Inspired by the Appendix N from the AD&D Dungeon Master’s Guide, Appendix C is an ongoing series of short posts recommending works that have been influential for me as a writer and Dungeon Master.
My extreme affection for L. Frank Baum’s Oz books is something of a recurring joke, but the land of Oz is seared into my mind. I read a couple of the books as a child, but like a lot of people, it was a movie that defined Oz for me.
Unlike most of those people, MGM’s 1939 The Wizard of Oz isn’t that movie. I loved The Wizard of Oz, too, but it’s unofficial 1985 sequel Return to Oz was the movie that defined what Oz looked like to me.
There are dozens upon dozens of adaptations, sequels, parodies, and reinterpretations of Baum’s Oz stories. I suspect that Return to Oz has been unusually influential on more contemporary Oz works.
A box office flop, the 1985 film wasn’t well loved by critics either despite a few award nominations. It is editor and sound designer Walter Murch’s only feature directorial credit. Murch created a darker, bleaker version of Oz than audience’s were expecting, knowing this would be a gamble.
Studio executives fired him, but esteemed Hollywood talents vouched for Murch. George Lucas even agreed to take the helm of the project if Murch didn’t come through.
The film is undeniably uncanny and creepy. And that’s what I love about it. I suspect audiences would be more receptive to Return to Oz today, though I’m not sure something with such a strong sense of style would get made at all, at least not by a big studio like Disney.
Return to Oz drags a bit in parts. It’s certainly weird, but it is also visually stunning with a sharp sense for the uncanny. It’s on DisneyPlus if you want to check it out.
chasetriesagain.com 