Oz – Book vs. Film

The Wizard of Oz is one of the most beloved films and books of all time. I remember reading the book shortly after it came out in 1900. I was drawn to it because author L. Frank Baum described the book as an “American fairy tale.” The story was rich and the characters interesting and it really did remind me of the classic tales more than just about anything else from the time. Baum had tapped into something with his story of Dorothy in the Land of Oz that not only defined his entire career but just about everything else that came out since then (until Tolkien then redefined the genre but that is a topic for another time).

This book still stands today, even when compared to the juggernauts of children’s fantasy literature like CS Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia, Susan Cooper’s The Dark is Rising, and JK Rowling’s Harry Potter. Of course for modern readers, the lack of technology is off-putting I’m sure but honestly if one can suspend his/her disbelief to accept things like talking lions and boy wizards, I think that they can handle a book written at the turn of the 20th century (and if not then they have bigger problems, but I digress).

In 1939 when the big screen adaptation on Baum’s novel came out it was to mild success but I was there front and center (I had Snow White on one arm and Rapunzel on the other…what a night that was). I thought that while deviating from the book, the film was a beautiful interpretation. Judy Garland was just too precious as Dorothy and the moving from the black and white Kansas to the color-filled Oz was just breathtaking. I’m sure this is hard to imagine in the wake of Star Wars but this film truly was a first of its kind.

The thing that is unfortunate now is that in the 70 years since the film was released, most people seem to only know the big screen version of the story. As much as I love this movie, I love the book even more. Sure people seem to know that the movie was based on a book, but how many of them have actually read the book. Look I can totally understand people bypassing The Lord of the Rings now that those amazing movies have been made (because lord knows JRR is thick and cumbersome to read) but that is not the case with Oz. These books are fun and easy reads and should be read to every child and by every adult at least once in their life.

The Matrix Journey

I thought this was a pretty interesting look at the film The Matrix through the eyes of Joseph Campbell.

Vampires

If anyone hasn’t noticed, vampires are the new hip thing…again. This current resurgence is in part thanks to the success of the Twilight series, which I have to admit I kind of like. The books aren’t the best things that I’ve ever read but they are enjoyable enough. So far the films have done a good job of bringing the books to life (admittedly I have not seen New Moon yet, but I think Cinderella and I will be going to see it on our next date night).

I’ve often wondered why these blood-loving creatures of the night have captivated people for so long. Sure blokes like Edward and Spike and Lestat are captivating and sexy (even though I think that Robert Patterson fellow isn’t all that…he looks so disheveled and stoned all of the time) but why women get hot for a guy that is going to drink them up, literally, is just beyond me.

Recently I ran across this story, which briefly goes into the history of vampires. Here’s a taste –

Some sources incorrectly trace vampires back to Romanian prince Vlad Tepes (1431-1476), who fought for independence against the Ottoman Empire. Though by most accounts his methods were brutal and sadistic (for example, slowly impaling his enemies on stakes, drawing and quartering them, burning them to death, etc.), in reality they were not particularly cruel or unusual for the time. Similar techniques were used by the Catholic Church and other powerful entities and rulers during the Middle Ages to torture and kill enemies.

Bram Stoker is said to have modeled some aspects of his Count Dracula character on Vlad Tepes.

While Tepes (partly) inspired fictional modern vampires, the roots of "real" vampires have very different origins. As a cultural entity, vampires are a worldwide phenomenon. According to anthropologist Paul Barber, author of "Vampires, Burial, and Death," stories from nearly every culture have some localized version of the vampire, and "bear a surprising resemblance to the European vampire."

I remember ol’ Vlad. That was a brutal bugger for sure.

So, according to this at least, the idea of the vampire seems to come from the ignorance of the middle ages and the work of one writer. (Note – I know that Bram Stoker created vampire fiction but lord Dracula is a painfully hard book to read.) Yet still I’m mystified how not-so-rotten corpses and a blood thirsty Romanian could turn into this never-ending cash cow of an industry that now seems to focus around softcore porn on the page (no offense Laurell but you did create a monster) and teenage love stories.

