Return to Oz (1985)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Walter Murch

Writers:

L. Frank Baum (novels)
Gill Dennis (writer)

Release Date:

21 June 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Mystery

Tagline:

An all-new adventure down the yellow brick road.

Plot:

Dorothy, saved from a psychiatric experiment by a mysterious girl, is somehow called back to Oz when a vain witch and the Nome King destroy everything that makes the magical land beautiful.

Plot Keywords:

Doctor | King | Mysterious Girl | Chicken | Scarecrow

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 5 nominations

Cast

Fairuza Balk	...	Dorothy
Nicol Williamson	...	Dr. Worley / The Nome King
Jean Marsh	...	Nurse Wilson / Mombi
Piper Laurie	...	Aunt Em
Matt Clark	...	Uncle Henry
Michael Sundin	...	Tik-Tok
Tim Rose	...	Tik-Tok
Sean Barrett	...	Tik-Tok (voice)
Mak Wilson	...	Billina
Denise Bryer	...	Billina (voice)
Brian Henson	...	Jack Pumpkinhead (voice)
Stewart Larange	...	Jack Pumpkinhead
Lyle Conway	...	Gump (voice)
Stephen Norrington	...	Gump (as Steve Norrington)
Justin Case	...	Scarecrow

Also Known As:

Oz (USA) (working title)
The Adventures of the Devil in the Sky (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

113 min | Finland:110 min (uncut) | Finland:109 min (cut)

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Canada:G (Nova Scotia) (original rating) | Canada:PG (Nova Scotia) (re-rating) (2003) | Finland:K-10 (uncut) | Finland:K-8 (cut) | Netherlands:MG6 | Iceland:L | Iceland:LH (video rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (1986) | UK:U (original rating) | Australia:PG | Sweden:11 | USA:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Elstree Film and TV Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company:

BMI (No. 9) Ltd.

Trivia:

The scene where Dorothy (Fairuza Balk) falls onto the couch with a thud and onto the Nome King's mountain was done in 11 takes

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Ozma is unstrapping Dorothy, a close-up shows her saying "We've got to get you out of here." When the camera pans out, it shows her mouthing the exact same line.

Quotes:

Lead Wheeler: You'll be sorry for treating me like this! I'm a TERRIBLE fierce person!

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Disneyland: Disney Goes to the Oscars (#30.8)" (1986)

take it from one who experienced this movie at the right age

Return To Oz was the first horror film i ever saw, and i love it today just as much as i did when i was 5. yes, i do believe Return To Oz is a horror, but one that children should see. it is horror just as the brothers Grim are horror. it is horror because everything in the eyes of a child can be very frightening. and yes, i do believe this horror is better than The Wizard of Oz, despite what all my contempories might believe. as a kid, i could not get over the fact the Judy Garland was too old, that they would not stop singing and dancing. come on, this was my childhood, i needed a good rush, not a bunch of eye-candy and disturbing munchkin voices. little dorothy walking down a corridor of decapitated head in ornate display cases, afraid that she might wake them, that the decapitated body would come in search of her in her terrifying gothic splendor-this moment has stayed with me, has always frightened me, but i'm glad that i experienced it, it is healthy for a child to be afraid, humility is something everyone needs to embrace, and this film with its lush terror and build up to a phenomenal climax as apocolyptic as anything today still inspires me toward something the silly set pieces and hammy emotion of Wizard of Oz, cannot do. Return to Oz is a lost masterpiece, terrifying, energetic, creative, and wonderful.