Introduction
As Goodykoontz and Jacobs (2014) assert, films are not merely for entertainment that should be passively consumed but is also a form of art which produces meaning and thus, is worthy of artistic analysis. In this context, film analysis may be defined as the process of comprehensively evaluating a film in terms of cinematic techniques, themes or genre. As such, film analysis is essential because it helps us get a more in-depth understanding and meaning of a movie beyond mere entertainment. On this background, this paper focus to analyze the film of “The Wizard of Oz.” The first part examines the entire movie regarding contextual information, aesthetic choices, plotting of the film and social/personal impact, while the second section discusses the reflection of how I have analyzed the movie and how my analysis ability has evolved in general.
Contextual Information
The title of the movie is “The Wizard of Oz.” This movie is an American production movie that was released in August twenty-fifth, 1939 in the US, and was directed by Victor Fleming who has been acclaimed through many awards for the production of this film (Goodykoontz & Jacobs 2014).). The movie is classified under adventure film, with Harold Rosson as its cinematographer. The main characters featured in the movie include Judy Garland, acting as Dorothy, the girl who was swooped together with her dog, to a magical Munchkin Land by a whirling cyclone. When she finds herself in the magical land, she embarks on a quest to see the wizard of Oz in Emerald city who can assist her come back to her home in Kansas. Other main characters are Ray Bolger who acted as the scarecrow, Frank Morgan as Professor Marvel who acted as the false fortune teller and tricked Dorothy with his false magic to come back home when he realized she was escaping from home. Bert Lahr acting like a cowardly lion, Jack Haley as the Tin Woodman, Billie Burke as Glenda the good witch of the north and Margaret Hamilton as the wicked witch of the west.
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The Wizard of Oz film can be categorized into many genres, but the major one is fantasy because of its unrealistic state. According to Goodykoontz and Jacobs (2014), fantasy film is untainted escapism, in which characters live in an imaginary environment, or they experience conditions which are beyond the limits of the real world. Richards (2014) adds that fantasy films comprise of fantasy worlds with magic and supernatural events, and it usually contains a story featuring a hero or heroes realizing that they pose some power. As such, The Wizard of Oz movie (LeRoy & Fleming, 1939) have some essential attributes that make it be categorized under fantasy film genres such as the different scenes that are unrealistic in a real-life situation and the use of multicolor. For instance, the movie starts with black and white color featuring Dorothy in her real life. The color changes to bright when Dorothy arrives in the fantasy world, the magical Munchkin Land, then later at the end of the movie the color goes back to black and white when Dorothy and her dog return to their real home in Kansas from the fantasy world.
Also, one scene that portrays fantasy is when Dorothy’s house lands in Munchkin Land dropping on top of the Wicked of the West and killing her. When Dorothy exits the house, she even converses with the Munchkins about her home falling from the sky. These scenes are not realistic in a real-life situation. Another scene when Dorothy, along with her journey to Emerald city, encounters the Scarecrow, the Tin Man (a man without a heart) and the Cowardly Lion. All of them talks to her, and they all have desires which they want the Wizard of Oz to grant them, and they joined Dorothy on her journey. In the real world, none of the characters should be talking. Similarly, the fact that monkeys from the Wicked of the East flies to go and bring Dorothy to be destroyed by the wicked, and in real life monkeys don’t fly. All these scenes, therefore, attributes to an unrealistic state making The Wizard of Oz a fantasy film.
The film can also be categorized as science fiction. A science fiction film is classified as being in the future or space include elements of horror and have alternating realities (Goodykoontz & Jacobs 2014). The Wizard of Oz (LeRoy & Fleming 1939) has a few scenes that categorically expands it into a science fiction film. The alternate reality is the Land of Oz, it does not exist and is just something Dorothy dreamed of while she was unconscious. The element of horror is found in the scene where Dorothy is traveling through the forest, and the Lion jumps out with a loud roar, frightening her, Toto, the Tinman and the Scarecrow. Also, the last element of horror incorporated into the film is the entire scene at the Witch’s castle. The whole hue of that scene seems to be dark and gloomy colors. Fires are burning throughout the castle; the Witch also has an army of fearsome-looking green soldiers and her loud screaming monkeys. Therefore, I can conclude The Wizard of Oz film can be classified as a fantasy and science fiction film.
