Reviews

For those who don't know (and disregarded the spoiler warning anyway) "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 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. 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.

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 naive Theodora, and is most likely good at playing evil characters who are subtly creepy. 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 her makeup was too scary, it would frighten children. So, changes were made to tone down the creepiness. The result looks like nothing more or less than a green Mila Kunis with arched eyebrows. In still pictures, she actually looks 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 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 part of her face near her nose.

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 so 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. China Girl was a scene-stealer. The 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 (voiced by Zach Braff) would be annoying, but he was actually pretty good. 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 screen time.

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 Technicolor-inspired color palette and production design are eye-popping. While there is indeed a ton of 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 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 "Alice in Wonderland" (2010), has a story that, although simple and a bit silly (and what Oz story has not been a little silly), works well.

As there's something about the the 1930s-1940s that appeals to me, I tend to prefer movies set in the era and made in its cinematic style. And being fond of the adventure genre, I anticipate movies like the Indiana Jones trilogy, "The Rocketeer", "Sky Captain And the World of Tomorrow", "The Mummy" (1999) and, of course, "Captain America".

When I first heard about this movie, my expectations soared. The director was Joe Johnston, who made my favorite superhero movie, "The Rocketeer". It was set during WWII, made in a 1940s style, and scored by Alan Silvestri. Alas, my heart sank after I found out that they were going to do the whole frozen alive storyline I've always hated. But, I reasoned, the only reason they are making it is because of "The Avengers". Without that storyline, they wouldn't even be making it. Beggars can't be choosers.

Well, after two years of waiting, I got to see the movie. And to my surprise, it surpassed my high expectations. I didn't even hate the ending, although I would have much preferred a happier one more in line with the original 1940s comics (in which Cap stays in his own era, then fights commies in the 1950s). So, here are my thoughts on the movie.

Acting.

Chris Evans was great as Captain America. He nailed the character. After watching him as Captain America, I can't see anyone else in the role. The special effects performed on him to make him look skinny for the first part of the movie were absolutely seamless. If I hadn't known about them, I wouldn't have been able to tell they were there. But those effects would not have looked nearly so great if it had not been for Evans convincingly "acting skinny". No matter what condition Steve Rogers is in, shrimp or super soldier, Chris Evans portrayed him flawlessly.

It was refreshing to see a non-angsty, pure-hearted hero for the first time in a while. Instead of portraying Cap with irony or satire, they took him seriously, and it really payed off. Cap, despite (or because of) his delightful simplicity and earnestness, comes across as incredibly deep and human, proving once again that the notion of the old-fashioned hero being inferior to his modern antihero counterpart is merely a haughty assumption.

Hugo Weaving's Red Skull was effectively menacing, darkly humorous, and overall deliciously like an old-fashioned serial villain. Haley Atwell was charming, feisty and classically beautiful as Peggy Carter. Stanley Tucci's Dr. Erskine was played to perfection, Tommy Lee Jones was a scene-stealer of the highest order, Toby Jones was very memorable as a sympathetic, almost lovable Arnim Zola, Richard Armitage was effectively despicable, Dominic Cooper was good as Howard Stark, and Neal McDonough made his presence known despite very little screen time. Sebastion Stan was also quite good as Bucky, although he wasn't quite as memorable as many of the others.

Visuals and Action.

My feelings on the visuals are mixed. I was hoping for a bit more of a photo-realistic feel, but it instead looks a bit too much like "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow" (a movie whose visuals I like very much, but would prefer to be a novelty, not the norm). That said, the use of wide lenses did help make it look more real than many other movies with such massive amounts of CGI. The color in many scenes is quite good, or at least by today's standards. I did dislike the muted color used in some of the winter scenes, though. I wish they had gone for more of a Technicolor look, but I'm pretty satisfied with the look of the movie, except for the winter scenes.

I didn't like the action montage too much, as it had some slow-motion effects, as well as giving off a feeling that you're being cheated out of some scenes. I also thought that the motorcycle-chase felt somewhat rushed. Other than that, however, I did like most of the action scenes. The Kruger chase, Cap's first mission, and the final fight with Red Skull were standouts.

I would have preferred that the HYDRA soldiers' uniforms look a bit more Nazi-like, but the look they have works well. Red Skull doesn't care about them as individuals. He is the Hydra, and they are merely his many identical heads. Thus, their faceless, almost robotic look works very well.

Music.

Silvestri's score is the best superhero score in years. His main theme unfortunately doesn't have the "flow" that some of his better works do, and seems a little clunky at first. But after you hear it a few times, it grows on you. It's now stuck in my head. Overall, Silvestri's score hits all the right notes, and captures menace, adventure, and every other mood required of it, while having actual themes. Media Ventures, eat your collective heart out.

Writing.

The humor was great throughout. The levels of "heart" were set to maximum. The romance, although sparse, was memorable. Everything was portrayed swiftly, without padding, The plot was very well thought out. Memorable lines and scenes abound. Overall, the writing was excellent. Some things that I particularly liked were Steve's journey from shrimp to super-soldier, the USO scene, Cap's first mission, the role-reversal with Bucky, and the romance. I also liked how Red Skull was his own boss. It gave him more menace. Plus, using HYDRA ironically makes it feel more historically accurate. Having Captain America defeat the Nazis would mess with history too much, and having him lose to them just wouldn't do. All I really disliked were Bucky's death and Captain America getting frozen alive. That could work well in some movies, but a 1940s-style adventure of this sort just cries out for a happy ending. Plus, the modern-day bookends detract from the overall atmosphere. Still, the final scenes were poignant, although out-of-place.

9/10.