There was a time that vampires were considered scary in popular culture. The first time the vampire took to the screen was in the 1922 film Nosferatu.



After that Hollywood started to churn out a plethora of films based on or about Dracula, with a slew of different actors filling the role and eventually even inspiring a series of blackploitation films (Blacula anyone?).



Wasn’t Bella Lugosi just a babe?

Then in 1976 Anne Rice turned the vampire world on its head with her novel Interview with the Vampire. I’ll be the first to admit that I could never get into Rice’s stuff -- she’s just too wordy and thick -- but Snow White loved it. Finally in 1994 the book was turned into a pretty darned good film. Unfortunately the series on film soon died after that because Tm Cruise is a little bitch that didn’t want to be upstaged by Brad Pitt.



Since then the vampire has experienced the ebb and flow of the whims of the public. Currently the vamp is riding high thanks to the success of the aforementioned Twilight, the Tru Blood series (based on the excellent books by Charlene Harris), and the Vampire Diaries.





I’m sure that these books, movies, and TV shows will not be the last that we see of our blood-sucking friends. Now if I could just some resurgence in popular culture…

Movie Review: The Brothers Grimm

Hollywood’s take on those German folklorists as traveling snake oil salesmen is an entertaining fantasy/comedy romp. Obviously the film has little if nothing to do with the actual brothers (for one they were no where near as good looking) but it still a fun bit of eye candy.

The film stars Matt Damon as Wilhelm and Heath Ledger as Jacob and begins with the lads convincing a village that they can solve their witch problem. You see not only are the brothers well known for their tales, but they are also monster hunters as well. Or so it seems. As it turns out, all of their monster hunting is a farce used to scam money off of simpleton villagers (a fairly easy task actually, but that’s another matter entirely). Things were going fine until they were captured by the French. Eventually they find their way to a forest that turns out to actually be enchanted. I won’t give away any thing else for those who have yet to see the film.

Overall this is not a bad movie and surely it is worth a rental for those who are fans of fantasy or folktales.

The Brothers Grimm on IMDB
The Brothers Grimm on Wikipedia

And if you are so inclined, National Geographic has a great site dedicated to the Grimm Brothers, their fairy tales, their history, and more which can be found here.

Who’s Your Favorite Disney Princess?

I stumbled on this poll this morning. It is asking readers to pick their favorite Disney Princess. Walt Disney has a perilous relationship with most in the fair tale community (in other words, most of my brethren would have loved to burn the man and his company on a stake). Personally I’ve never had a problem with what Disney has done to own tales. Yes the company butchered and watered them down but so did the Grimm’s yet no one is lining up to take out those blokes.

I think that part of the problem is that many of my fellow fairy talers are just not happy with how they were portrayed on the big screen. I can understand this, but to condemn what amounts to harmless entertainment for elementary school kids is a bit much. Then again not all of them can look as good on the big screen as I do.

Back to the poll…I’m not sure that I could pick just one Princess. I love them all. That is like asking a parent to pick their favorite child. I adore all of the damsels that I have saved. But my fair and loyal readers should definitely vote. Let the best Princess win.

My Favorite Film Version of Me

Hollywood has tried many times over the years to capture my essence on the big screen. Some have been better than other but most have fallen short, but then what can you expect? I am an icon that defies culture and time, so how in the name of Heaven could anyone hope to capture my glory on film.

Well Disney for once got so close that it was a little scary. The film was 2007’s Enchanted. My name in this film was Prince Edward and I was portrayed by the fabulously delicious and talented James Marsden.

The film is an excellent parody/satire of the Disney fair tale films, while at the same time holding the line with the story that it never comes off as a joke. The irony and satire is subtle and that makes for a great film. I saw the film with a bunch of my fairy tale cohorts (we were out incognito as we tend to do when out in public) and we all loved it. Snow White was laughing so hard at points and crying so hard at others that I was afraid that we were going to have to call the fairy tale paramedics to give her oxygen.

I’m not going to give away the plot of the film because you really need to see it for yourself. Besides, how can you go wrong with singing, dancing, romance, magic, and James Marsden? You can’t.