Oz The Great and Powerful Review

Dave and I had a chance to see given tickets to an advance screening of Oz The Great and Powerful this week. It will be in theaters on Friday, March 8th and I loved it so much I recommend it as a must see.

After the movie I immediately tweeted my excitement:

Just got back from seeing an advance screening of Oz The Great & Powerful. It was one of the coolest movies I’ve ever seen!

— 2Wired2Tired (@2Wired2Tired) March 6, 2013

The first thing that stood out to me about Oz is that it is a true 3D movie. Many times when we go to see a 3D movie the first 5 minutes or so will be 3D and maybe the last as well. In between I might catch that a few blades of grass that appear to have extra depth but I’m never very impressed. In fact, the last time we saw a 3D movie we decided we wouldn’t spend the extra money on another one again.

Oz The Great and Powerful has completely changed my mind.

We saw the movie in RealD Digital 3D and it drew us right into the story. There were moments when we tumbled inside a tornado, we road  down a waterfall, we floated inside a bubble, had spears thrown at our heads, gold coins tumbled out at us, and much, much more.

The 3D effects were amazing throughout the entire movie. It had the same feel as Mickey’s Philharmagic in Disney World where things were constantly coming out of the screen at  us and I loved every minute of it!

I highly recommend seeing this movie in 3D, but if you opt for 2D or see it later on Blu-ray or DVD I don’t believe you will be disappointed. The creativity put into this film is incredible and I believe it will shine through no matter which way you watch it. The Land of Oz and the Emerald City landscapes are imaginative and impressive. They are big and bold and bright. The flowers, the forest, the waterfalls, the castle, the poppy fields, and even the yellow brick road are magical and stunning.

The story line is intriguing as well. I won’t give anything away but will say that this is a prequel to the Wizard of Oz. It tells the story of  how Oscar Diggs, a small time circus magician with questionable morals, is hurtled away from Kansas in a tornado to the land of Oz where he is mistaken for the great wizard everyone has been waiting for.

He meets three witches, Theodora, Evanora, and Glinda who are not quite as convinced as everyone else that he is their long awaited wizard. Motivated by a room overflowing with gold he decides to embark on the crusade to help the people of Oz but first he must figure out who is good and who is evil. This becomes quite an adventure that includes wicked witches, flying baboons, crystal balls, twists, turns, and a fantastic ending.

I’ve been asked often since seeing the movie if I think it is appropriate for children. Honestly, I can’t answer that because it depends on the child. Some may be frightened by the 3D effects while others wouldn’t blink. The Disney Movie Trailers YouTube Channel has has together a playlist of trailers here which may help you make the decision about taking your children to see it.

I highly recommend Oz The Great and Powerful to anyone who is a Wizard of Oz fan or who enjoys imaginative movie making and 3D films. This is one movie I can’t wait to purchase as soon as it comes out on Blu-ray and it will be one we’ll watch again and again.