Return to Oz (1985)

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.

Director:

Walter Murch

Writers:

L. Frank Baum (novels), Gill Dennis,

Stars:

Fairuza Balk, Nicol Williamson, Jean Marsh

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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

Storyline

It has been six months since Dorothy has returned home from Oz and she still cannot sleep. She has been going on about imaginary places and people so much that Aunt Em takes her to see a doctor. She promptly escapes from the mental hospital and wakes up in Oz where her pet chicken, Billina, can now talk. There she meets a whole new bunch of friends and they set off to rescue the Scarecrow from the evil Nome King who has found her ruby slippers and used them to lay waste to the Emerald City and take over Oz.

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Plot Keywords:

doctor | king | chicken | mysterious girl | scarecrow | 

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Taglines:

It's an all-new live-action fantasy - filled with Disney adventure and magic.

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Genres:

Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Mystery

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 June 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

Oz

Filming Locations:

Elstree Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

BMI (No. 9) Ltd., Oz Productions Ltd., Silver Screen Partners II

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min 110 min (uncut) 109 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

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

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Several additional scenes filmed for the opening Kansas sequence, including a face-painting scene between Dorothy and Aunt Em, Billina running through the farmhouse kitchen and Uncle Henry reading newspaper clippings detailing Dorothy's disappearance after the cyclone, were cut from the final film.

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Goofs

The melting point of silver is 961.78°C, or 1763.2°F. Its boiling point is 2162°C, or 3924°F. Therefore, Dorothy would not have been able to drink "hot liquid silver", or even hold the cup for that matter.

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Quotes

Dorothy: Patented Clockwork Mechanical Man. Does everything but live. For Thinking, wind number 1 under left arm. For Speaking, wind number 2 under right arm. For Walking & Action, wind number 3, middle of back. Guaranteed to work perfectly for a thousand years.
Billina: Aww, you don't believe that do ya?
Dorothy: I don't know. I'll wind him up and we'll see.

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Connections

Version of The Nome Prince and the Magic Belt (1996)

User Reviews

Not that bad ( in fact pretty good)

I saw this for the first time when I was under ten and wasn't scared at all. In fact I loved it, but because it was on television I forgot about it for a long time. I recently rediscovered the movie and even as an adult I still love it. Yes, the movie is considerably darker the Wizard, but in my opinion it is a better and more interesting story. In light of the violence in movies today I do not think it is out of the question to allow a ten year old to see it and if you are a teenager or older I would certainly recommend this film. If you found Wizard of Oz too cutesy for your taste you may be pleasantly surprised by this underrated film.