Oz, The Great and Powerful ((No spoilers in review))
However, I went into this with an open-mind and knowing NOTHING except that it was a prequel and James Franco would be playing "Oz".
I read many of the books when I was in single digits and retained many of the side stories that were not in the 1939 film that we all know so well. I will tell you this: The LESS you know about this film going in, the more enjoyable it will be.
Usually when Pixar or Disney releases a "Family Film", I am none too impressed. We plan on getting our future children ::crosses fingers:: into Beatle's films and good musicals. Yet this is a 'Family Film' that is FINALLY labeled correctly. All ages can enjoy this and get different things from it. It won't be too scary for your six year old, it's not too juvenile for your teens, and there are so many surprising things to keep adults involved and interested. I was honestly shocked that it actually held Y. and my attention.
Again, I hate to repeat myself, but the less you know, the better and more fulfilling of an experience you will have with this film. If you plan on watching it, just watch it, don't read up on it first. That being said, you may want to skip the comments here just in case we start to talk about surprises in the film.
It was three equal parts: True to the Books, True to the things we know from the movie, Yet True to itself, allowing new ideas to come into this classic story.
It wasn't -stupid fluff-. It is actually the kind of film we will allow in our collection when we start a family. ::crosses toes::
I was impressed that I wasn't bored, that it catered to adults AND little ones without being disrespectful of either's attention span or knowledge. Therefore this is a true blue, balls to the wall, "Family Film" that you can see with kids, grandparents, and not find it so daft you mentally check out, as I do often during 'family films'.
It had a nice back story with great foreshadowing. It does start us off in the EARLY 20th century, in black and white, boxed in Kansas....but then we know what happens when our Wizard reaches The Magical Land of Oz.
I apologize if I didn't give you as much info as you would like. I hope the visuals I chose and the bits I gave you are sufficient enough for you to give it a go, alone or especially if you have children, a little sibling, grandkids, or a niece or nephew. There's something for all ages. That phrase is tossed about often yet rarely ACTUALLY applies. This one is good to go, no matter the ages of your family and or posse'. LOL. I'm not saying it's Citizen Kane, but as this genre' goes, it wasn't bad and did it's duty well.
The short version? A good family film that won't bored adults yet won't frighten your little ones.
ZuOz (I mean Zuzu... lol)