Starring Joy Dunstan, Robin Ramsay, Graham Matters, and Ned Kelly
Directed by Chris Lofven
Music and Lyrics by various
This week, we dip into camp in its many forms for two unique cult flop rock musicals, starting with this wonder from Down Under. I'll admit, until I saw this floating around on a library streaming site, I'd never heard of it before. I do enjoy weird versions of The Wizard of Oz (the 1985 Return to Oz is one of my favorite movies) and 70's hard rock, so I figured I'd give this modern Australian retelling a shot. How does Dorothy do as a rock groupie wandering around the outback and Melbourne in the 1970's? Let's begin at a small nightclub outside of Melbourne, Australia and find out...
The Story: Dorothy (Dunstan) is a groupie with local rock band Wally (Matters) and the Falcons. She's knocked out during an accident in their van and wakes up in an unfamiliar town. A fashion designer who calls himself Glynn the Good Fairy (Ramsay) gives her a pair of sparkly ruby heels for killing a thug who had been terrorizing the town.
On his suggestion, she heads to Melbourne to see the final concert of The Wizard (Matters), a glam rock star who is retiring. She's joined by Blondie (Bruce Spencer), a forgetful surfer, Greaseball (Michael Carman), a mechanic with a softer heart than he'll admit, and Killer (Gary Waddell), a cowardly nerd of a biker. They help her dodge a huge man in a truck (Kelly) whose brother she accidentally killed...and who would love to get his hands on more than her ruby shoes.
The Song and Dance: This is a strange little film, but it does have its good points. The gorgeous cinematography, for one thing. The low budget gives us a chance to see the real Australian state Victoria and city of Melbourne in all their dusty, gritty glory. I like the feel here, the gritty realism meets surrealistic fantasy as the trucker keeps popping up all over the place and the "Wizard" and his seemingly glamorous word turns out to be far from the fairy tale whirl Dorothy thinks it is.
Favorite Number: "Livin' In the Land of Oz" is heard at least four times, including twice when Dorothy is on the road and on the closing credits. As in the 1939 film, each of Dorothy's friends have songs on the soundtrack representing them. Greaseball's song talks about him not being that heartless. Blondie's "Beating Around the Bush" is his number while he and Dorothy travel in his yellow surf-print station wagon. Killer's in "The Mood" as he takes Dorothy down that road on his motorcycle. Dorothy gets "Our Warm and Tender Love" and "Who's Gonna Love Me Tonight," the latter as she arrives in Melbourne for the concert. The Wizard's "You're Driving Me Insane" is certainly trippy, with it's psychedelic special effects and Rainbow Brite-on-steroids barely-there costumes.
Trivia: This actually wound up being a commercial disappointment in Australia despite good reviews. It went over much better in the US, especially the larger cities on the coasts.
Also known in the US as Twentieth Century Oz.
What I Don't Like: Did I mention how strange and of-its-time this movie is? First of all, some of the Australian accents, especially on Dorothy's guy friends, are so thick they're hard to understand at times. Second, the acting is not wonderful. I'll cut Dunstan some slack, since it was her first movie, but the guys are a little too goofy at times, too (when you understand them). There's also the stereotyping with Glynn and the big thug guy threatening to take advantage of Dorothy several times (and getting very close once, including getting her clothes off). Speaking of, be warned - this would get an R rating in the US nowadays. The "F" word is tossed around a lot (including by Dorothy), there's some violence with the attacks on Dorothy's friends, the insinuated rape, nudity, and the Wizard's scanty costumes.
The Big Finale: In the end, I'll admit I enjoyed this...to a degree. The music was catchy enough and the premise interesting enough that I'm glad I finally got around to watching it, but it's not something I feel the need to return to. Your mileage may vary, depending on how strange you like your 70's hard rock and Wizard of Oz adaptations.
Home Media: To my knowledge, it doesn't look like this has ever been on disc in North America. Streaming is your only bet on this side of the Pacific.
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