THE WIZARD OF OZ hits Blu-ray with an extensively comprehensive limited edition box set

Warner Home Video | 1939 | Rated G | 101 minutes | List price: $89.99 | Get it for less at Amazon

THE WIZARD OF OZ, MGM’s classic film from 1939, has become iconic in American cinema over the seventy years since its initial release and ranks as one of the most watched films of all times. Millions have seen the movie time and time again either through its numerous theatrical re-releases, its annual television broadcasts in the United States, or through the myriad of incarnations it has had in the home entertainment market. Based on the novels by L. Frank Baum, THE WIZARD OF OZ maintains its perennial appeal primarily due to its amazingly inventive characters, all individually seeking something that they feel is missing in their lives, but learning collectively that which defines a family and what truly is the concept of home.

While countless pages have been written about the film, creating enough material to fill a personal library and to keep a scholar occupied for years, this concept of the feeling of belonging was best summed up for me during a 1987 interview I did with Margaret Pellegrini, one of the Munchkins in the movie. Many varying accounts exist of how the Singer Midgets who portrayed the Munchkins were out of control during the production, drinking and gambling on the studio lot, but for Pellegrini, there was a much different atmosphere on the set. As Pellegrini recalls, “Working conditions were great. MGM always found nice places for us to eat and sleep. We were like one big family. Judy Garland would sit around with us little ones on the yellow brick road and talk to us. One Christmas, Judy got us all one huge box of candy and autographed pictures. I still have my picture. It says, ‘To Li’l Alabam (that was my nickname), Best wishes, Judy Garland.’”

The fact is, THE WIZARD OF OZ is a film that simply brings people together. Watching it today has the ability to transport someone back to their childhood or to instantly remember specific times in their life. I can vividly recall watching the movie on television with my family when I was very young and have incredibly fond memories of seeing it for the first time on the big screen during one of its re-releases with a great group of friends when I was an adult. THE WIZARD OF OZ allows one to lose themselves in its fantastical world for a couple of hours, and no matter what their age, feel young at heart all over once again. It is a film to be shared, bridging one generation to the next, creating and perpetuating an extended family of the film’s enthusiasts that continues to grow seventy years later. Simply put, THE WIZARD OF OZ is about family, constantly reminding it’s viewers that there truly is no place like home.

To celebrate the film’s seventieth anniversary, MGM Home Video has released a special, limited edition box set on Blu-ray that will satisfy even the most die-hard Oz fanatic. The individually numbered (out of 243,000) box sets contain a limited edition 70th Anniversary watch with genuine crystals, original 1939 campaign book reproduction, BEHIND THE CURTAIN OF PRODUCTION 1060 52-page commemorative book, replica of the original movie budget, and, if ordered through Amazon, four collectible poster cards of the film’s characters. There is also a digital copy of the film to go along with the Blu-ray discs to allow viewers to put the film on their computer.

The film has been completely refreshed with a 1080p HD picture and revitalized TrueHD audio. The Technicolor portion of the movie looks absolutely fantastic in HD with amazingly bright and vibrant colors that now provide an unsurpassed level of detail, revealing such subtleties in the picture’s composition that viewers can now see clearly the burlap texture of Ray Bolger’s Scarecrow make-up as well as a rivet on the face of the Tin Woodsman that has not been easily discernible in previous releases.

Included along with the movie is a staggering sixteen hours of bonus footage including four hours that have never been seen before. The inclusion of the original silent films of the saga on Disc Two are fantastic, complete with all of the original scratches and jump cuts, but unfortunately the 1990 movie starring John Ritter that is also found on the disc is blurry, rendering it almost unwatchable. This however is the only drawback to the release.

Disc One
Audio Commentary
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: The Making of a Movie Classic
The Art of Imaginiation: A Tribute to Oz
Because of the Wonderful Things It Does: The Legacy of Oz
Memories of Oz
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Storybook
Prettier than Ever: The Restoration of Oz
We Haven’t Really Met Properly
Music & Effects Track
Original Mono Track
Jukebox
Leo is on the Air Radio Promo
Good News of 1939 Radio Show
12/25/1950 Lux Radio Theater broadcast
Sing-Along with the Movie
Another Romance of Celluloid: Electrical Power
Cavalcade of the Academy Awards® Excerpts
Texas Contest Winners
Off to see the Wizard excerpts
Stills galleries
1939 What is Oz? teaser
1940 Loews Cairo theatre trailer
1949 Reissue trailer
1949 Grownup reissue trailer
1970 Children’s Matinee Reissue trailer
1998 Warner Bros. reissue trailer
Harold Arlen’s home movies
Outtakes and Deleted scenes including: “If I Only Had a Brain,” “If I Only Had a Heart,” “Triumphal Return to Emerald City,” “Over the Rainbow,” “The Jitterbug” and, “It’s a Twister! It’s a Twister! The tornado tests.”

Disc Two
Victor Fleming: Master Craftsman
L. Frank Baum: The Man Behind the Curtain
Hollywood Celebrates Its Biggest Little Stars
The Dreamer of Oz (1990) with John Ritter
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1910)
His Majesty, The Scarecrow of Oz (1914)
The Magic Cloak of Oz (1914)
The Patchwork Girl of Oz (1914)
The Wizard of Oz (1925)
The Wizard of Oz (1933) animated

Disc Three
MGM: When the Lion Roars (a six hour chronicle of the studio)

To order directly from Amazon for less, CLICK HERE.

Movie Rating:

Blu-ray bonus features rating: EXTENSIVE