![\"Oz](\"http:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/03\/OZ_05994_R-Copys.jpg\")
<\/a>We find out soon enough that Oscar Diggs \u2013 Oz to his nearest and dearest \u2013 is a charlatan and a huckster, a jobbing magician in a travelling circus who flees for his life after unwisely importuning the wife of the resident strongman. This is Kansas, so a twister is readily at hand; a hair-raising whirlwind later, he finds himself in a beautifully serene, yet very strange and alien landscape.<\/p>\n
I have the feeling that James Franco is a perfect fit for the role of Oz, though it is hard to say precisely why. There is something about the theatrical conceit that shapes Oz the Great…the film that suits him, I suppose; his side-gigs as writer, poet, teacher and musician have shaped him in the mould of an uber-mensch for our post-modern, constantly self-referential age. Or maybe it\u2019s just that he seems to have the self awareness not to take himself too seriously, just like this cinematic alter ego.<\/p>\n
Anyway Oz \u2013 once in Oz \u2013 is told that the people of the land are under the thumb of Glinda, the wicked witch who killed her father, the kindly king; they await the fulfilment of the prophecy promising a mysterious wizard who will free them from their bondage. It is but a slight sleight of hand for Oz to ascend to the pulpit. I mean, this is a kingdom we\u2019re talking about here. With a throne, and a castle and riches beyond compare. And it does help that Theodora (Mila Kunis), the naive but impetuous estranged sister of Glinda, takes a shine to him on sight. Oz always had dreams of greatness. Now, he can transcend even these and enter the realms of grandeur.<\/p>\n
But this is a strange and magical world, where things can never be quite as they seem. Evanora \u2013 played with chilly efficiency by Rachel Weisz \u2013 reminds Oz that all this will be his once only after he has gotten the task of disposing Glinda out of the way. It won\u2019t be easy; there are hordes of bloodthirsty flying baboons (don\u2019t ask, I don\u2019t know either) in his way, for one thing, and all he has on his side \u2013 aside from his \u201cmagic\u201d powers \u2013 is Frank, a winged monkey (a cute CGI-aided turn by Zach Braff) who inadvertently vows fealty to the magician. It\u2019s hardly surprising that by the time he does track down Glinda (Michelle Williams), we learn that his adventures are just beginning…<\/p>\n
Despite \u2013 or because of \u2013 the big guns brought out to play (Sam Raimi, responsible for the original Spiderman franchise, had a $200m budget to play around with), Oz feels like a very safe film, wary of take chances and very keen to tick all the cinematic demographic boxes necessary to ensure a crowd-pleaser (and profit-earner). Of course this won\u2019t work, as it very rarely does except in the few films where completely unconsciously, a film strikes several chords all at once. (Finding Nemo, for instance. The first and third Toy Story films. Possibly Shrek, although all the good work was undone in the tiresome sequels.)<\/p>\n One must remember that once cut and diced, Oz the Great..is essentially a fairy tale. And no amount of post modern gimmickry is going to elevate it far enough above this source without rendering it meaningless i.e. rendering the reconfiguration pointless. So one hopes that Franco\u2019s wandering eye and lecherous smile will pass over the heads of younger viewers. The CGI effects are impressive, but conventional; the visual palette evoking the Technicolor freshness of Judy Garland\u2019s Oz is a cute aside, but essentially contextless. (To get a sense of how this particular visual touch can count for something, you could do worse than watch Todd Haynes\u2019 Far From Heaven.)<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n