THE WIZARD OF OZ

[maikuu]

Ray Bolger (1904–1987), Jack Haley (1897–1979), Judy Garland (1922–1969), and Bert Lahr (1895–1967)

[Junyilyu]

Hi Mike!

I think The Wizard of Oz is a fantastic movie based on the movie-making technology at that time. I had not noticed that all the scenes were shot indoors until you reminded us. The color of this movie--blue dress, red shoes, yellow road and emerald building--brings a pleasant and joyful feeling to the audience, especially to the children. The painting of the forest and the grassland and the fake snow are also vivid enough to attract audience. Putting all things indoors to create an outdoor feeling is not an easy work, but the staff of this movie made it without modern technology and facilities. Salute!

Apart from the technological advantage, the content of this movie is attractive as well. The most inspiring part, to me, is the scene when Dorothy waking up at her own bed, surrounded by her family and friends, she said "there is no place like home." That makes me feel nostalgia. Although there may be no place like home, the adventure of Dorothy is worthwhile. During the journey, she makes friends with Tin Man, Scarecrow and Lion. She understands the importance of friendship, brain, heart and courage--so do we.

Her friends also get what they want respectively. She assumes the responsibility to protect her dog, Toto, and she never fail it. The most important thing she learns is the value of home. In the beginning she was just a little girl who wants to "go to another place", but in the end, she feels "there is no place like home". It reminds me of a real scene in my life--after a long travel to Zhangjiajie, a group of famous mountains in Southern China, I felt the most comfortable place was my own home and own bed. In the movie, the Good Witch said: Dorothy has to find the way home by herself. In our lives, without a long journey outside, probably we will never find how lovely our homes are.

Since it is a musical movie, the music of this movie is mellifluous. I had heard Over the Rainbow many times before I watched this movie. This song properly expresses the thought of Dorothy at that moment. Looking up the sky, Dorothy sings out the deepest desire in her mind. At the same time, the power of human's imagination is also flying with her voice.

Above all, this is a classic movies with amazing skill, inspiring plot and beautiful pictures and songs. Looking forward to the next week's movie!

Junyi Lyu (Lyra)

[jacqueline]

It's a really old movie but it is classic.

The whole story was well-organized basing on reasonable design of characteristics and unexpected plot. This dedication is shown by the fact that Scarecrow stood for farmer, the Tin Man stood for worker and the Lion stood for the Senator, together with Dorothy, they were heading to the wizard of Oz for wisdom, love and courage. Likewise, the wizard who was money-oriented and her land were created on the basis of the entire financial system.

A prosperous city was about to be built so long as people were brave enough to disclose all evil things the wizard had done. Although it seemed to be natural for everyone to get what they lost at the end of the story, they never lack those qualities actually. They were not given the wisdom, love and courage. They found them deep inside their hearts during the journey. Strength is not given by others, it is obtained through self-exploring, self-challenge and self-recognizing.

There is no place like. And we should also hold a faith that the dreams that you dare to dream really come true!

Jacqueline Zou

[xyweng]

Hi, this is Sylvie (Xiaoyu Weng).

My favorite song in this movie is Somewhere over the rainbow. Its beautiful melody and poetic lyrics really impressed me when I was a teenager. Over the years, I’ve heard so many different versions of this song and finally I got to hear the original version from the movie. By the way, I have to say that We’re Off to See the Wizard is so catchy that it just stuck in my head all day long!

As Dorothy said at the end of the movie, “if I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, I won’t look any further than my own back yard”, she has learned that true happiness comes from something or someone that is always close to us, such as our family or friends. We may often turn a blind eye to these things, just like Dorothy wants to run away from her aunt and uncle. But the pursuit of happiness is never that hard, just look at your back yard and you’ll find the long-lost treasure.

However, maybe it would take a while for an audience to blend into this musical from the 30s when their taste have been spoiled by Hollywood blockbusters. Actually this movie reminds me of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, both contain bright color in costumes and settings, joyful singing and dancing, and wacky interesting characters. Their journey to the Oz seems like the only solution to their problems, but is actually a journey to retrieve their true self, a journey for them to realize the most important things in their life. In this sense, this movie is no doubt a success. It would always be easier to show people the truth by telling a sweet fairytale.

