Return To Oz - The Scariest Kids Film Of All?

Most people have one film from their childhood that scared them even though it was sold as a kids movie. For some it is The Dark Crystal, for others it is Ghostbusters, for me it is Return to Oz.

The Wizard of Oz was a film from 1939 directed by Victor Fleming and starring Judy Garland. It was based on the book The Wonderful World of Oz by L.Frank Baum. When released it was a commercial flop but gained critical acclaim as its reputation grew and is now one of the most beloved family films of all time. Substantially different from the original book which is quite dark compared to the colourful world of Oz portrayed in the film. In the original book there were some fight scenes and the Dorothy character was actually quite aggressive and not the damsel in distress portaryed by Judy Garland. The famous ruby slippers were also actually silver in the book.

A direct sequel was penned for this film based on the book The Marvelous Land of Oz which centred on a girl named Tippie who lives in an orphanage and dreams of being in the world of Oz. However it would be 46 years before another film set in Oz would appear in Cinemas.

Return to Oz was made by Walt Disney Pictures and directed by film editor/sound mixer Walter Murch. The film was based on a combination of two of the original L.Frank Baum Oz books, Ozma of Oz and The Marvelous Land of Oz. Actress Fairuza Balk took over from Judy Garland as Dorothy.

The film begins some months after the events of the original, Dorothy cannot stop thinking about her adventure in Oz and her friends the Tin Man, Scarecrow and Cowardly Lion. One day she finds a mysterious key and is convinced that it has been sent from Oz. Her concerned Aunt Em sends her for night at Dr Worley’s clinic where she receives electro shock therapy. Dorothy manages to escape with another girl in the clinic and the two fall into a river. Dorothy awakes to find herself in Oz with her pet hen Billina who can now talk. The land of Oz has changed somewhat and the yellow brick road has been destroyed. The emerald city has been robbed of all its emeralds and her friends the tin man and cowardly lion have been turned to stone. The Scarecrow who is now the King of Oz is missing. After being attacked by the wheelers, humanoids with hands and feet replaced by wheels Dorothy is saved by Tick Tock the mechanical leader of the army. On their travels they meet an evil witch named Mombi who has interchangable heads and is acting Queen of Oz she decides she wants Dorothy’s head to add to her collection. They also meet Jack Pumpkinhead a man with a pumpkin for a head and Gump a moose like creature. After escaping from Mombi they learn that it is the Nome King the leader of a race made out of rocks who is responsible for kidnapping Scarecrow and turning the others to stone. Dorothy battles the Nome King in his mountain and he offers her freedom if she can guess which ornament the scarecow has been turned into. She manages to defeat him after Billina lays an egg down his throat as it seems Gnomes are allergic to eggs. The curse is lifted and everything returns to normal. Dorothy is asked to be queen of Oz but declines and the role is given to Ozma who is also the girl Dorothy escaped from the clinic with and was trapped in a mirror by Mombi and the Nome King. Dorothy then awakens in the real world to be found by her aunt who informs her that the clinic burnt down during the night.

The making of the film was tough, originally budgeted at 25 million it went over budget and this was a lot of money back in 1985. When released to much publicity in 1985 the film flopped at the box office. People were confused that for a sequel to a musical it didn’t have any songs in it. Many critics complained that the film was too scary for kids and to be honest its true. Never in my young life did I feel such fear as when I was trapped in a cinema during the scenes with Mombi and her heads,it scarred me for life. The wheelers are a bit much too, they are almost like outcasts from Mad Max 2 with their constant shrieking and distrubing masks. My eight year old brain didn’t quite know how to take it all in at the time and it was years before I dared watch it again (in fact I was in my twenties). Many found the film just too bizarre as it didn’t feature any characters except Dorothy from the original and they were not familiar with the original books. Harlan Ellison at the time of the films release praised it as being ahead of its time and accused the studio of trying to bury it due to a management shake up.

Ellison of course was right, the film was ahead of its time and its arguable that the film paved the way for darker children’s fare such as The Lord of the Rings and the Harry Potter films. Watching it now it stands up visually and most of the effects are still good, apart from some of the animation with the Nome King. Every now and then its on TV in a morning slot but is drastically cut to avoid children being disturbed by the changing of the heads scene which scarred me so deeply, pick up the DVD version for the full effect. Walter Murch sadly has never directed another film which is a shame as here he shows a visual talent that was sadly lacking in a lot of other 80’s kids fantasy films.

Trivia: Several major characters from the Oz books make cameos in the final parade scene, including the Shaggy Man, Patchwork Girl, and H.M. Wogglebug, T.E.