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The Wiz is probably the grandest take on L. Frank Baum's classic tale The Wizard of Oz. The production team created sets with a sense of urban magic and spectacle: a New York subway station literally comes to life, and the massive plaza between the World Trade Center towers is transformed into the Emerald City, featuring nearly 400 dancers with three costume changes. Like all good musicals, the Quincy Jones arrangements are highly hummable long after viewing (especially the funky "Ease On Down the Road" and the inspirational "Brand New Day"). In an era before MTV, the camera stays nearly stationary as Ross and Lena Horne vocally soar through their numbers. Their stage-like performances successfully make the leap to film, making The Wiz a testament to their singing talents and star presence. The then-thirtysomething Ross raised some eyebrows playing the traditionally teenaged Dorothy, but she and her supporting cast (including Richard Pryor as the Wiz) carry the tunes with an infectious verve that will appeal to folks of all ages. --Shannon Gee
| CATEGORY: | DVD |
| DIRECTOR: | Sidney Lumet |
| THEATRICAL RELEASE DATE: | 24 October, 1978 |
| MANUFACTURER: | Universal Studios |
| MPAA RATING: | G (General Audience) |
| FEATURES: | Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Letterboxed, Widescreen, NTSC |
| TYPE: | Atmospheric, Blaxploitation, Color, Earnest, English, Fanciful, Fantasy, Fantasy Adventure, Fantasy Lands, Feature, Finding a Way Back Home, Fish Out of Water, Humorous, Mild Violence, Movie, Musical, Musical Fantasy, Musical Features, Musicals, Musicals & Cast Recordings |
| MEDIA: | DVD |
| MPN: | UNI |
| # OF MEDIA: | 1 |
| UPC: | 025192053429 |
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Customer Reviews of The Wiz
Great Costuming & Sets, Some Good Songs, But Not Engaging & Way Too Long The 1978 film "The Wiz" was the film version of the 1975 African-American casted Broadway production of the same title based upon the classic children's novel [[ASIN:0060293233 The Wonderful Wizard of Oz]] by L. Frank Baum (1856-1919), as well as the 1939 classic film [[ASIN:B000ADS63K The Wizard of Oz]] that starred Judy Garland. This film's much older Dorothy (Diana Ross), after running out from a large family get-together on a cold winter night in New York City, is whisked away in a rare New York City tornado to the bizarre & impoverished Harlem-esque world of Oz, complete with skateboarding & number-playing munchkins, an insecure scarecrow (Michael Jackson), an ever-rusting Tinman (Nipsy Russell, 1918-2005) from a bankrupt amusement park and a cowardly lion (Ted Ross, 1934-2002) who they find hiding within a statue. They travel to the Emerald City to get help from the Wiz (Richard Pryor, 1940-2005), who insists that they get the broomstick from Evillene (Mabel King, 1932-1999), the "Wicked Witch of the West". <
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>With lavish sets and colorfully neon costumes, "The Wiz" received four Oscar nominations for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design and Best Music. The film's lengthy soundtrack includes the memorable song "Ease on Down the Road", as well as the "Emerald City Ballet Sequence", "The Feeling That We Once Had" and many other less memorable songs. However, whereas the original book and 1939 film version were intended entirely for children, it is clear that "The Wiz" was intended for a much more mature audience with elements that were highly suggestive of drug use within a stark, industrialized and mostly unpleasant inner city, making its characters far less engaging and identifiable for most viewers. At 134 minutes, "The Wiz" was also entirely too long and should have been edited down to be less than 2 hours by removing portions of the film's final 30 minutes. Overall, I rate the 1978 film "The Wiz" with 3 out of 5 stars. <
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fine screen re-working of the Broadway hit
THE WIZ was a big hit on Broadway in 1975, and naturally it seemed perfect to adapt for the movies. The film version of THE WIZ was released in 1978 to a lukewarm critical response; this was during a period when the traditional movie musical was considered old-fashioned. Despite the critical backlash, audiences flocked to see some of their favourite R&B and Motown stars in the clever spin on L. Frank Baum's "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz".
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>The story revolves around a shy kindergarten teacher called Dorothy (Diana Ross), who lives with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry in downtown New York. Following the big family Thanksgiving dinner, Aunt Em (played by Theresa Merritt) worries that Dorothy refuses to go out and live her own life. Lonely and despondent, Dorothy would rather spend her time caring for her little dog, Toto. When Toto runs out into the middle of a raging snowstorm, Dorothy follows in hot pursuit, only to be swept up and away into the magical land of Oz.
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>Dorothy must "Ease on Down" the Yellow Brick Road, and find the wonderful Wiz if she has any hope of returning to her real life. Along the way, she meets the gangly Scarecrow (Michael Jackson), the rusty Tin Man (Nipsey Russell), and a cowardly Lion (Ted Ross) who all surely need some magical doings, too. Dorothy also makes a tough adversary in the wicked witch, Evillene (Mabel King in her original Broadway role). But will the Wiz be every bit as magical as he's made out to be?...
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>Director Sidney Lumet and screenwriter Joel Schumacher staged THE WIZ in a parallel universe, using the familiar New York skyline and landmarks to create a world of Oz that is strangely-familiar to Dorothy. By doing so they added a whole new layer to the magic of the story. The original Broadway score by Charlie Smalls was augmented by several new songs, and they mesh perfectly.
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>Diana Ross plays Dorothy with enough honesty and emotion to forgive the fact that she was completely miscast in the role to begin with. I wonder how this movie would have turned out with Broadway's original Dorothy--Stephanie Mills--in the role. Still, Ross has her moments, particularly belting out the cathartic finale of "Home".
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>Michael Jackson (long before he actually needed makeup to look weird) is a fabulous Scarecrow; while Nipsey Russell and Ted Ross likewise find lots to explore within their roles. As always, Mabel King is a powerful revelation as Evillene; and the legendary Lena Horne is perfectly-cast as Glinda. Another veteran jazz lady, Thelma Carpenter, delights with her small role as Miss One. Richard Pryor makes what he can from the only under-developed role in the musical, The Wiz himself.
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>The screen version of THE WIZ contains enough magic, innocence and sweet emotion to paper over any problems that it may have. No doubt it will continue to enthrall audiences for years to come.
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>The DVD includes the trailer. (Single-sided, dual-layer disc).
A Classic and a must see for Motown lovers
I seen this movie for the first time when i was about 9 years old on a tv station. My mother went crazy because she said she hadn't sent this movie since she was about 15 mind you she was born in 1966. The songs and overall plot put a soulful spin on an american classic. The easy to sing to lyrics an joyful tone are what are my most listed memories. I have all my friends see this movie when we all are picking out something to watch. I find myself humming lines and singing in my head whenever i catch wind of the first version of the wizard of oz. This is a true cinema classic and needs to be re-released and restore in theaters everywhere. I've even seen adaptations of the movie done in the theater and the music helps make it even more enjoyable.