In Contention

Tag: The Wizard of Oz

  • Hollywood remembers ‘The Wizard of Oz’

    The Wizard of OzAs you have probably been made aware, Tuesday marked the 70th anniversary of the release of “The Wizard of Oz” in the U.S., a milestone which has inspired a number of tribute pieces this past week — including our own edition of The Lists dedicated to the classic.

    For their part, the LA Times has taken the simple but effective approach of asking a range of artists from the world of film (and elsewhere) what the film means to them personally, and has turned up some interesting responses.

    It’s an imaginative selection of interviewees they’ve assembled, ranging from directors Jon Favreau and Zach Snyder to oddball musician Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips, which only goes to show the vast extent of the film’s reach and appeal. Still, the response I liked the most came from probably the most obvious source: Guillermo Del Toro, whose “Pan’s Labyrinth” is arguably the film’s closest contemporary cousin.

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  • WEEKLY WRAP: ‘Inception’ unwrapped, ‘Shutter’ unseated

    Leonardo DiCaprio in Inception• One day after the film’s trailer surfaced, we turned up some fresh plot information about Christopher Nolan’s “Inception.” Fan hysteria ensued.

    • Just in case you’d forgotten, “Shutter Island” was booted into 2010. Fan hysteria ensued.

    • To a quieter reaction, Julie Taymor’s “The Tempest” joined Scorsese’s film on the sidelines for next year.

    • In submitting “The White Ribbon,” Germany gave the foreign-language race its first major official contender.

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  • THE LISTS: Top 10 “Greatest” lists ‘The Wizard of Oz’ deserves to be on

    Judy Garland in The Wizard of OzAs you have probably heard by now, today marks a rather special anniversary in cinema. (And it’s not Sean Connery’s 79th birthday, though we do wish him well.) It is, of course, 70 years ago to the day since a little film called “The Wizard of Oz” opened nationally in the United States. Perhaps you’ve heard of it.

    So much has been documented and discussed about this film over the years that it seems redundant to discuss its slow-burning impact on, and importance in, the landscape of American cinema.

    The film’s troubled production – from its casting musical chairs to its rocky reception – is now the stuff of Hollywood legend, while its place in the commonly regarded Hollywood annus mirabilis of 1939 only cements its status by association, as the film is forever banded with the likes of “Gone With the Wind” and “Stagecoach” in endless “they don’t make ‘em like they used to” discussions.

    You know all this, readers: just two months ago, you voted it the fifth most influential film of all time, after all.

    “The Wizard of Oz” may have dictated several of the still-held standards for fantasy and children’s filmmaking in Hollywood (and elsewhere), but even when we’re not watching it – or even thinking about it – the film has made its presence felt in our daily lives.

    Phrases like “yellow-brick road” and “friend of Dorothy” have acquired linguistic meanings independent of their source. Sundry American Idol contestants warble the film’s signature song on a daily basis (while artists from Prince to Pink Floyd have filched from elsewhere in the soundtrack). A current series of British cellphone ads features the Wicked Witch of the West alive and well in suburban London.

    Still, as ubiquitous and occasionally over-analyzed as the film is, we couldn’t let its 70th birthday pass without baking a cake and lighting some candles: hence the devotion of this week’s edition of The Lists to all things Oz.

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  • ‘Wizard of Oz’ sequel in the works?

    The Wizard of Oz“The Wizard of Oz” is celebrating the 70th anniversary of its US theatrical release on Tuesday.  Today, the UK’s Sunday Express is reporting that a sequel set in the present day starring Dakota Fanning as Dorothy’s granddaughter could start filming as early as next year and quotes a Warner exec as saying the film will be “darker and more action packed.”

    Basil Iwanyk is apparently on as a producer.  And this, for me, is the money quote, from co-producer Todd McFarlane (yes, that Todd McFarlane):

    You’ve still got Dorothy trapped in an odd place, but she’s much closer to the Ripley character from Alien [Sigourney Weaver] than a helpless singing girl.

    Everything’s getting re-imagined these days.  Your thoughts?

  • 8/13 Web Round-up

    Charlyne Yi• Todd Gilchrist talks to “The Goods: Live Hard Sell Hard” star Jeremy Piven. [Cinematical]

    • Anthony Breznican has the scoop on Charlyne Yi and “Paper Heart.” [USA Today]

    • Who’s your favorite cinematic psychopath? [Talking Movies]

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  • 8/5 Web Round-up

    G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra• Tom O’Neil wonders whether “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” is Razzie-bound. [Gold Derby]

    • Devin Faraci, meanwhile (one of the “easy marks” Paramount screened the film to over the rest of the nation’s critics), comments on the “No ‘Joe’” brouhaha. [CHUD]

    • And Steve Weintraub talks to the film’s screenwriter, Stuart Beattie. [Collider]

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  • ‘1939: Hollywood’s Greatest Year’

    Greta Garbo in NinotchkaTCM is showcasing the great productions of 1939 tonight, kicking it off a few hours ago with “The Wizard of Oz,” which followed a two-hour doc on the film.

