Zi71bFS9nQHnivtvUJquhejTHIQ The Story Factory Reading Zone: The Wizard of Oz by L.Frank Baum- A Review (and comparison with the film of the same name)

Thursday 17 March 2011

The Wizard of Oz by L.Frank Baum- A Review (and comparison with the film of the same name)

To be honest, I was a little disappointed with this book. Whilst it was really interesting to experience the differences between the film and the original story, I don't think it would have entertained me in its own right. Both the writing and the plot seemed simplistic. Dorothy came across rather niave and very young in her ways. Overall it basically formed itself as a simply fairytale. Having said that, I did feel that the climax of the film with the wizard was much better explained in the book than in the film, as were characters of those whom Dorothy meets on the whole.

As I've said there were many differences which really stuck me between the book and the film. For those who are interested I've decided to list 10 of the most striking ones (in my opinion) below.
Warning: spoliers ahead
  1. The red ruby slippers of the film turn out to have been silver originally. I guess the film company decided it needed something more striking for the screen.
  2. Dorothy meets both good witches during the book. The first one she meets is not Glenda, but an old lady described as similar looking to the munchkins. I really preferred this because it seems to have more of a moral to it- I guess they couldn't have a good witch in the movies who looked more like the bad ones from fairytales.
  3. The green fields end before they meet the tin man in the book- he is found in the middle of the forest rather than on the edges as in the film.
  4. We learn quite a lot extra about the background of the tin man in the book- this also explains why he wants a heart
  5. The woods only really start becoming scary after we meet the lion- and then he's just as afraid (or maybe more so) than the others
  6. We are shown clearly how the tin man already has a heart, the scarecrow a brain and the lion courage throughout the book.
  7. The witch has to try a whole series of tricks to get Dorothy in the book.
  8. The Wizard of Oz appears in several disguises in the book, rather than the one in the film.
  9. Dorothy actually controls the flying monkeys in the book
  10. The comrades go on one adventure more in the book than in the film- their adventure to find Glenda, during which they meet many people and creatures not featured in the film.
Have you seen the film and/or read the book? What did you think? If you've seen/read both which did you prefer? Have you come across other versions which were told differently?
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...