Return to Oz - Movie & Book Review (Part 2)
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- čas přidán 7. 09. 2024
- Part 2 of my Oz book reviews. This time, I cover Land of Oz (1904), Ozma of Oz (1907), and the movie Return to Oz (1985). Also, I give my first impressions on the premiere episode of Emerald City (2017). #retro #retrogaming #nes #snes #jamesrolfe #mikematei #atari #playthrough #gameplay #gamereview
I would like to make an RPG based on the Oz series. It's an unbelievably huge world with countless characters both good and bad. It would take a very long time to run out of content from the stories and you would have so many quests from the books already written for you. I'm more surprised we haven't seen video game developers leverage Oz than Hollywood.
Please make this happen.
oh my god i thought i was the only one. i was thinking that with the monkey cap and the life powder, like maybe they would be like one use a day items in dnd and maybe the slippers would be like 5 times a day dimension door or thunderstep.
Jessey Lawson how many does the anime cover?
Saint Aqua thank you
RIZ-ZOAWD?
James, please, please keep doing this series with the books. I know there aren't any visual adaptations but I'd love to hear your take on the rest of the series of books.
You wrote this over THREE years ago... it's not happening...
@@oopopp I bet it happens.
In fact I bet he starts posting them next week.
Just a stupid CZcams comment, so doesn’t count as a real bet or anything.
With that said it would only be £20.
Sorry to dangle that carrot.
Just to be clear, I don’t owe you any money.
We’ll see though.
You still haven’t won yet, don’t go spending that £20 in your head.
You might owe me £20.
I won’t owe you any money though, just to be really clear.
this is so sad, I want this too :(
@@thelostmessenger me too.
Same guys
One of the funniest aspects of The Marvelous Land of Oz for me was how almost every time Jack Pumpkinhead spoke, it was him worrying about his head spoiling. He was a nervous wreck, he reminded me of C-3PO in a way.
YESSS, I got c3p0 vibes from him too XD
Very true, I’ve recently read the marvellous land of Oz and he is nothing like the return to Oz movie version. At least the movie Jack was more carefree
Nick Chopper's story is explained in The Tin Woodman of Oz. He was a lumberjack, and the Witch of the East (the one who was crushed by Dorothy's house) cursed his axe causing him to chop off his limbs. When a limb was removed, it was replaced with tin. Eventually, his entire body was made of tin, but the tinsmith forgot to give him a new heart. He lost the love of his life because he couldn't feel anything for her anymore.
My assumption is that they started calling him Nick because it was quicker to refer to him than The Tin Woodman in dialogue, and by that point he's an important political figure - more than just "that one guy made out of metal". He's also amongst friends and colleagues at that point.
Oh, and he goes out to find his lost love after finally getting a heart, but she already married some dude who was made out of his discarded body parts.
He explained his backstory to Dorothy in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
Not to be missed: the Tin Woodman's encounter with his original head, still alive and surly in a cabinet in the tinsmith's cottage.
@@oliverbrownlow5615 *Wait, what?* When does that happen in the books? I read up to, I think, Book 6. I stopped at some point in that book.
The 80s were rife with dark kids movies: the Dark Crystal, the Labyrinth, Edward Scissorhands, Beetlejuice, the Brave Little Toaster, the Never-Ending Story, Time Bandits, etc. Great stuff
Please note: Edward Scissorhands was released in 1991.
Tim Collins although we all saw Beetlejuice, it’s actually not exactly a kid’s film.
Indian Jones and the Temple of Doom had child slavery and a guy pulling a guy's heart out of his chest, etc.
Correction. Return to Oz was made before the rest of the Oz books became public domain. After the success of the Wizard of Oz, Walt Disney bought the rights to all the remaining Oz books with the hopes of turning them into (animated) feature pictures. Return to Oz was made specifically because Disney's rights were about to expire and this was their last chance to get Disney versions of the characters trademarked before a flood of what we call "mockbusters" got made.
Shame we never saw any animated Oz movies from Disney, I wonder if they would follow the books or try and do something like the MGM classic.
@@faullks3147 ) Walt wanted to make it in the 30s but lost out to MGM, they considered collaborating but it never came thru.
I like Wizard of Oz 3: Dorothy Goes to Hell best.
187Streak completely underrated
Dorothy Goes to Hell - Movie & Book Review (Part 3)
The Wizard of OZ 2: Electric Boogaloo
Personally, I enjoy Wizard of Oz VIII: Dorothy Takes Manhattan
Wizard of Oz: Blair Witch 2
I love these videos.
