The Wizard of Oz

Title: The Wizard of Oz

Writer(s): Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson, and Edgar Allan Woolf

Director: Victor Fleming

Year: 1939

Actors: Judy Garland (as Dorothy), Frank Morgan (as Professor Marvel, The Wizard of Oz, The Gatekeeper, The Carriage Driver, and The Guard), Ray Bolger (as ‘Hunk’  and The Scarecrow), Bert Lahr (as ‘Zeke’ and The Cowardly Lion), Jack Haley (as ‘Hickory’ and The Tin Man), Billie Burke (as Glinda), Margaret Hamilton (as Miss Gulch and The Wicked Witch of the West), Charles Grapewin (as Uncle Henry), Pat Walshe (as Nikko), Clara Blandick (as Auntie Em), Terry (as Toto), and The Singer Midgets (as The Munchkins).

Story: The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 film about  a young girl from Kansas who is whirled away to a far off land by a tornado and winds up in the magical land of Oz. Upon arriving in Oz she is informed that The Wizard of Oz can help her return home. She then embarks on great a journey to seek out The Wizard, meeting friends and encountering foes along the way.

Plot: Dorothy Gale is a young girl who lives on a farm with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry in Kansas in the early 1900s. The movie begins with an encounter between Dorothy and her cruel and horrible neighbor, Miss Gulch who hit Dorothy’s dog Toto with a rake and in turn the dog bites her. Miss Gulch threatens to have the dog taken away and  Dorothy runs home and begins to daydream about a far off place “over the rainbow” where she does not have to worry about such things as Miss Gulch. Soon Miss Gulch returns with an order to take Toto and have him euthanized. She places Toto in the basket of her bicycle and rides down the road. Toto jumps out of the basket and back into Dorothy’s arms. Fearing what will happen when Miss Gulch comes back for Toto, Dorothy takes him and a basket and runs away from home. In the midst of running away, she meets a phony fortune-teller, Professor Marvel. Professor Marvel guesses that Dorothy has run away from home and offers to tell her fortune. While pretending to tell her fortune, he shows her a scene of her Aunt Em falling ill over her disappearance. Dorothy becomes stricken with grief and guilt and runs back home. When she arrives she realizes there is a tornado approaching.

Dorothy tries to gather with her family in the cellar, but the doors won’t open. She the proceeds to the house and goes into her bedroom. Once there, she lies on her bed and falls asleep. When she awakens, her, Toto and her house are now in the magical, Technicolor land of Oz. When her house fell into Oz, it landed on The Wicked Witch of the East and killed her. The Munchkins arrived to cheer Dorothy for getting rid of the tyrant that ruled over them.  Glinda the Good Witch of the North arrives and introduces herself to Dorothy. Both Glinda and The Munchkins think Dorothy must be a witch too if she had the power to destroy The Wicked Witch of the East. Then, in a cloud of green smoke, The Wicked Witch of the West shows up to retrieve the Ruby Slippers on her sister’s feet  and punish Dorothy for killing her. Before The Wicked Witch could grab the slippers, Glinda places them by magic on Dorothy’s feet. When The Wicked Witch tries to take them, the slippers protect her. The Wicked Witch retreats and threatens to get Dorothy later.  Glinda tells Dorothy that if she wishes to return home, she needs to seek out The Wizard of Oz, as he will know how to help her. Glinda points the way down the Yellow Brick Road to the Emerald City.

Along the Yellow Brick Road, Dorothy comes across a scarecrow. The Scarecrow’s one true wish is to have a brain and so Dorothy invites him along because surely if the Wizard can get her back to Kansas, he can give the Scarecrow a brain. Further down the Yellow Brick Road, Dorothy and The Scarecrow come across a tin man who has gotten caught in the rain and his joints rusted up tight. Dorothy and The Scarecrow use The Tin Man’s oil can to loosen him up. When he is walking and talking again, he admits that his one true wish is to have a heart. So, Dorothy and The Scarecrow invite him along because if The Wizard can get Dorothy back to Kansas and give The Scarecrow a brain, surely he can give The Tin Man a heart. Even farther down the Yellow Brick Road, the three travelers encounter The Cowardly Lion who shies away from them in fright. When he finally gets comfortable with them, he admits that his one true wish is to have courage. They all invite him along because if The Wizard can get Dorothy back to Kansas, give The Scarecrow a brain,  and give The Tin Man a heart then surely he can give The Cowardly Lion some courage. So off they go to see The Wizard of Oz.