Story/plot
The Wizard of Oz (LeRoy and Fleming, 1939) film is a story about an orphaned teenager girl called Dorothy who lives in Kansas with her Auntie Em and Uncle Henry. She daydreams that she has escaped from home and went to a fantasy magical Munchkin Land, and while she is there she desires to return home, but the only way to find her way back is to find the Wizard of Oz in the Emerald city who will show her the route to Kansas. The story begins with Dorothy being unhappy with the situation at home because her aunt and uncle could not listen to her to understand how she feels. She decides to take her dog Toto and run away, but she meets a false fortune teller who persuades her to go back home. On her way back she finds a tornado, and she arrived home, the window of her house hit her in the head leaving her unconscious, and from there, the adventure starts. Dorothy wakes up in a Munchkin Land where she meets the good Witch of the North, who explains to her that the only she could return home is to follow the yellow brick to get to the Emerald city where Dorothy would find the Wizard of Oz to show her a way to Kansa. Dorothy receives the red slippers of Ruby to protect her through the journey, something which made the bad Witch of the West mad and she promised to revenge. Along the way, Dorothy meets the Scarecrow, the Tinman and the Cowardly lion who also joined her on the journey to find the Wizard of Oz who will fulfill their desires. During her adventure, she is chased by the Wicked Witch of the East who tries to harm her to get her sister’s ruby red slippers back. In the end, Dorothy and her friends find the Wizard of Oz, who fulfill their desires, and Dorothy and her dog ends up back home to her family realizing that the adventure was just a mere dream.
Aesthetic Choices
Lighting: There are various elements of lighting seen in “The Wizard of Oz,” which include three-point lighting, high-key lighting, and low-key lighting. Goodykoontz and Jacobs (2014) assert that low-key illumination may be used to change a movie tone from fun to serious instantly. Low-key lighting is evident when main characters encounter the wizard for the first time; the color suddenly varies from bight to deem from the surrounding of the wizard. Low-key lighting is also used in the scene where the Wicked Witch from the East watching at Dorothy and her friends through her crystal ball towards the end of the movie. The surrounding of the Wicked Witch is dark, and the only which lights that lights the room comes the window the flying monkeys use and the few lit candles in the room. The low-key lighting here shows the evilness of the Wicked Witch. In contrast, the high-key lighting used in the Land of Oz, where scenes were well light, colorful, bright and cheerful most times to show the goodness of the land. On the other hand, the lighting of scenes at Kansas was darker with sepia-toned filming. The lack of color in Kansas (use of black and white color) ties to show the ordinary dust landscape of Kansas. The timely contention of high and low key lighting give the Wizard of Oz with a missed scene that is in line with the plot and provide support to the story in a very demonstrated way.
Sound: the use of sound bites is also evident in “The Wizard of Oz” film. For instance, a sound like a tornado is used to show the powerful wind blowing through Kansas that swept away many things in the area. Also, there are sound bites added to the sound of things which were flying around when the tornado was blowing through Kansas. Additionally, some noise is added unto the sound of the window pane that hit Dorothy in bed. All through the film, sound bites are incorporated. These sound resembled the sound that can be recognized in a real-life situation; thus, the sound bites helped to enhance the realism of the movie.
