Actors in The Wizard of Oz

 

Actors in The Wizard of Oz

Despite showcasing a stellar cast, several actors stand out when reviewing the cast list for the movie, The Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum, released in 1939.

            Probably the best known actor in this film is Judy Garland, the star of the movie, who played Dorothy. She already established herself with MGM at the time of the casting of this movie, despite being only 17 years of age, having sung to Clark Gable on the occasion of his birthday party event, and catching the eye of Louis B. Mayer. She was cast due to her stage experience, and the deep throaty voice she had showcased at the birthday party, and this movie immediately grew her fan-base with movie-going audiences. Garland went on to star in many other movies, and to have the typical early Hollywood experiences of drug abuse, multiple marriages, and extramarital affairs. She died at the young age of 47 of an accidental drug overdose.

            Another actor who stands out in this film is Ray Bolger, a song-and-dance man who started out with a career in Vaudeville. Bolger portrayed the farmhand, Hunk during Dorothy’s time in Kansas, and the Scarecrow, during the portion of the film which took place in Oz. A character actor, he was best known for his comic acting, and even had his own comedy television show later in life called Where’s Raymond? Interestingly, he cohosted a show called That’s Dancing in 1985 with Liza Minelli, the daughter of Judy Garland.

            One of the most interesting characters in The Wizard of Oz, was Elmira Gulch, who became The Wicked Witch of the West when Dorothy landed in Oz. The actor who played these roles, Margaret Hamilton, was not your typical Hollywood Glamour Girl. But she was widely acclaimed for her portrayal of the witch, and was recognized for this role for the rest of her life. A character actor, she had a long and prolific career in movies, as well as TV shows from Lou Grant to an appearance in The Partridge Family. She wasn’t always cast as a mean or evil character, and even “would spoof her famous role of The Wicked Witch of The West in a 1976 Paul Lynde Halloween Special for television. She portrayed the sister of Witchiepoo from H.R. Pufnstuf herself being spoofed by actress Billie Hayes”, (IMDb, 2015). She loved children, having been a kindergarten teacher early in life, and also was an animal lover, despite her most quoted line from The Wizard, “I’ll get you my pretty, and your little dog too!” (Baum, 1939).

 

References

 

Wizard of Oz: Cast and Crew. (2015). Retrieved March 5, 2015, from IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0032138/fullcredits/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wizard_of_Oz_(1939_film)

Goodykoontz, B. & Jacobs, C. (2014). Film: From Watching to Seeing. San Diego, CA. Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

 

Sound in “The Wizard of Oz”

This week our focus is on the sound in film, and how it affects the theme and the mood of the film. The film I chose to write about, and one which has been a favorite of mine since childhood, is the Wizard of Oz, which was directed by Victor Fleming in 1939. This film is based on a children’s novel by   L. Frank Baum, and has been redesigned, recolored, and rewritten by many generations since. The sound in this film, from the dialogue to the sound effects, and especially the music are very much a part of the magic of this adventure.

http://movieclips.com/XngGo-the-wizard-of-oz-movie-somewhere-over-the-rainbow/

In the above-linked clip, the main character, Dorothy Gale, from Kansas is lamenting the humdrum of her everyday life, and wishing for an adventure “Over the Rainbow”. The film is shot in sepia color, and the muted sounds of the scene, with nothing more than the music, and her singing voice heard for the majority of this clip, lend themselves to the overall feeling that she is bored and wistful about her life. Only during one small segment of this scene, when she stares wistfully into the sky, do you hear the diegetic sound of birds twittering in the sky, then you revert back to only music and singing.

http://movieclips.com/kg4sQ-the-wizard-of-oz-movie-were-not-in-kansas-anymore/

Contrast that with the very much lighter, and more intense sound in the above clip, where Dorothy realizes, having come through the tornado, that she is no longer in Kansas. The viewer can very clearly hear the tweeting of birds in the background, as well as other apparently diegetic sounds, and louder, more animated music, creating the feeling that this place is much more ”alive” than her life on the farm. Then, the audience is made aware of a non-diegetic sound, growing in intensity as a bubble slowly moves closer to Dorothy. The first-time viewer is anxious as the music and the extraneous sound grows, as we don’t know what to expect. When the bubble pops, we see it contains Glenda the Good Witch, who has come to welcome Dorothy to Oz.

http://movieclips.com/GNMpo-the-wizard-of-oz-movie-the-cowardly-lion/

This scene, in which Dorothy and her traveling companions, the Tin Man, and the Scarecrow meet the Cowardly Lion, has no music in the background, but there is a lot of other sound. This scene is full of dialogue, the lion roars, and the Tin Man rattles as he shakes in fear. Dorothy’s dog, Toto, even has a cameo as he barks at the Lion. The lack of background music makes the audience focus more on what is being said, and that is very important as the Cowardly Lion’s story sets the tone for his trip to the Emerald City, and his realization that he has nothing to fear.

