Rant #2,202: Ding Dong, the Witch Is Dead

1939 was an interesting year, and certainly one of the most interesting years in movie history.

Three classic films made their debuts during this year--"Gone With the Wind," "Casablanca," and "The Wizard of Oz."

And today, August 15, 2018, is the 79th anniversary of "The Wizard of Oz" making its official world premier at Grauman's Chinese Theater in California, and it has gone on to be perhaps the most classic of all films.

According to the Library of Congress, between its big screen and television showings, it is the most seen film in movie history.

Few could argue about that fact. Since 1939, it has been seen in movie theaters across the world several times, brought back here and there, less so today when all you have to do is get the DVD or stream it from some service.

However, a few years back, my family and I saw it on the big screen, and it was as wonderful then as when my wife and I first saw it, when we were little kids, on one of its annual screenings on television.

But the debate rages on--what is the greatest film of all time--is it one of those three, add in "Citizen Kane," and is it one of those four?

Now this is mere opinion now, and nothing else, but while it is not my personal favorite film, I have to say that it is the greatest film of all time.

Yup, it is greater than "Gone With the Wind," "Casablanca," and even "Citizen Kane," which came out two years later.

And here is why.

The story is really a good one, one that we all know. Dorothy Gale gets hit in the head and is whisked away during a tornado that hits her home in Kansas, and she is transported to the land of Oz, which is populated by Munchkins and witches and other odd beings.

She wants to come home, but needs the help of the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodsman, and the Cowardly Lion to get herself to the Wizard, who has the power to help each of these individuals reach their goals.

Standing in the way is the Wicked Witch, who tries to thwart Dorothy at every turn. With the help of the Good Witch and her new friends, the witch is thwarted, and evidently "you can go home again," as Dorothy is miraculously transported back to Kansas.

Was this a dream or did it actually happen?

In today's world, perhaps someone would say that that knock on the head concussed Dorothy to the point that she simply blacked out, and was dreaming about Oz, since all of her cohorts in Oz are actually the farm workers and others in Kansas.

But maybe that storm was real, and Dorothy was really whisked away to another land?

The ambiguity of the situation draws you in, young or old, and that is what makes the film so special, and yes, in my mind the greatest film of all time.

The other three movies I spoke about are grand on their own terms, and yes, they deserve to be among the greatest films of all time.

But "The Wizard of Oz" is something different altogether.

The movie--based on the books of L. Frank Baum--is a fantasy film, a comedy, a drama and a musical all rolled into one.

And it is a film for all ages--little kid all the way up--which the other films clearly are not.

Anybody can watch "The Wizard of Oz" and get out of it whatever they can. Sure, you might see the film differently as a five year old than you do as a 50 year old, but the same themes do come out at you, including that yes, you can go home again.

This is a universal theme, and it resonates no matter what age you are.

Based on its universal appeal to young and old alike, "The Wizard of Oz" is the greatest film ever made, simply because it doesn't matter at what age you watch it.

The other films, I am afraid, are more adult in texture, and I doubt too many young children would get much out of them, and certainly not as much as kids get out of "The Wizard of Oz."

And if you mention "Oz," you cannot forget the stellar cast of characters that made the film as good as it is, led, of course, by Judy Garland.

Not the first choice of the film's producers or the studio--among others, they had Shirley Temple in mind--Garland is actually miscast as the young Dorothy Gale.

She was too old for the role--hence, some of the legends that came out of the making of this film were that since she was, let's say, becoming a woman during the filming, her budding femaleness had to be buttressed by several devices worn underneath her outer clothing--but she was, is, and will always be Dorothy Gale.

And the scene that producers wanted out of the film--"Somewhere Over the Rainbow"--stands as perhaps the greatest song in the greatest movie ever, setting the tone for the rest of the film.

The other members of the cast--Bert Lahr, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Frank Morgan, Billie Burke, Margaret Hamilton and those irrepressible midgets--all give fine performances, but if anybody ever needed a reason to think that Garland was one of the greatest singer/actresses of all time, all of these actors had to take a step back and admire her.

She was that good.

The film--which actually was tested at several theaters before officially debuting 79 years ago today-- got good reviews in its initial debut and it made a good amount of money for its time, but the problem was that at the time, the film could not recoup its total production costs--which were substantial given the special effects included in the movie, which were revolutionary for the time, including its partly in color presentation--so it was considered something of a disappointment early on.

But its legend grew over the next 15 years or so, and once it became a staple on television--it was certainly one of the first movies ever shown in color on television--its overall and lasting popularity was cemented forever.

It has been satirized, engrained in other media, and its soundtrack has even become one for the ages, perhaps also the greatest movie soundtrack of all time.

Its constant VHS and DVD releases have further made this a classic for ensuing generations, giving people the ability to watch the film whenever they wanted to.

And the sum total of all of this is that in my opinion, nothing compares to "The Wizard of Oz."

It truly is the greatest movie of all time, and no other film even comes close.