June 4, 2013 in OZ SCI FI / FANTASY

Blu-Ray/DVD Review: Oz the Great and Powerful

My favorite movie of the year – Oz the Great and Powerful (click here for my theatrical review) – arrives on 3D Blu-Ray, Blu-Ray Combo Pack, and DVD June 11th.  As a lifelong Oz fan, I’m excited to own the film.  It looks stunningly gorgeous on Blu Ray and is packed with some great special features.  I’m very disappointed there is not an audio commentary track or deleted scenes but what is included is excellent.

Walt Disney and The Road to Oz

I love this 10 minute featurette.  It details the studio’s long history with Oz, from Walt’s purchasing the rights to some of the Oz books, to the influence of Snow White on his subsequent projects, and the evolution of Oz at Disney.  Interestingly, it assumes that the studio’s 1985 Oz adaptation, Return to Oz, was “not something that Walt probably would have made himself,” implying that Oz the Great and Powerful is more aligned with Walt’s sensibility and vision for a live action Oz film.

 
My Journey in Oz by James Franco

The Wizard himself, James Franco, directed this 21 minute, behind-the-scenes feature wherein he interviews Michelle Willams, Mila Kunis, Zach Braff and director Sam Raimi.  What I like best about the clip is how candidly they each speak to him.  It’s a more intimate look at the cast and director than is previously seen in interviews.  Michelle, Mila, and James appear in costume, lounging off-set.  It’s a little disconcerting to see Mila in green, Wicked Witch face, talking as herself, but also super cool.  It’s the most honest and open I’ve ever seen Sam speak about the film.  I only wish it were longer.

Mila’s Metamorphosis 

Here’s were we see the cray-mazing makeup application Mila endured to become The Wicked Witch of the West.  The 8 minute clip speeds up the two hour process and reminds me of YouTube clips where you can see various Elphabas becoming greenified for Wicked productions. The technical, multi-layered and colored process is impressive and made me appreciate her unique look as the witch a bit more.

Bloopers

5 minutes.  Nothing LOL-worthy, but cute and fun to include.

Before Your Very Eyes: From Kansas to Oz
This is one of the best aspects of the disc.  11 minutes of art direction, inspiration and motivation for the look of Oz.  Production designer Robert Stromberg dishes on why he loved working on the film; one he calls one of the more special he’s worked on.  In addition of the info in this segment, the graphics created for this featurette are outstanding.  Robert really makes the point how much he drew from both the original Baum books and classic Disney images for inspiration.
Mr. Elfmans Musical Concoction
One of the most uniquely identifiable composers in film explains in this 7 minute feature how easily the music flowed from him on this movie.  He has quite a history with Sam Raimi and it seems they finally hit their stride this time. I was hoping for some more insight from him about the themes in the film; but, most of what is covered here has previously been reported.
China Girl and the Suspension of Disbelief

This 5 minute featurette focuses on actress Joey King the puppeteer who brought China Girl to life on screen.  She’s one of the most emotive animated characters I can remember.  We see a moment showing the collaborative effort between Joey and Sam that really illustrates the warm environment created on set.

Disney Second Screen

Experience for iPad.  This is a clever technology wasted on some juvenile games.  The iPad screen aligns with your TV for a symbiotic exchange between the devices where Finley talks to you as host.  The better plus here are the 30 extra minutes of additional behind the scenes featurettes about the film’s sound effects, design and performances.

SEE IT

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2 Comments

  1. Jared June 4, 2013

    Ugh… I was really worried about the second screen thing. It's like a lot of bonus features they should have just put on the disc that they instead require you to own another product to access.

  2. Ryan Jay June 4, 2013

    I know! And I have the other device and am still at a loss. It's strange. I wonder, though, if it might not be accessible until June 11. I have an insert code for the digital download version of the film but I cannot access that either at this point.

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