Composition of frame: Richards (2014) define the composition of a frame as the placement of characters where a director wants them to be in a scene, and also placing props where they should be shot in the stages. The composition of the frame helps to create an effect on the viewers that the director desires. In the film of The Wizard of Oz, some of the scenes are close-ups, for instance, in some sections Dorothy is with her three friends and Toto trekking down the Yellow Brick path, while some show close-ups of the face of Dorothy. These close-ups were very significant for the success of this film
Music: there is some music used throughout the film, and the songs have been integrated well into the movie that they do not distract the audience from the actions going on in the film, but instead enhances the wonderful touch and advancing the suspenseful narrative of the movie.
Costuming: in Kansas, people wore the basic farm living clothes, nothing colorful, special or fancy. Unlike the Land of Oz where every person was wearing colorful, bright and cheerful clothing. This is to give the audience the idea of the different lifestyle of the two places in the movie. The Wicked Witch is also dressed in black clothing and black pointed hat, and she is green to represent the characters of witches in real life. However, the Good Witch of the North is dressed smartly, and she is kind, pretty and held in a magical world. Her dressing code tries to show the goodness in her in contrast to the wicked one.
Editing: in 1939 when the film was released, there was lack of computer technology as it is known today (Richards, 2014). Thus, The Wizard of Oz movie was filmed using linear editing methods, which were used to bring suspense and emotion to the film without using computer technology. For instance, the film employed a simple overlaying editing skills when the Wicked Witch of the West views into her crystal ball and sees all the things happening to Dorothy. With this technique, the audience see the same things in the crystal ball just as exactly seen by the wicked witch. Though no computer generated imaginings were involved in the filming, the editing method brought out the dreamlike feature, beauty, emotions and the feelings of all the actors.
Social/personal Impact of this Film
According to Goodykoontz and Jacobs (2014), the movie was produced at a time when the US was undergoing a great depression, and there was a high rate of unemployment, and this lasted until the 1940s before things got better to the people of use. Therefore, this film is about possibility and hope for a better future to the Americans. The film acted as an escapist that provided Americans with a chance to forget their troubles at the time and hope for things to become better in the future. Through analysis of the film, the audience can gain more information than just watching, because movies contain messages that depict real times and life. Some movies portray fantasy like The Wizard of Oz. Therefore, viewers should watch the film "The Wicked of Oz" to learn more from it.
Reflection
By analyzing films, one can get a better understanding and interpretation of the meaning filmmakers are conveying to the audience than just entertainment. Analyzing contextual film information, aesthetic choices, story/plot, and personal/societal impacts including all areas that help to develop the theme has helped change the way I view movies because it tells me that trough analysis, you may find a movie so exciting and with essential than when one is just watching. Sometimes by just a glance at a movie while watching may sound boring, but watching the same movie knowing the content and the message it has may turn to be interesting. Also, I have learned that movies have messages in them that can impact society or an individual watching. The message may be towards encouraging a change from evil to good.
I can use film theory and criticism to find and interpret meaning in movies because simple retail of the plot or story only gives me a synopsis of a movie, but there is a need to look deeper into film meanings. Viewing the main characters and the supporting actors and extending to look what the actors go through past the story line. Also, by underlining a sub-plot or theme and relating it to what the society is going through at that time, all help me to find and interpret meanings in movies. Also through analyzing the various elements cinematic techniques that form the theme of a movie can make me have an assumption or opinion about movies. This course has shaped my understanding of how movies relate to society. The themes that movies sometimes portray reflect the real-life changes in the society. I have developed film analysis techniques that can help me produce or direct movies in my professional industry.
References
Goodykoontz, B., & Jacobs, C. P. (2014). Film: From watching to seeing (2nd ed.). San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.
LeRoy, M. & Fleming, V. (1939). The Wizard of Oz. The United States of America. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Langley, N., Ryerson, F. & Woolf, E. A. (1939). The wizard of Oz — movie script. Retrieved January 28, 2018, from http://www.wendyswizardofoz.com/printablescript.htm
Richards, E. (2014, October 2). The cinematography of the Wizard of Oz. Retrieved January 28, 2018, from EvanERichards.com: http://evanerichards.com/2011/1243
