly (and what Oz story has ever not been a little silly), works well.
Well, that's my take on "Oz The Great and Powerful". Have any of you seen it? If so, what are your thoughts on it?[FONT=&]
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