Return to Oz was a great movie imo. It's right up with 80's classics like Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, Willow, Neverending Story, etc.
Wish more people knew of it.
Maybe someday someone will actually try to faithfully adapt the books more rather then the new show, I tried watching it and got bored half way through, they took all the fun out of the setting.
If they wanted to make a "realistic/grounded" show why choose Oz of all things? It's meant to be fantastical and weird.
I think they wanted to jump in the "Game of Throne" bandwagon because, well, money.
Oz already has a name to it so they don't need to create a new realistic fantasy world, they can use Oz and change it to be more grounded. But why Oz? Why realistic? Like Zero Omega said. Money.
Game of Thrones isn't exactly grounded, it's fantasy, it has dragons, magic, undead, fantasy creatures, etc, all sorts of fantasy and magical elements to it.
gyloir and it's popular. Popularity = money. Imitate popularity = money?
A lot of sci-fi/fantasy movies were better back in the 80's because they had to try harder. They weren't dependant on all that bullshit CGI we have nowadays.
I would watch James talk about anything for hours even if it's just him measuring his turds or talking about his day
Superman has pajamas with his logo. The circus ran away to join him. He once brought a knife to a gun fight, just to even the odds. He often watches James' videos. He is the most interesting man in the world.
Word, relaxing and entertaining
That's what I was expecting, but no he has to get all philosophical about storytelling and clever writing nuances. So disappointed.
killing man576 I feel the same way lol
killing man576 i would too, he is so relaxing
I'm one of those kids that grew up during the time of Return to Oz and remember this movie well. Absolutely freaked me the fuck out, the same way Large Marge did, and I loved it for that!
B T My Playstation Network avatar motto is "Large Marge Sent Me ", lol. I laughed when I read your comment, my buddy Andrew was joking about a dark road we were bicycling down, he was waiting for Large Marge to appear in her ghostly truck.
I totally agree it scared me too when I was a kid.
I for one, am also a strong advocate for making the "Oz" books in a film franchise. If Hollywood made the films faithful to the books, ie "Harry Potter," I think the "Oz" franchise would be really successful and fun!
KILLED SEVEN TIMES
and then put in prison
we can kill someone 7 times, we have the technology, stop their heart and keep bringing them back , haha we could set it up like an obstacle course
Justice system in Oz isn't that far away from reality in the US.
Sounds like a british justice
This makes more sense than you would think considering that it is established in some of the books (the books are very inconsistent about this) that every being in the land of Oz is basically immortal.
"But I think you get the point" no!!!!!!! I really would love to see videos of you going over every single book! This has been some of my favorite cinemassacre content in a long time!
god DAMN, just THINKING back to the screaming heads still give me shivers to this day - 25 years since I last saw that film
Return to Oz is most definitely one of my favorite movies.
I've always liked Return to Oz.
No offense to all those who prefer the classic, but to me:
Return To Oz > Wizard Of Oz
Same
This is what the films should be like because in some bits of the books it's dark and return to oz so much scarier than the original which I like
@@StormDatIsApproaching the director are the same editor as the godfather 3 and apocalypse now
Mombi is actually just saying "DOROTHY GALE".
I love the movie "Return to Oz" I have only met one person in my life who knew it, all others think I'm talking about something else.
Actually at the most scary moment when Doroty wants to take the powder of life, I don't think the head of Mombi speaks magic mumbo jumbo, I think her words are: "Dorothy Gale!" But she yells this so horribly weird and slow, I only heared this when I saw it with subtitles.
The scarecrow has indeed this animatronic mask, but actually, he has several. When he is scared in a show, he does not have the smile but a scary face.
Thank you James, for talking about this movie and these books!
James, you should do more book reviews.
The Gumps head never died. Ozma had his head hung over a door like a trophy he once was and would sometimes talk with guests as they passed him.
Best sequeal to WIzard of Oz: Pan's Labyrinth
That just makes me want an oz movie directed by Guillermo del Toro. With Ron Perlman as the Lion.
That actually sounds like an EXCELLENT idea there! Why did I not think of that(or anyone else)? Someone should try to convince him to make those OZ movies based on the books, if possible...
Lincoln Noronha Pan's labyrinth directed by Guillermo del Toro is my favorite movie.
That doesn't count
Ya, that's true.
He's The Calm Media Review Nerd ;)
This movie blew my mind as a kid and I couldn't wait for the next one.... and it never came. I was so sad people never wanted to see OZ get even wilder.
I think it's cool that James went all the way out into the desert to record this. Patreon money well spent!
Oh my God I must have suppressed seeing this when I was a kid, because seeing these images just gave me flashbacks! those guys on wheels terrified me!