    I wish I had gotten this post up earlier so as to give you the heads up, because I just clicked through the DVR and came across the documentary “1939: Hollywood’s Greatest Year,” which was presented as a world premiere amid the network’s night-long salute to the 70th anniversary of what is still considered in most circles to be the finest 12 months of cinematic output on these shores.

    You know the films: “Gone With the Wind,” “The Wizard of Oz,” “Stagecoach,” “Ninotchka,” “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” “Of Mice and Men,” “Goodbye, Mr. Chips,” “Gunga Din,” “Juarez,” “Wuthering Heights,” etc.  I really don’t think there’s ever been a more impressive line-up, and only 1999 has ever come close.  And what a year THAT was.

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  • Your ranked list of the 10 most influential films of all time

    Citizen KaneAnd with that, our poll series comes to a screeching halt.  I’ve already offered some thoughts on how all of this turned out.  I hope readers unfamiliar with some of the films I’ve been harping on will take that to heart and at least seek them out.  You owe it to yourself as a film lover, believe you me.

    Here is your ranked list.  For background on all of these shenanigans, click here.  I want to thank everyone who participated in the polls and made this a real community effort.

    1. “Citizen Kane” (Orson Welles, 1941)
    2. “Star Wars” (George Lucas, 1977)
    3. “2001: A Space Odyssey” (Stanley Kubrick, 1968)
    4. “The Godfather” (Francis Ford Coppola, 1972)
    5. “The Wizard of Oz” (Victor Fleming, 1939)
    6. “Psycho” (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960)
    7. “Jaws” (Steven Spielberg, 1975)
    8. “Pulp Fiction” (Quentin Tarantino, 1994)
    9. “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” (David Hand, 1937)
    10. “Toy Story” (John Lasseter, 1995)

    Honorable mention: “Annie Hall,” “Apocalypse Now,” “Battleship Potemkin,” “The Birth of a Nation,” “Casablanca,” “The Godfather Part II,” “Gone with the Wind,” “The Matrix,” “Metropolis” and “Rashomon”

    One of these days I’ll cook up my own list.  Until then, once again, thanks for participating.

  • POLL: the most influential films of all time, round two

    Keir Dullea in 2001: A Space OdysseyWe’ve made it to the second round in our mammoth series polling In Contention readers for a list of the most influential films of all time.  “Annie Hall,” “Psycho” and “The Wizard of Oz” squeezed past the competition to become our final trio to move on to the next stage.  We’re getting very close now, having whittled down the original set of 66 movies to 20, all of which you’ll find listed in the sidebar poll this week.

    I’ve decided to shake things up a bit in the second round and give more of a voice to everyone, as I’m sure the consistent picking of five and then three titles has made for more than a few hair-pulling moments.  This time, you get to decide on your choice of 10 films from our consolidated 20.  In a nutshell: of the 20 films to the left, what are the 10 films you deem the most influential films of all time?

    When all is said and done, we’ll have 10 clear victors (which will go on to form our list) and 10 clear honorable mentions.  Next week, we’ll take our top 10 and, in the third and final round, have one more poll to determine the ranking order!

    If you’re somewhat confused, be sure to read up on the background of this series here.  Now…get your votes in!

  • Which moments hooked you?

    (from left) Lon Chaney and Mary Philbin in The Phantom of the OperaI love the current poll series about the most influential films of all time, but it got me thinking about the moments in movies that hooked me on cinema forever. You know, the ones we see as kids that have an enormous impact on us, forever bonding us to this art form we all so love?

    For me, as I’ve mentioned before, it was a scene in “The Ten Commandments,” Cecil B. DeMille’s remake of his own epic, which I saw in 1972 (I think) in a re-release of the picture. In the days before video (yep, that old) the studios would re-release their films every few years and this was a major re-release for Paramount. My dad, also a movie junkie (though not as bad as his son), had talked about this for years and now that it was back we were going.

    Admittedly, I was a tad cynical at 12 years old.  I fully expected to be disappointed.  Still I wanted to see it because I enjoyed going to the movies. Little did I know my life would be changed forever.

    We piled into the car and made the drive to the theater, which was packed with familes similar to ours. The lights went down and for the next four and a half hours I was swept back in time, stunned by the size and scope of the film, amazed at the colors, and most of all, astonished at Charlton Heston. Never before had I realized how an actor could command the screen.  I never felt like I was watching a performance, either.  In awe I watched the Exodus scene as literally thousands of actors moved out of Egypt, led by Moses.

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  • What is the most watched film of all time?

    It's a Wonderful LifeIt’s a question that just came to me this evening when talking with some friends.  What would you say is the most watched film of all time?  How many films would even be on that list of contenders?

    Off the top of my head I would have to consider “The Wizard of Oz” and “It’s a Wonderful Life.”  Maybe “Titanic,” given the givens.

    We could maybe be so bold as to propose “The Shawshank Redemption” or “The Lord of the Rings” films.  And isn’t “Finding Nemo” the best-selling DVD of all time?  I guess that means it has to be on the list.

    “The Lion King?”  “Fantasia?”  “Gone with the Wind?”  What do we think?