[Huanlin]

What is your favorite song and why?
I like the song “Somewhere over the rainbow”. The lyrics are beautiful and the melody is very calming, creating a perfect wonderland compared to the reality where there is Mrs. Gulch and her oppression. The beginning and the end of the movie is black and white, however the song is related to rainbow, which also distinct the dream world from reality. I really love all these contrasts they make. This song also reminded of “Castle on a cloud” from Les Miserables. It seems like children often wish upon the sky when they’re depressed, which is really interesting. I like to find these similarities between different movies, and try to understand why they are used in films.

What does Dorothy learn in this story?
She learned that the place she wanted to go more than anywhere was her home. At the very beginning, she is dreaming about “Somewhere over the rainbow”, a place far away. However during the journey, she started to miss her family and her hometown very much. When the journey is about to end, she finally realized there is no other place better than home, where she can be accompanied by her family and her friends.

In your opinion, what does the journey of Oz represent?
I think it represents the attitude people have toward god. In this movie, everyone considered Oz as the solution to everything. They wanted to ask Oz for things, just like how people pray for god. People believe in god even if they’ve never meet the god or seen any miracles made of God, like the way citizens believe in Oz and his great power without actually seeing him. Oz, or God, is only a normal person, creating an illumination for others to believe in, maintaining the order of the world.

Write a setup/opinion of THE WIZARD OF OZ
I am really impressed by the special effect they did in this movie. Nowadays, the effects are so true that it becomes too realistic, however the special effect back then shows the imagination of the crew. The director and others need to come up with ways to represent different situations.

Also, I like the connotation of this movie. I believe that it is showing the audience that we often have the things we want the most without noticing. In the movie, Scarecrow wanted a brain. However, he is actually pretty smart. He tricked the trees to get apples, he knew that they shouldn’t stay in the magic garden and fell asleep, he understood Toto’s meaning right away when it was trying to lead them to Dorothy. Tin Man wanted a heart, but he actually has a lot of feelings thus he cries a lot. The Lion wants courage. Though he seems to be pretty cowardice in the movie, he still accomplished the journey. I think courage is not to be unafraid, but to face the challenges even though you’re scared. The wizard of Oz gave them plunders to prove that they’ve got brain, heart and courage, but they have them already. It is also indicating that people often focus on proves and certificates too much, but overlook the power they already have.

Huan

[ttangra]

Over the years I have long been told about how fantastic and extraordinary THE WIZARD OF OZ is, and finally when I get the chance to watch this movie, I am unsurprisingly overwhelmed by this classic. Although the technology of this movie may seem a little old-fashioned from a current perspective of view, the revolutionary significance and the wisdom behind are never faded.

The journey to Oz not only helps Dorothy find her way back home, Scarecrow perceives his brain, Tin Man be aware of his heart, and Lion discovers his courage, but also leads us to think deeply about our own life. Sometimes people just neglect the true happiness around them whereas pursue less valuable things instead, or forget to explore and touch their inner selves whereas get “lost under the surface”. When Dorothy sings Somewhere Over The Rainbow, which is also my favorite song in the movie for its wonderful melody and lyric, all she hungers is an adventure in places free of trouble and constraint; but after the journey, she realizes that what she really wants is just to stay with the ones she loves.

I wonder if there is always a period of time during our life when we get caught in the undertow, and maybe that is when we need “Journeys to Oz” as well. With just a little bit of imagination, courage and candor, we may also be able to return to the self and find the true meaning of our life.

[zhang]

My favorite song is Somewhere Over the Rainbow. When I was an elementary student, I heard one of my favorite Chinese singers sing this song. At that time, it was hard to say I like it because it was so slow and insipid. However, I was fascinated with its name and the crystalline voice. Last year, in a Chinese real show, a celebrity sang this song with his two babies, a warm and peaceful feeling coming over me. For the first time, I recognized how beautiful the lyric is. After watching the movie, I am totally into this song. It symbolizes people’s good wish for their life and the efforts they are willing to commit for it.

This wonderful journey not only takes Dorothy back home physically but also takes her heart closer to her family. As a saying goes” so far and yet so near”, we usually think that happiness perches on a wonderland and keep ignoring the beautiful details in daily life. To cherish and to appreciate sometimes equals to realize a sweet dream. Maybe somewhere over the rainbow is the place we are living yet forget to live for.