Nick Chopper was the Tin Man's name when he was a human, before he cut off all of his limbs and replaced them with tin.
The Powder of Life wasn't next to "just one of her heads"' ; it was next to Mombi's original head.
I'd like to see a well made animated series covering each book. If live action wasn't feasible, this would certainly offer the chance to be creative and play on the imagination without being constrained by physical limits of live action films.
WaltBTB watch the wonderful wizard of oz anime lol it's close to the books and considering when it was animated the animations are pretty good
I enjoy these little reviews. It's charming, brings a good book to people that forgot or never heard about it, and it fills the spectrum. Not only do you do games, but board games, movies, all you need is TV shows, and you're good!
Yo, but seriously... that part with all the heads screaming in Return to Oz. It seems tame to me now, but as a child, I could *not* handle it. Pretty sure I watched that movie once and only once.
Come on James, make the Oz series happen yourself!
@Jessey Lawson But the series is mightier than the cannon.
If Oz was adapted book for book as an anime series (that style I'm meaning). That shit would rock.
It nearly was. Books 1, 2, 3, and 6, all very close to the books (except they added Dorothy to the second story). Came out in 1986. Look it up. ♥
kumada84 It was the series from Cinar and it was awesome, best Oz adaptation I've seen, many wonderful childhood memories.
So basically Jojo's bizarre adventure.
TOHO actually made a Wizard of Oz anime film awhile back, so we getting there.
I want that honestly
Did James just age 20 years between uploads!?
He's a walking corpse lol.
hes like 36 isn't he? that's close to 40 so yeah hes aged...big difference when youre closer to 40 than 20
No - the background just washes him out.
I know I looks lik he's pushing 50
Shitty games, not even once.
Thank you for part two James. I've never seen the Return to Oz film. I completely forgot it even existed.
One of my favourite films of all time. Criminally underrated.
Hm, what really puzzles me the most is that the japanese didn't pick it up...
There are some adaptations like the 1992 Space Oz no Bouken (the Wonderful Galaxy of oz), but they don't seem to be that popular or known.
Strange...
Maybe it's not know over there, perhaps.
Still, I'd prefer some asian try on the Wizzard of Oz rather than Hollywood, just because we just don't know what would happen.
Stefan Payne Come to think of it, I'm surprised there hasn't been an anime version of The Wizard of Oz. Can you imagine what that would be like?
There is a 1982 animated movie, a 1986 52-episodes anime series and it was also adapted into 1976 series, Manga sekai mukashi banashi, which is the shortest but oddly one of the most faithful adaptations.
I remember very very little of this film, but the one scene I will NEVER forget is when the heads scream, and the headless woman rises up and chases her. Good lord, it still gives me chills just thinking of it.
"DOROTHY GAAAAAIIIIL!" That shit made my blood run cold as a kid.
Man I completely forgot about the Return to Oz movie but you gave me back all my horrible childhood flashbacks of it. That film may very well be why my creativity is so screwed up.
return to oz scared the absolute shit outta me as a kid
I watched the Emerald City pilot. It sucked balls.
Are they really trying to make a "sexy" scarecrow? Jeez Tv is garbage now.
aperson22222
Screw that garbage pile of a show.
CANCELLED!!
I thought it's been decent 3 episodes in. It's about exactly what I expected though.
As much as I love her, my mother-in-law has terrible taste in TV shows and she likes Emerald City so I may steer clear of this one.
Benjamin Peets Depends on the TV you watch.
Return to Oz was an underrated movie.
unpopular opinion, but I prefer it to the Wizard of Oz.
People don't like it because it isn't a sickly sweet singing and dance movie. I thought it was awesome as as kid. And closer to the books than The Wizard of Oz
Love the fact you are reviewing this. The wheelers scared the shit out of me.
so basically Emerald city is Tin man 2: forgettable boogaloo
James, did you notice that the nurse and doctor and the original Mombi's head and the Gnomes' king are the same actors? also the wheelers are the male nurses that bring Dorothy to the electroshock, and they come with squeaking wheels. Last connection: the electroshock machine and tic-toc!
"A movie that's twelve hours long but the actual story is in the middle and is only about an hour and a half."
Sounds like Peter Jackson's King Kong.
Oh I used to watch Return to Oz all the time because my Grandpa had it. It's my fave :D
More book reviews please, hell it doesn't matter actually as long as I can listen to James...
