Starring: Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Burt Lahr, Jack Haley, Billie Burke, Margaret Hamilton
Release Date: Aug. 25, 1939
Running Time: 101 min
Genres: Adventure, Family, Fantasy, Musical
Commentary The Wizard of Oz is a fantastic fairy tale based on L. Frank Baum's turn-of-the-century novel "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz". It is unique in many ways. It was one of the earliest movies to use technicolor, which was used throughout the dream sequence, which occupies most of the film, the Kansas sequences at the beginning and end being shot in sepia tone. It also makes use of lots of special effects, which were awesome for the time it was made. The story is also quite moving, especially the end, in which Dorothy concludes, "There is no place like home!"
Plot Summary
Kansas: The movie begins on a farm in Kansas, shown in sepia tone, where a 12-year old girl named Dorothy lives with her Aunt Em and her beloved dog Toto.
Munchkinland: A cyclone hits near her home and she gets knocked on the head, causing her to dream of a fantastic land "over the rainbow", shown in vivid color. Dorothy doesn't realize she's dreaming and is mainly concerned with getting herself and Toto back home. Several tiny people called munchkins tell her she needs to visit the Wizard of Oz and tell her how to get there, by following the Yellow Brick Road.
The Yellow Brick Road: On the way, Dorothy runs into a talking scarecrow without a brain, a tin man without a heart, and a cowardly lion, all of whom also wish to visit the Wizard, hoping he will help them. The four receive constant threats from the Wicked Witch of the West.
The Wizard: They finally reach Oz and meet the Wizard, who tells them they must bring him the broomstick from the Wicked Witch before he can help them, which means they must kill her. Dorothy does manage to kill the Wicked Witch by dousing her with water, causing her to melt. They return to the Wizard and eventually he helps all of them, but he can't help Dorothy get back home.
Return to Kansas: The Good Witch of the North does that by telling her to click her heels and repeat the words, "There is no place like home." Dorothy does this and sure enough arrives back home in Kansas, where she really does become convinced that there is no place like home.
Music The Wizard of Oz contains lots of great and well-known songs, including the following:
"Over the Rainbow" (Dorothy)
"Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead" (Munchkins)
"If I Only Had a Brain" (Scarecrow)
"We're Off to See the Wizard" (Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion)
"If I Were King of the Forest" (Cowardly Lion)
Movie Clips
Here's a movie trailer.
Here's the performance of "The Jitterbug", a deleted number.
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Title: The Wizard of Oz 
