Movie Review--Oz:The Great and Powerful

So I saw Oz: The Great and Powerful today. It was and wasn't what I was expecting. I knew that this was going to be a prequel. I knew it wasn't going to be anything like Wicked. I knew Dorothy wasn't involved and just about all that jazz. The movie was good, but not necessarily awesome.

James Franco plays Oz. He's a conman of sorts in Kansas. A magician, but with no real magic. Just tricks and illusions. He even knew Dorothy's mother--at least who I assume is supposed to be her mother since we never did know what happened to her parents! Then he gets blown away to Oz in the same manner as Dorothy, by a twister.

When he lands, he is told that is meant to be the wizard of Oz, for the prophecy says Oz will rule Oz, basically. Right now Evanora is running things while they await for Oz. Oz is greeted by her sister, Theodora. They have what seems like a fast connection, but it's a little too fast for Oz's liking.

He's then told he has to kill the wicked witch by destroying her wand in order to claim his right as the wizard and all that jazz. He's reluctant at first, but agrees to do it anyway, for there is a lot of gold involved! Accompanied by a friendly flying monkey, Finley and a cracked doll who really had no name, he sets out to find the wicked witch. But he soon learns that everything he thought he knew about this new and mystical place was all wrong.

The story starts out similarly to the classic in black and white before evolving into color once arriving in Oz. There were a few hat tips like that spread throughout the movie that related to the classic. The colors were amazing, much like it was when the original released, I imagined. 

The characters were entertaining and the way these wicked witches acted was good too! Yet for some reason, I just didn't entirely enjoy this movie like I thought I would. Keeping the original movie out of my head, I just thought it lacked something. There were a few other familiar encounters, though brief, with some familiar characters that made the movie a little more special. 

We also get to see the evolution of the Wicked Witch of the West. Although for some reason the west and east witches weren't titled as so. Guess that happens later!

Overall it was a nice movie. I'd still recommend seeing it if you enjoy the original, James Franco played a good Oz. It just seemed to be missing something for me and I can't even begin to think what that is. I don't regret seeing it though!


Overall rating 3/5 stars