I loved Return to Oz when I was little. I also loved The Worst Witch, which Fairuza Balk was in as well. Thanks for the review :)
To those that keep bringing up how old James looks here, consider a couple things. For one, the lighting in this video makes his hair look more grey then it actually is. Secondly, the background he uses in the video has a particular color palette (light blue pastel with a dark film over it) - that when paired with the lighting, makes his hair look lighter in color then it actually is.
And lastly, yeah he is kind of getting old. If you've been following his videos over the last 6 years, his hair has been thinning (especially in upper front). The colors and lighting also make this stand out more.
That said, he looks older then he really is. But at the same time, he is getting up their age.
The fun of the Oz books and Grimm's fairytales is the mix of the grotesque and the innocent. The sanitized versions from Disney and Hollywood are OK, but the naughty parts of these stories were some of the best parts.
mightisright yup, this is why I love Phillip Pullman's books. Perfect mix of action, horror, and whimsical innocence.
frith and devout atheism lol
Always thought Jack Skellington was a direct ripoff of Jack Pumpkinhead.
Return to OZ was one of my favorite movies as a kid. My family used to have a small farm with chickens, and we named one of the red hens Ballina, after the chicken in the movie. lol!
I would like to know, if Tim Burton took inspiration from "Jack Pumpkin Head" for Jack Skellington the "Pumpkin King". Because, both are named Jack and both reference pumpkins as heads (although Skellington's is obviously ghostly white).
Carved out pumpkins with faces on them are called "Jack O'Lanterns". ^-^ But, yes, there's almost no doubt he got the idea from Jack Pumpkinhead. ♥
Anto Kyuuketsuki well Tim burton tried to copy American McGee's Alice. that Is the true Alice in wonderland story in my opinion.
Hell, Skellington's head even looks like a skeletal version of Jack Pumpkin Head's.
+lowercase21
No, he didn't; Nightmare came out in 1993 and American McGee's Alice came out in 2000. If anything, McGee was emulating Burton's style.
I meant burton's Alice in wonderland not nightmare before Christmas. I'm a 90's kid so I know what times they came out and American McGee's Alice is really close to my heart. It really seems like Tim burton's Alice 1 and 2 took stuff straight from the game and honestly i would have been happy if he straight up made it dark. I heard Tim wanted it dark but Disney didn't want it to be dark so Tim threw in just a little bit of dark stuff. which ticked me off bc it just didn't belong in the movie.
Jack O'Lanterns and the practice of carving faces in pumpkins or other vegetables has existed for centuries in several places
return to oz..man what a weird traumatic experience as a kid. I had forgotten about it.
Man I'd actually forgotten how terrifying that movie was. Headless Mombi stalking along while her head wails "DOROTHY GAAAAALE!!" Yeesh. Good times.
James there is play put on by the Minneapolis Thearter that is pretty much a one to one retelling of Land of Oz. It even has the translation joke. You can watch the full show on CZcams.
Does anyone else here prefer Return To Oz to Wizard Of Oz?
I do!
I am SO GLAD you reviewed this James! It's one of the most fantastic installments in the series! Absolutely brilliant, especially about the 12 hour movie, I would watch it!
Why does your hair look gray?
It is called getting old. You will see.
It's the overhead light, for the green screen. Look at my shoulders. it's there too.
So, you fucked up?
"Where did the hair go"
Well he definitely has lost some hair over the years, but hey that's life!
Thanks James for another great look into the Land of Oz. I still remember seeing Return To Oz as an adult and thinking, "Was this suppose to be for kids? Because I'm going to having nightmares about Wheelies and headless witches."
James you didn't mention Return to Oz's BEAUTIFUL orchestral score by David Shire , Talia Shire's (Adrian!!) husband
Really love this series James. Keep it up!
I loved Return to Oz, I'll still watch it here and there when I feel nostalgic. Great review James. 👍👍
James, I am from Brazil and I am a HUGE fan of yours. You inspire me to know how to appreciate things in the right way.
Keep up with the good work
14:29 One of the episodes of Mr. Show with Bob and David had a bit like that.It was called "Coupon : The Movie".
i dont no why, but i really love these kind of shows. James just sitting around and explaining things.
really cool and a welcome distraction on CZcams.
Dorothy is not out of her mind. In the Judy Garland film, the land of Oz is heavily implied to be a dream. In this movie, it's all but confirmed to be real, like it is in the books.
"This... the stuff of nightmares" it truly trip me up when I was little watching this, but I loved it.
James, I'm enjoying these.
I watched this review back when it aired but I had never seen Return to Oz. I just now watched it on Disney+ and came back here to hear Jame's thoughts. Great review! But, I realized that this aired 5 years ago... now I feel old 😕
James should review Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return and maybe Oz the Great and Powerful.
