So, for about a month or so on and off I’ve tried to sit through Sam Raimi’s Oz The Great and Powerful, but it’s just not happening. Although the movie is loud, packed full of visual effects and bright and colorful in spots when it’s not dark and moody, the effect on my eyes and brain has been like riding in a huge mall elevator packed with noisy kids and pissed off parents. It’s just not good. I like pieces of it and some of the characters, but I can’t put a finger on what the heck is bugging me so much. On a whim to see if I’m just Oz’ed out or something (and thanks to an alert in my YouTube subscriptions), I checked the All Public Domain site and watched the incomplete 1914 silent film Magic Cloak of Oz and had a much better time with that. Have a look:

Granted, THAT film clocks in at just over 40 minutes and seems to be missing a lot of stuff, but it’s pretty cool for what it is because it’s so old yet so full of creativity. Now, I happen to like most of Sam Raimi’s films quite a lot, but I just could not stay awake through or have my attention held by this one. In other words, my sense of wonder was not activated one bit. OK, the little porcelain doll was cute, but I didn’t sit down to see a cute doll get in and out of trouble by the painted skin of her porcelain teeth. Hmmmm. A friend who saw this and liked it said I just need to see it with someone poking me in the ribs every ten minutes, but he has a wife to do that and I just have a bunch of plants that don’t do well if I move them from their favorite spot. Eh, perhaps I’ll throw on some coffee and try again in a week or so. I have other stuff to do and this flick is more a low-priority item than something I need to tackle right away…