I think most of us are incomplete, and the journey to Oz represent the adventure of finding what we lost. Like the Scarecrow needs a head, Tinman needs a heart, and the Lion needs courage, most of us lacks something to be a better one. By facing the challenges in life and combining strengths with others, we can find ourselves, know ourselves and to some degree perfect ourselves.

Yang Zhang

[Jessica]

My favorite song from "The Wizard of Oz" is "Somewhere over the Rainbow." It is a very famous song, I think I had heard this song even before I knew the movie. The rhythm is very warm and catchy. By listening to this song, I felt I really reached somewhere over the rainbow.

Dorothy begins as a very innocent child, loves her family and dog Toto. Through the adventure to Oz, she meets some new friends, they help each other out, and eventually get what they want. Dorothy get back home, with her famous saying of "there is no place like home." Through the trip, Dorothy learned a lot from her 3 partners, scarecrow, tin man, and lion. I think she got herself some intelligence, warm heart, courage too.

In my opinion, journey to Oz means growth. The main characters start from zero, they walk on the yellow brick road, try to find things that everybody is pursuing, brain, heart, and courage. In fact, four of them get these characters not through the magic, but themselves. Journey to Oz make them grow to who they are, they earn themselves these precious gifts.

The movie was released in 1939, when the country were still under the recovery of economy and the World War II was about to start. The movie "The Wizard of Oz" brought the society a sense of freshness. A girl on her journey to find brain, heart, and courage, and eventually she got back to her home sweet home. It teaches us we should follow what we want, and love will conquer everything. This story is not only very intriguing for children, but also those who are young at heart.

[lxr205]

Hello, Mike. This is Xuanrui Li (Sherry). I have heard about this story, but this is the first time I have a chance to watch it. I was so happy when I saw this movie was mostly in colors:) The whole story is just like a fairy tale with sone educational meanings behind the content.

I love two songs from this movie. Over the Rainbow and We're Off to See the Wizard. Over the Rainbow is so classic and famous that I listened it when I was a little girl. The tone and rhythm are both so sooth. I feel it is amazing that Judy Garland has two totally different voices when she speaks and sings. I feel this sone is just like a lullaby. For the other one, We're Off to See the Wizard, it repeats the most of times through out the whole movie. The tone and mood of this song, happy and positive, also perfectly represents the tone of the overall movie. This is also a song easy to be remembers.

Throughout the Journey, Dorothy learns that family is the most important and valuable treasure she owns, so that she cannot leave the family like she did at the most beginning of the movie. It will make both herself and her family heartbroken. She also notices the importance of friendship and courage.

I think the whole journey is like a path for all of them (Dorothy, tin man, lion and scarecrow) to learn important personalities. During the whole journey, brain, heart, courage and family are the things they try to pursue. In the end, they all get what they want, so it means they all get the personality they need through this journey. Therefore, I think it is just like a path guiding them to learn something.

[1993iris]

Hi Mike! My favorite song in THE WIZARD OF OZ is Somewhere over the Rainbow. The lyrics are beautiful and picture a magic world where people have no worries. The rhythm is so catchy that this song plays in my head over and over again for days. At the beginning of this movie, Dorothy sang this song and which she could enter a world which is over the rainbow, and then when she was really in the magic world, the movie started to turn into colors from black and white. The song is like the key to this magic colorful wonderland.

Dorothy learnt so much during her journey in the land of OZ. She learnt friendship, courage, wisdom and the most important thing—“there is nowhere like home”. At first, Dorothy wanted to be a wonderland where no pain exists. However, after the journey, she started to realize the value and importance of family.

The journey of Oz is like the journey of growing up. During the trip, Scarecrow gained wisdom; Tin Man gained a heart; Lion gained bravely. It was not the wizard of Oz who gave these to them. They learnt how to be wise, sympathy and brave all by themselves. For Dorothy, she had the ruby slipper at the very beginning, but she had to experience the whole journey to know the way of going home. To all of them, the journey made them more strong and mature.

The technology of making this movie is also marvelous. The whole movie is shot indoor and is the very first Technicolor movie. Although the movie seems a little bit boring and childish, it is still a milestone in movie industry.

Siying Li (Iris)