Realrockerhalloween A Disney original film that takes the classic Wizard of Oz mythology and turns it on it's head in this dark fascinating none direct sequel. Aunt Em thinking Dorothy suffers from delusions takes her to a clinic for treatment only for the girl to find her way back to the magical land of Oz. Only now its not so merry since the Nome king wants to punish the citizens for taking a prized treasure away from him long ago.More faithful to the series we are introduced to new companions Tik-Tok, Jack pumpkin head and the terrifying Wheelers who do the bidding of their king. At first I was delusioned by the new direction took with a sequel, thinking it was a radical change from the happy go lucky 1930s classic until I read the books and knew even Baum would be proud of what they accomplished.The sets aren't colorful, but show how vastly different OZ looks once you leave the forest and cities with deserts, mountains along with ruins of ancient civilizations. The costumes were realistic, the music fit the scenes and The acting was top notch. Although I felt the ending was rushed once miss Gale saved her friends and not leaving enough room to say goodbye.Return to OZ is not a kid's movie and has scary imagery they may not be able to handle. 7/10

Leofwine_draca RETURN TO OZ, the sequel to the 1930s classic, was a massive flop when it was put out by Disney in 1985, which is why I doubt many people today know of its existence. Having just watched an excellent quality, high definition copy of it, I was surprised at how entertaining it is; it's no masterpiece for sure, but it has the edge on the recent OZ: THE GREAT AND THE POWERFUL put out by Sam Raimi.Yes there are disparities when compared to the original film but this was intended to be more in line with the L. Frank Baum novels than the MGM classic. Fairuza Balk is an effective choice as a younger, wide-eyed Dorothy, carted off to a mental asylum and then transported back to Oz where she discovers a terrible tragedy has befallen the Emerald City. Soon she's hooked up with a new group of allies to go on a brand new adventure.In my opinion, the 1980s was the pinnacle of the special effects film. Animatronics and prosthetics were the best they were going to get, and computer graphics were in but had not yet overwhelmed cinema. RETURN TO OZ is a great film for effects fans: all practical, all great looking, particularly Nicol Williamson's Nome King. I got a chuckle out of seeing Jack Pumpkinhead, a character that storyboard animator Henry Selick would later 'borrow' for THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE Christmas. Tik-Tok is another good creation, full of character, but my favourite is Billina.RETURN TO OZ isn't a perfect film, as it does feel a bit uneven in terms of pacing and the opening sequences are perhaps a little too dark for kids. Jean Marsh is overwrought and ineffective in her role too, and should have toned things down a bit. However, the sheer effort that has gone into the world building, and the genuinely suspenseful extended climax, make this a fun movie. And it's impossible not to love the painstaking effects work - including Claymation - that's gone into the production.

Darryl Jason After reading many of the reviews already posted here, I think we can all agree that this movie RETURN TO OZ is an unofficial sequel to The Wizard Of Oz. Yes it is intended to follow on from the original 1939 classic, and one would hope to see Judy Garland once again reprise the role of Dorothy, had this unofficial sequel been made sooner and of course before Garland sadly passed (God rest her soul). Fairuza Balk however does exceptionally well as Dorothy Gale. One would wonder why, if this is a sequel, why she is younger than her original character in The Wizard Of Oz?? Surely she'd be slightly older in this one?I do like how the film has it's own intake to that completely different to the original - the chicken 'Billina' replacing the dog 'Toto'. Surely Dorothy isn't Dorothy without her dog. And a few people in these message boards think of this movie as a horror - I wouldn't say so exactly but it does have it's chilling moments - the heads in the glass cabinets and the dark dreary music during that scene... and yes "The Wheelers!"The Cast - All in the all, the cast are great. I only wish Piper Laurie (Aunt Em) was featured more in the film. Such a wonderful actress and she was just terrific in "Carrie" (1976). She also co-starred in a 1988 TV movie "Go Toward The Light" alongside Linda Hamilton, whom I have met twice at the London Film & Comic Con. I have also met Jean Marsh (Nurse Wilson/Princess Mombi) at the conventions. I had a lovely conversation with her regarding her role in this movie and who cannot forget her role as Queen Bavmorda in "Willow" (1988). Quality actress. I do think she plays both roles of Nurse Wilson & Mombi very well.I wonder where the lunch-pail comes into it? And it's a shame we never see much of the Yellow Brick Road. As I've mentioned already, maybe this film isn't untended to be that close to The Wizard Of Oz. It tells it's own story in it's own way. I've grown up watching this film, and at the age of 28 now, I still love it. It was however made 1-year before I was born but I was a huge 80s child. "Labyrinth" (1986) is definitely my film and I shall be reviewing about that film soon enough! RETURN TO OZ is definitely up there in my "Top 5 80s films" and if you do have kids that haven't already seen this, sit them down they will love it... just beware of The Wheelers!

Gavin Cresswell (gavin-thelordofthefu-48-460297) After having watched the 1939 classic "The Wizard of Oz", I heard that Hollywood made a sequel a few years later in the 80s and unlike the original, which was owned by MGM, this was owned by Disney. I first watched it when I was 14 years old and I seemed to be a bit impressed by it. OK, it's not as strong as the original due to it's flaws, but it's a very good sequel and a very underrated one at that.First of all, I like how the story doesn't repeat the original and it's darker tone is represented well throughout the film, but aside from it's decent character development, it does derive itself from two books of the Oz series "Land of Oz" and "Ozma of Oz". The script does have it's problems with several scenes that were completely cut.Flaws aside, everything is done perfectly. The cinematography is brilliant, the stop motion effects on the Nomes, although dated back then, are splendid, the scenery is beautiful, the costumes and make-up on the new characters including the villain Mombi, the Nome King, Jack the Pumpkinhead, and others are perfect. The direction from editor Walter Murch is solid and builds a lot of tense and atmosphere to the darker tone of the film; the music from David Shire is pretty good too. The best part goes to the cast of actors. Fairuza Balk did a fantastic job portraying a much younger Dorothy (don't get me wrong. Judy Garland's role as Dorothy was timeless), Jean Marsh is a menacing Mombi, Brian Henson is a wonderful sidekick Jack the Pumpkinhead and Nicol Williamson is a frightening Nome King.Overall, Return to Oz isn't as excellent as "The Wizard of Oz", but I can see why this got a cult following over the past few years and I would recommend this to those who haven't seen it.