Oz the Great and Powerful

Set a few years before the events of The Wizard of Oz, Oscar Diggs is a seedy magician (or rather, a con man) who makes a living traveling in a rundown carnival show. He has a knack for charming any audience, especially the ladies. Oscar is the kind of man that the song The Wanderer by Dion talks about. He charms his way into people's lives and then when he gets to close he moves on to the next town to find some new people to con. You see, the girls he meets want him to be a good man and settle down for once; but that's not the life for him. He doesn't want to be a good man - he wants to be a GREAT one. One that people will remember for his wealth and stature.

All of that changes one stormy day when he runs into a jealous beau of one of the girls he seduced. As he's running from the man he hops into a hot air balloon and gets caught up into a strong gust of wind which carries him into a huge tornado. He gets knocked out during the storm and when he wakes up he finds himself in a strange, yet colorful place. A place filled with ruby flowers, an emerald city, witches and little animated China dolls. A land called Oz. Oscar eventually meets a beautiful young lady by the name of Theodora who informs him that the people of Oz have been waiting a long time for him. It seems there is a prophecy that a great wizard will one day arrive in the land of Oz to rid them of a terrible witch that has been terrorizing them. She tells him (much to his delight) that all the riches of Oz are his...but he must first rid Oz of the Wicked Witch of the West.

Oz the Great and Powerful starts off a bit slower than I would have liked, but once it gets past the first 20 minutes or so it picks up steam and becomes a fantastic thrill ride for fans of the original Wizard of Oz. I saw it in 3D, and while I'm not a huge fan of 3D, it was one of the very few movies I would recommend seeing in 3D. Oz does a great job of not only connecting the dots from this prequel to the original, but also of being a great stand-alone film. I loved James Franco in the role of Oscar Diggs. My only complaints were the beginning was a bit slow for me, and the China doll character seemed a bit too much of a whiny brat. I didn't hate her character but I felt she could have been created somewhat nicer. Oz is a great little film that will make kids of all ages (and even parents who loved the original) want to take another trip down the yellow brick road.