Return to Oz

Running time: N/A

If there's one thing you must do this year at Cinequest, it's Return to Oz. Return to the land where the adventure began. Nominated for Visual Effects in 1985, Walter Murch's new vision of the land of Oz does just that--takes its audience on the adventure of a lifetime back to Oz as Dorothy, with the help of some new friends, must stop the evil Nome King. Upon its original release, Murch's film was lambasted (by many who did not even see the film) not based on quality, but rather because audiences were not met with the colorfully happy land they remembered from the MGM classic. It's true. Return to Oz is dark, but parents were also taking their children to see faces implode and bloodily melt away in Raiders of the Lost Ark. Also forgotten was the fact that Return to Oz is much closer in spirit to the books by L. Frank Baum. What was lost, however, was much more than audiences having the chance to see a wonderful story. Return to Oz is also a discovery--a discovery of Murch's finely-tuned direction, hauntingly beautiful cinematography by David Watkin, and an unforgettable score from David Shire. Return to Oz is a must see for those who want to escape to a new land. --Mike Rabehl