Oz The Great and Powerful is criminally underrated.
@@matthewbennett9928 To my mind, it's really the best Oz movie other than the original 1939 classic.
originally the wizard fills the scare crows head with pins and needles. This was to make him ... "Sharp" looll.
Also, The tin woodman was always called Nick Chopper in the book.
i love Return to Oz, for me it was much better than The Wizard of Oz, but then i'm a Tim Burton fan, so that would explain it. lol
in any case, for anyone who hasnt seen this movie, give it a shot, it's worth it.
i'm a FREAKING-HUGE Tim-Burton fan myself.,,.
You know I'm something of a Tim Burton fan myself
I would love to see more book reviews here, books are always neglected online so it's nice to hear James discuss the ones he cares about.
Why don't you review the other books? It's extremely interesting.
To this day I could never forget the Wheelers.
Tip is the most underutilized characters in Oz.
Trans-girl Tip growing up wondering why she doesn't feel like the other boys would be interesting enough on it's own, but you know what would be more interesting?
What if trans-BOY Tip never experienced gender disassociation, then had to deal with keeping all these mages and monsters from killing each other on top of it?
Hollywood hasn't even explored the "Tip" of the iceberg...
[Nick Chopper flashes his axe].
Cyber Jackalope Fuck you are your puns.
Totally Heck you don't even have to make Tip trans
Maybe she could be trapped in his soul or heart or whatever.
Maybe she was turned into a spirit only Tip can see & hear, & maybe she can posses him for stuff.
Maybe she's someone else like Tips mom or best friend/ or someone else important to Tip, & if He/She turns back Tip might never see him/her again.
Or keep Tip Trans, but even then there's so much you could do with just that as well.
Imagine Ranma 1/2, but in OZ. The sky's the limit for him/her.
Split personalities
Genderbend at will (but they've gotta keep it secret)
Superhero/Ruler secret identities
Wizard returns and Ozma kicks him in the nuts
Tip's knack for building things evolves into mad science
Ozma's inner Tip falls for Dorothy, but Dorothy's straight
Etc, etc, etc
MrGamernova
Ah, an classic manga. Have you watch Ranma live action special? Le Chevalier d’Eon and Yamada-Kun and the Seven Witches was pretty nice too.
James maybe you should make those Oz movies?
Yesssss
james looks so old right now
Phreaker1997 Come closer children it's story time.
Phreaker1997 it's the sweater
lol gramps
silver fox.
Nice username
The Cinar 4 part animated series from '86-'87 is amazing and heavily inspired from the books more than Return to Oz. Highly Recommended
I ate a baby! Get in mah belly!
lol
Chilli... baby back ribs
Barbecue sauce
The other white meat!
Mombi's head didn't say some magic mumbo jumbo, she literally said: "Dorothy Gale!"
Please Tell me James is going to do more videos like this, especially if he talks about Oz some more.
Scarecrow looks more accurate to the book. Also, I read the book. Tip is an awesome character. Sawhorse is awesome too.
Yes! When I was little, I totally wanted a talking saw horse, lol.
Return to Oz was one of my favorite movies as a kid.
I've never been that interested in The Wizard of Oz, but I'm loving hearing you talk about it. Please, consider continuing this series of videos.
I've just started reading the OZ books, on a whim.
That Emerald City show you mention at the end sounds pretty disappointing to me--a golden opportunity squandered on a "gritty, realistic" fantasy that just ends up kind of dull and unimaginative.
The wheelers Was my favorite!
this is my favorite Oz Movie!
Again James you forgot about "Tin Man" that happens to be one of my favorite retellings of the Oz stories as it starts in modern day, but Oz has a 30's - early 40's art deco/steam punk feel about it.
Actually the way James says about the movie to me sounds a lot like a Creepypasta, really think about that for a minute.
I remember seeing this on a recorded vhs as a kid. one of my favorites and kinda scary shit haha
James, thank you so much for deciding to review some of this book series. I always wanted to know more of the story, and I already see how Emerald city is fitting stuff together. I hope you continue with this.
Come on James do an OZ movie...Its's the only way they will be done right
You're pretty good at summarising books.
I remember the heads in jars scene the most. I thought this movie had the Jaberwocky scene it it though?
You're thinking of Through the Looking Glass which was an Alice in Wonderland TV mini-series done by Warner Bros.
You're right. Creepy childhood memories getting mixed up
I had a feeling Emerald City would be basically Game of Thrones meets Grimm or Once upon a time.
Where did you learn to fly?
I loved this movie as a kid. It's been so long since I've seen it. I really need to do that now haha