On the way to Emerald City, Dorothy and her friends are stalked and badgered by The Wicked Witch of the West. As they reach the city, The Wicked Witch conjures a field of poppies that puts everyone to sleep. Luckily, Glinda makes it snow and everyone awakens.

One inside Emerald City, Dorothy, Toto, The Scarecrow, The Tin Man, and The Cowardly Lion are treated to primping and pampering complements of the people of the city. As they are on their way to meet The Wizard, The Wicked Witch writes “Surrender Dorothy” in the sky with her broom. the group hurries along to get to The Wizard. However, to their disappointment, The Wizard will not see them.  Finally, The Wizard grants them an audience, but refuses to help them unless they bring him the broomstick of The Wicked Witch of the West. With no other choice, Dorothy and her friends set out for The Wicked Witch’s castle. Before they can make it, The Wicked Witch sends flying monkeys to snatch up Dorothy and Toto. Once The Witch has Dorothy, she tries to take the slippers from her. She soon finds out that she cannot remove them from Dorothy’s feet. The Witch produces an hourglass, turns it so the sands begins to drain and says when it is finished, Dorothy will die and she will have the slippers then. Meanwhile, Toto runs to get help. Toto finds The Scarecrow, The Tin Man, and The Cowardly Lion who impersonate The Witch’s guards and sneak in to save Dorothy. However, before they can escape, they are discovered and cornered by The Wicked Witch and her minions. The Witch sets The Scarecrow on fire, in which Dorothy uses a pail of water to put him out. Accidentally, water gets on The Witch as well sending her melting into an empty pile of black robes. Dorothy and her friends grab The Witch’s broom and return to The Wizard.

The Wizard is not pleased to see the group again and is very rude. Until, Toto pulls back the curtain revealing nothing but an old man. When Dorothy and her friends find out the truth, they are heartbroken. To try to make it up to them, The Wizard gives grants their wishes in the only way he knows how. He presents The Scarecrow with a diploma, The Tin Man with a heart-shaped watch, The Cowardly Lion with a medal of valor, and offers to take Dorothy home in the hot air balloon that he arrived in. It turns out, he is also from Kansas.

As they are just about to take off, Toto runs from the hot air balloon to chase a cat. Dorothy then runs after him. The Wizard unable to stop the balloon leaves without her. Sad and in tears Dorothy feels she will never see home again. Then, Glinda appears and calms her. She tells Dorothy that the power to go home was always in her. Glinda tells Dorothy to say goodbye and shows her how to use the Ruby slippers to get back to Kansas. Dorothy clicks her heels together three times and says “there is no place like home”. On the third click, the slippers take  her and Toto home.

Dorothy wakes up in her own bed, in her own home in Kansas. Aunt Em and Uncle Henry are there at her bedside worried sick. People come to visit and check in and she tries to tell them all about Oz. Professor Marvel says she suffered quite a bump on the head and they chalk her stories up to bad dreams. But she tells them that they were all there too. Dorothy is so happy to be home and she realizes that there is no place like home and she vows never to leave again.

Chronology:  This film was told in chronological order. From our textbook in ENG 225, Goodykoontz and Jacobs (2011) contend that chronological order “means that events in the movie’s plot follow the same order (although not necessarily the same duration) they would occur in the story, the order of real time” (Section 2.3, Chronological Order, para 1). This aesthetic choice contributed to the general effect on the audience by helping them feel the emotion of Dorothy’s experience. The audience was able to follow Dorothy through her journey from beginning to end and feel what she felt and see what she saw. The chronological order of the story also contributed to character development by showing where the characters came from and how far they had grown by the end.

If the film had followed a different presentation style, say non-linear for example, the film would have had a different impact on the audience. For example, the story would have been harder to follow. In addition, the growth and development of the characters would not have been so apparent. I believe chronological order was perfect for this film and the way it ended how it began makes for one classic masterpiece.

 

Resources:

Goodykoontz, B., & Jacobs, C.P., (2011). Film: From watching to seeing. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

The Fantasy Central. (2011, February 9). The Wizard of Oz (1939)-Trailer. [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNugTWHnSfw.

The Wizard of Oz. (n.d.) IMDb. Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0032138/.