Directed by Hal Sutherland
Voices of Liza Minnelli, Paul Lynde, Ethel Merman, and Herschel Bernardi
Music by Jimmy Van Heusen; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
Adaptations of the Wizard of Oz books go as far back as 1908. The MGM version from 1939 is probably the most famous, but it's far from the only one. After the 1939 film was a hit on TV, there was a notoriously low-budget production in 1969, and then this animated one in 1972. Neither is well-regarded today, but this has a slightly more impressive pedigree. Filmation began this around 1962, but they ran out of funds until over a decade later.
By the time it came out, Disney-esque fantasies were out of style, and it wasn't a success...on the big screen. It did far better on TV starting in 1976, when live-action sequences featuring Bill Cosby (and later, Milton Berle) were added for syndicated showings. The original would turn up on video later, and that's what this review is based on. Does it reach the same heights of the original film, or should it stay in Kansas? Let's begin in Kansas, as Uncle Henry (Paul Ford) scolds Dorothy (Minnelli) for not helping get ready for a storm, and find out...
The Story: This time, Dorothy and Toto are themselves caught up in the cyclone, no house needed. After landing in Oz, they first encounter a talking signpost (Jack E. Leonard) whose signs all point to the Emerald City...going different ways. Fearful Jack Pumpkinhead (Lynde) only wants to go one way - away from his creator, the evil witch Mombi (Merman). She conjures up green elephants to stampede through the Emerald City, where she kidnaps Toto and the Scarecrow (Mickey Rooney).
Dorothy goes to her old friends for help, but the Cowardly Lion (Berle) and Tin Woodsman (Danny Thomas) are too afraid of Mombi to help. Glinda (Rise Stevens) does better, giving her a box to use "in dire need." Dorothy will need all the magic she can get if she, Jack, and Charlesworth the Wooden merry-go-round horse (Bernardi) are to defeat Mombi and save the Scarecrow and Toto!
The Animation: Not bad for Filmation at this time. The colors are, appropriately for an Oz movie, the real selling point. They pop off the screen, brilliant greens and velvet purple when Dorothy first arrives, sparkling silver in the land of tin, deeper green in the Emerald City. The stylized designs move well enough; the Tin Woodsman especially is rather cute here.
The Song and Dance: Impressive cast for a relatively low-budget undertaking. Liza does just as well as her mother playing the budding young woman who only wants to help her friends. Lynde's hilarious as the fearful but loyal Jack, and Bernardi gets some of the best lines as the sarcastic wooden carousel horse. Rise Stevens lends her Metropolitain Opera soprano to a gentle Glinda. Merman's a rather scary witch, too, and it is amusing to hear Margaret Hamilton play Aunt Em in the beginning, the total opposite of her Wicked Witch from the 1939 film!
Favorite Number: Minnelli's "Over the Rainbow" song to Toto in Kansas is "A Faraway Land" as she longs to return to Oz and see its lovely greenery and unique citizens again. She also gets the upbeat "Keep a Happy Thought" after Jack laments about never finding the Emerald City. This time, the witch gets to sing, too. Mombi creates her green elephants in "An Elephant Never Forgets" and explains her mother's dying wish to her, "If You're Going to Be a Witch, Be a Witch."
Stevens' glorious soprano makes the most of her song explaining to Dorothy why she doesn't need magic...because "You Have Only You." Minnelli finishes with the "Return to the Land of Oz March" and her telling the others why she wants to go back to Kansas, "That Feeling for Home." Herschel's number is "That Horse On the Carousel" as Charlesworth tells the others how he ended up where he was.
Trivia: Danny Thomas' voice recording was of such poor quality, he was largely re-recorded by Larry Storch.
The 1976 ABC showing had live-action wrap-around segments featuring Bill Cosby as The Wizard, searching for two munchkins. Milton Berle would appear as The Wizard for syndicated airings.
What I Don't Like: First of all, there's a lot of padding in this movie. The signpost and his song have no function in the story. He's neither seen, nor mentioned again after Dorothy leaves him. The numbers for the Cowardly Lion, Tin Woodsman, and Scarecrow exist more to show off the actors than move the story along, and contradict their character development from the original book and 1939 film, too. Speaking of the songs, they're not bad, but they certainly aren't as memorable as the ones from 1939.
It also appears to be a mash-up of characters and events from many later Oz books, mainly the second, The Marvelous Land of Oz. Dorothy largely replaces the boy Tip who created Jack Pumpkinhead in the book, though. Mombi wasn't the one who originally created the elephants, either. And Charlesworth may be based after the title character of the final book in the series, The Merry-Go-Round Horse of Oz.
The Big Finale: Worth seeing at least once for fans of Oz or Filmation for the cast and some decent numbers.
Home Media: The DVD is in print, but very expensive and hard to find. You're better off streaming this one.
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