I once caught the last 30 minutes of "A Christmas Carol" (2009) on television several ago, and was somewhat disappointed. The character animation was of a strange sort, almost realistic in shape and movement, but yet without realistic texture. The result was that they looked like something out of a video game....and a little creepy. Plus, there was a coach chase that seemed out-of-place. On the other hand, I found the music to be excellent.

A few days later, I caught it again, this time from the beginning. Oddly enough, my reaction was completely different this time around. I found it visually spectacular, and the characters had entirely lost their creepiness. The movie no longer looked like a video game, but like an oil painting magically come to life. I wound up thoroughly enjoying it.

The visuals take a while to get used to, but are actually quite spectacular. I would not want to see this style of animation become the norm, as I believe that animation should be more stylized. If animation gets any more realistic, it might as well be live-action. As it is, some people have said that about this movie, and I can't say that I entirely disagree. However, it worked perfectly for this movie, as it gave it the look of an oil painting come to life, enhancing the atmosphere. The characters' facial expressions are impeccably copied from actor to digital image, without losing any of the soul or emotion, and the backdrops are breathtaking.

The actors are all excellent in their roles. Jim Carrey is excellent as Scrooge. The voice, expressions, mannerisms, and emotions are all well-done. Gary Oldman, as usual, is excellent in his multiple roles as Bob Cratchit, Marley's ghost, and Tiny Tim.

Alan Silvestri has been phoning it in for a few years, composing fairly good but forgettable scores for the "Night at the Museum" movies and "G. I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra". However, this time, he pulled out all the stops and gave us the type of bombastic musical tour de force he is known for. The music is appropriately "Christmasy", and at the same time bombastic, with some parts triumphant and others dark and menacing.

For the most part, the movie was remarkably faithful to the book, easily one of the most faithful adaptations. However, there were two odd changes that came out of nowhere. One is when Scrooge extinguishes the Ghost of Christmas Past. As he pushes the snuffer down, it blasts off thousands of feet into the air, with Scrooge hanging on for dear life. He eventually falls, screaming, back into his own bedroom. The scene is bizarre, and doesn't really make sense. The second is a carriage chase, with the Ghost of Christmas Future chasing Scrooge down the streets of London with a coach and four creepy, red-eyed horses. Scrooge then falls down a drainpipe, thus shrinking to a few inches tall. The following scene is right from the book, only with a shrunken Scrooge, and some added humor. This scenes, as well, came out of nowhere. It was rather pointless, and stopped the plot for a few minutes. However, it was beautifully shot/rendered/whatever it is, excellently scored, and very atmospheric, so it's not a huge flaw.

Overall, I found it very enjoyable. Like most adaptations, it deviated a little from the book, but other than a few slight changes, it is remarkably faithful, with most of the dialogue being word-for-word from the book. Other than the Ghost of NASA Past liftoff scene and the carriage chase, it was almost perfect.

A couple of years back, I was shopping in a flea market, and came across a VHS tape. It was entitled "Slapstick of Another Kind", and it starred Jerry Lewis and Madeline Kahn. It was selling for only 50 cents. So, I bought it. After all, a Slapstick comedy starring Jerry Lewis and Madeline Kahn had to be good.

When I started watching it, I was shocked at what I saw. It was not funny. It seemed to be trying to be a comedy, but it wasn't. It was boring, unfunny, and so loony that it gave me a headache. You see, it is set in a future where the average IQ is 1, unruly children are sent to military school and there forced to read books with blank pages (if they look away, they get an electroshock), cars run on chicken manure, and the Chinese have all shrunk themselves to two inches tall and fly around in UFOs that look like fortune cookies. Adding to this craziness, Jerry Lewis and Madeline Kahn's characters, two giant, hideous twins, are born to to a wealthy (and supposedly beautiful) couple (also played by Lewis and Kahn), and turn out to be aliens who are idiots unless they literally put their heads together, in which case they are smarter than Albert Einstein. Did I mention that they are two feet tall when they are born? The plot is incoherent, there is no humor, and the characters make Dr. Insano look normal. The characters, especially Lewis and Kahn (as both the parents and children) have makeup jobs that make them look like they are made of wax.

As if it were not enough that Jerry Lewis and Madeline Kahn signed up for this piece of trash, the cast also includes Marty Feldman, Jim Backus, Merv Griffin, and narration by Orson Welles. Yes, that's right. Orson Welles, the man who made "Citizen Kane" and "The Third Man", and who created the "War of the Worlds" radio broadcast that terrified America, lent his golden voice to "Slapstick of Another Kind". As if it were not enough to disgrace the dignity of living actors, director Steven Paul (who went on to produce such masterpieces as "Ghost Rider", "Bratz", and "Baby Geniuses 2") went a step further - he put in a pair of Laurel and Hardy imitators.

The horrible attempts at humor make the movie even more unbearable than it already was. There were horribly unfunny jokes about the Chinese, castration, the economy, and too many other things to mention. I will admit that I did laugh once. There was a running joke about automobiles running on chicken manure because gasoline was about $10,000 a gallon. all throughout the movie, it was completely unfunny - except once. In one scene, a character asks the butler (played by Marty Feldman) where some other characters are. He replies: "They're at the Exxon chicken-s*** station". That's the only time in the movie that I laughed, and that joke probably only seemed funny because it the rest were so bad that it seemed funny in comparison.

After I finished watching the movie, I felt cheated out of my money. I had paid 50 cents for this??? I could have bought a root beer, a postage stamp, or a pint of chicken-s*** at Exxon. I've been gypped! I will give the movie some credit where it's due. Some of the special-effects work was decent, and....well, that's it.

1/10.