The Wizard of Oz’s secret as a powerless charlatan, hidden behind a curtain of mystery, feels like a perfect metaphor for Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return. The 2014 animated musical has a background that is far more interesting than the actual film. Despite having a $70 million budget and a seasoned cast and crew, the film was a pitiful box office bomb, eviscerated by critics. The producers had a laughable response, claiming Hollywood conspired as a whole to crush their budding franchise. The truth behind the curtain is very different, made on empty promises and exaggerated marketing.
Legends of Oz is based on a book by Roger S. Baum, the great-grandson of Oz author L. Frank Baum. Nice to keep it in the family. The film was directed by animation veterans Dan St. Pierre and Will Finn, and produced by three people. One was Bonnie Radford of DreamWorks Animation. The other two were a pair of brothers named Ryan and Roland Carroll. The Carrolls ran Alpine Productions, later Summertime Entertainment. Their goal was to create a new Oz film, which would be the start of a brand new media franchise. To do this, they would convince nearly a thousand investors to contribute to the movie’s production, and predicted future sequels, spin-offs, etc.
The Carrolls had funded several low budget films before through questionable means. They had a history of suspect fundraising, landing them in hot water with the law, dating as far back as 1993. Over the next decade, they received cease and desist orders and fines from Oregon, California, Illinois, Michigan, Utah, and Wisconsin. Their fundraising for Legends of Oz began in 2006, assisted by one Neil Kaufman, who served as the manager for their new company Dorothy of Oz LLC. Several other companies were set up to secure funding for the film, supposedly from accredited investors.
They were then joined by producer Greg Centineo, a coffee shop businessman, who pitched a multimedia, multi-million dollar franchise. Via a PowerPoint presentation, the producers predicted the film’s success would allow for more projects, including sequels and a television series. A huge media presence was planned, featuring video games, tie-in websites, virtual worlds, etc. During all this, more cease and desist letters were sent from more states, with claims that financial securities for the fundraising were unregistered. The producers were confident in their future successes and plowed on ahead with the film’s production.
The Carrolls partnered with Prana Studio, who had previously animated Disney’s Tinker Bell and Planes films. Bryan Adams was hired to compose the score and songs. The cast and crew were all big names. In the minds of the Carrolls, the film was a certified slam dunk. The end result is nothing short of underwhelming.
Dorothy, voiced by Glee diva Lea Michele, has returned home from Oz, but finds her entire town has been wrecked by another twister. Her family faces losing their house to, ironically, a conman, leaving Dorothy feeling powerless to change things. She and Toto are then dramatically chased and abducted by a frightening hand-shaped rainbow, sent by her friends to summon her back to Oz.
The Scarecrow (Dan Akroyd), the Tin Man (Kelsey Grammar), and the Cowardly Lion (Jim Belushi) ask her to save them from the film’s villain: Martin Short as the lively Jester, brother of the late Wicked Witch, cursed to wear a jester’s outfit. Armed with his sister’s broomstick and crystal ball, the Jester plots to turn all of Oz’s leaders into creepy puppets, including Glinda, played by an underused Bernadette Peters). Dorothy’s friends flee, but are eventually captured.
A misplaced Dorothy is joined by some new friends on her journey. These include the obese, flightless owl Wiser (Oliver Platt), the bungling Marshal Mallow (Hugh Dancy), and the stroppy, demanding China Princess (Megan Hilty), who develops a romance with Mallow. Wiser has been terrorising Candy Country for years with what could be described as candy cannibalism. He and Dorothy are put on trial, overseen by Judge Jawbreaker (Brian Blessed), in a scene full of food and court puns. All conflict between the characters tends to be resolved when someone recognises Dorothy as the famed witchslayer; a reputation that Dorothy reacts with either discomfort or a humble smile. It would’ve been interesting to see how Dorothy feels as a heroine renowned for a double homicide, but the film has no interest in character conflicts.
Later on, the adventurers need to carve a boat to reach the Emerald City. Dorothy, determined to take charge, begins ripping limbs off nearby trees, which is very traumatic for them. Luckily, Patrick Stewart shows up as an ancient tree named Tug, who is harvested via a musical number into a ship – with Bryan Adams making a cameo as a singing beaver. One trap and tragedy later, Dorothy sets off alone to confront the Jester, though all her friends come to save the day in a predictable but inoffensive ending.
In honesty, the film isn’t completely awful. Ignoring the controversial funding and often poor animation, it serves as a mediocre fantasy musical. The problem is that it doesn’t particularly strive to tell a story of any ambition. Aside from Dorothy, all of the characters are written to be either ignorant or stupid, to the point of absurdity. Not one person questions the Lyle Lanley wannabe trying to con the Gales out of their home. Wiser thinks he is allowed to gorge on candy because the Jester magically altered warning signs, despite being arrested nearly a thousand times for his gluttony. And not once does the Jester ever think of using his sister’s magic to reverse the curse she put on him!
The Scarecrow, Tin Man, and the Lion all feel like caricatures; being respectively egotistical, overemotional, and arrogantly proud. The new characters are nothing to write home about, but it is at least refreshing to give Dorothy some new companions. Martin Short makes for a fun villain, but beyond his desire for power, the Jester isn’t that complex a character.
The film’s most gnawing problem lies in the animation. It may come down to that budget again, but at times, the movie feels very lifeless. Character designs have a childish, exaggerated style, though it can make them look quite creepy – and that’s before they introduce Glinda as a nightmarish puppet.
On the soundtrack side, the songs are adequate, made more catchy thanks to the vocals of Lea Michele. The Jester has a fun villain’s number, whilst Dorothy’s solos are fittingly full of hope when called for.
As you might have guessed, Legends of Oz was a box office failure. With their dreams of a franchise in tatters, the Carrolls blamed Hollywood, claiming fresh, new studios are forbidden from making films outside the tinsel town machine. Or, it could just be down to making a bad film.
What are your thoughts on Legends of Oz? Does it live up to its bad reputation, or was it just a well-intentioned movie project lost in bad business decisions? Leave a comment below, or on our Twitter feed.