http://movieclips.com/icda-the-wizard-of-oz-movie-im-melting/

In the above clip, which happens near the end of the film, the scene starts with the Wicked Witch, who has been tracking Dorothy and her companions throughout the movie, has them cornered in her castle and is threatening to kill them all. The music is very ominous, and grows in volume and intensity as the scene unfolds. At the point when she sets the scarecrow on fire, you hear a cacophony of sounds, from Dorothy screaming, to Toto barking, and the witch laughing. Just when all of this sound reaches a climax, Dorothy throws a bucket of water to put the fire out, and inadvertently soaks the witch, unexpectedly causing her to melt. The scene ends with the sounds of the witch screaming, as she fades away never to return and a loud hissing sound as the water evaporates her. The gradual weakening of her screams, and the quieting of back ground sounds add to the overall effect of her dying.

http://movieclips.com/oyr6Y-the-wizard-of-oz-movie-theres-no-place-like-home/

In this last scene of the movie, we are back to the gently swelling music, with only the dialogue playing over it, reminding us of the simplicity of her life back at home. She has returned to Kansas after her “dream”, and she is trying to share with those around her what she has experienced. The music is soft, but builds to a crescendo as the movie ends, and brings the story to its natural conclusion. It almost seems that if someone had just the soundtrack to the movie, with the sound effects and the dialogue overlying the music, they wouldn’t even need the visual to be able to appreciate the story.

In this movie, the sound makes a definite contribution to the overall theme and varying moods it conveys. The light-heartedness of the music at times, gives us the clue that this is from the fantasy genre of films. And having certain, unexpected sounds occur, such as when the Good Witch first appears with the growing sound that accompanies it, and when the lion first starts roaring from the forest as Dorothy and her companions are walking the Yellow Brick Road, definitely keeps the viewer on the lookout for strange and exciting twists. I cannot imagine this film with different music or sound, and I think those things have contributed to making it the classic it is today.

References

MovieClips (2015). Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Movieclips: http://movieclips.com/

Goodykoontz, B., & Jacobs, C. (2014). Film: From Watching to Seeing.San Diego, CA. Bridgepoint Educational, Inc.

 

Lighting in The Village, by m. night shyamalan

     Lighting in The Village by M. Night Shyamalan

 

In the movie, The Village, by M. Night Shyamalan, the lighting which is used fits the description of Low-key lighting, with the dramatic use of heavy shadows in the night-time scenes, which tend to be the ones which add to the thriller aspect of the film. According to our text, low-key lighting “looks dark overall by comparison. It is marked by extreme use of deep shadows, with very high contrast between the brightest parts of the scene and the darkest parts, which are obscured in shadows”, (Goodykoontz, 2014). This type of lighting sets the tone for mysteries, horror films, and psychological thrillers, which is the genre of this particular film. The shadows are used to especially great effect for the scenes in which the villagers are looking to their leaders at night, by firelight, to help protect them from the “monsters” living in the surrounding woods. Had this film been made with high-key lighting, it would have lost the authentically scary nature of the story, and three-point lighting, with its illuminating backlights as well as removing most of the shadows,  would not have contributed to the overall idea that there were secrets which were not known to the villagers. Even in the daylight scene shown below, the sun is obscured and the lighting is not bright, lending to the idea that this village lives in shadow, even in the light of day.

And the scenes when the main character is blindly walking through the woods in search of the medicine on the other side are even more terrifying when we can see mostly shadows, and we know she is completely without sight.

The choice of low-key lighting for this film definitely makes all the difference in how we perceive the story and adds to the suspense inherent in its telling.

References

Goodykoontz, B., & Jacobs, C. (2014). Film: From Watching to Seeing. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

Google Images, “The Village”, m.night shyamalan https://www.google.com/search?q=the+village+m+night+shyamalan&biw=1366&bih=652&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=FZzmVPEF0uOwBImwgMAO&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAQ

 

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation

Chevy Chase’s Christmas Vacation is one of my favorite movies of all time. It stars Chevy Chase, as “Clark Griswold”, and Beverly De’Angelo as his long-suffering but always supportive wife, “Ellen”.  The movie is the story of a family celebration of the Christmas holiday. It has all the trappings of a traditional Christmas movie, with the feast, the gifts, the decorations, etc. There are visiting family members, grandparents and redneck cousins included, and the doddering great-aunt who has lost her memory and leads to many comedic moments.  At face value, it is the story of how a family celebrates the holiday season.

But the plot has an undercurrent of the stress and struggles many families experience when trying to have a “fun, old fashioned, family Christmas”.  At various points in the movie, Clark’s wife, son, and other family members, discourage him from building up his expectations too much and suffering the potential letdown of the inevitable reality. As many of us will agree, once you have lived through some magical Christmases growing up, it is tempting to try and make every one more special than the last, and this can put tremendous pressure on someone. As the pressure builds, Clark acts more and more irrationally, but he hangs on in hopes of receiving his Christmas bonus.

The movie takes place in a linear fashion, starting two weeks before Christmas, and with each turn of the Advent calendar, more hilarious events take place and the big day gets closer. I think that having the movie unfold in this manner adds to the growing anticipation and anxiety, as you can see time running out for the family to do all the things Clark wants to get done so that the holiday can be a “perfect” as possible. Had the story been told without the obvious forward movement of time, there would not have been the sense of building suspense and we would not be rooting for Clark as much as we do.

 

Chechik, J. S. (Director). (1989). Christmas Vacation [Motion Picture].

Christmas Vacation. (n.d.). Retrieved February 12, 2015, from IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097958/

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. (2015). Retrieved February 12, 2015, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Lampoon’s_Christmas_Vacation#Plot