Oz: The Great and Powerful - Part 1

[ThePowerCosmic]

It'd be cool if he could go back and forth between standing on two legs and walking on all fours.

That reminds me of Scooby Doo in his movies. Not so sure about that one.

I think it would be an interesting contrast if the lion had like this booming, regal sounding voice yet still acted pretty timid on occasion.

Yeah it would be, and I kinda expect it since I think he's supposed to be a king.

 

[DaRkVeNgeanCe]

Ya I agree seeing another completely cg lion just walking around talking just seems boring and at this point unoriginal. I know it happened in the book a long long time ago but we've seen more cg talking animals than we can shake a stick at.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

I love how because something has been done before, it can't be done again even if completely appropriate.

 

[Rorschach2012]

I absolutely loved this movie. The beginning was kind of off, I dunno how to describe it... just off. And i hated Knuck's character. Every time he came on screen I groaned. He prevented me from rating the movie a 9, he was the biggest flaw for sure. Sorry for the negativity, but I hated the way that actor portrayed his lines and i hated his lines too.

 

[terry78]

I shall blow a fanfare.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

I shall blow a fanfare.

That was funny.

 

[Octoberist]

I absolutely loved this movie. The beginning was kind of off, I dunno how to describe it... just off. And i hated Knuck's character. Every time he came on screen I groaned. He prevented me from rating the movie a 9, he was the biggest flaw for sure. Sorry for the negativity, but I hated the way that actor portrayed his lines and i hated his lines too.

I think the pacing of the first half was..weird. Normally, I don't mind slow pacing, but the first 30 minutres felt awkward, or almost sloppy.

 

[Ultimatehero]

Actually a giant lion would work, not standing on all fours though. This is how the lion was classically illustrated:

Note the size difference.

 

[DaRkVeNgeanCe]

Looks about the size of a normal real live lion, when compared next to a little girl.

 

[Ultimatehero]

Oh, for some reason thought it was a tad bit bigger. So, yeah, should be same size comparisons as that pic.

 

[ShadowBoxer]

This may be a spoiler for those that haven't seen it yet but the lion that appears when we first met Finlay is indeed the cowardly lion from the original film right? If so I hope he talks in the next one, but I am unsure on how I feel about his CGI. Also that would make the lion to be pretty old by the events of the original film.

 

[Octoberist]

While some of the CG actually wowed me, like China Girl, there are some effects that flatout looked unfinished.

 

[chaseter]

Nah, the lion was stupid. It's just a lion. Looked just like Aslan. No humanoid appearance or personality whatsoever. I'm sure the the Cowardly Lion is meant to literally just be a lion and not appear as he did in the '39 film, but where's the fun in that?

I'd love to see a practical makeup effect mixed with CGI, rather than just straight up CGI or a real lion with a CGI mouth or something.

How do you do practical makeup for a lion character? Just have Andy Serkis mocap the face. He can make some pretty precious big eyed faces. I want an all cgi lion. The problem with animatronic faces today is that cgi has surpassed them and animatronic faces don't look as awesome anymore. The only practical I would want is when it's interacting with live actors. I want real fur if there is a shot of hand on the fur. I want a real head if the actors are messing with the teeth or has a head in the mouth...whatever. I want a real paw if it's pressing on someone. That is only when I would want practical. Those shots can be focused and don't require an entirely animatronic lion. I also do not want a real lion as it becomes obvious when it's transitioned into cgi lion. Aslan looked pretty amazing in the Narnia movies so if they can match that then I would be a happy camper.

 

[The Caped Knight]

Cowardly lion was CG in this movie, so I don't see them changing something that seemed to work in this one. He looked great.

When he first appeared on screen he looked like the design they used for Aslan from The Chronicles Of Narnia series. I half expected to hear Liam Neeson's voice lol.

 

[ThePowerCosmic]

 

[terry78]

Hearing the lion say "if only I had some courage" in Neeson's accent is making me laugh uncontrollably.

 

[ThePowerCosmic]

This may be a spoiler for those that haven't seen it yet but the lion that appears when we first met Finlay is indeed the cowardly lion from the original film right? If so I hope he talks in the next one, but I am unsure on how I feel about his CGI. Also that would make the lion to be pretty old by the events of the original film.

Yeah, and there was a statue of the previous Wizard of Oz with a lion beside him. Maybe that was the cowardly lion. Or maybe that was another lion that was king of the beasts before cowardly lion as supposed to be. Maybe he feels inadequate and can't live up to the legacy of his father, or whoever that lion was beside the previous Wizard.

 

[Ultimatehero]

When it gets closer we'll probably get a lion that looks a lot like:

 

[jacobed]

How do you do practical makeup for a lion character? Just have Andy Serkis mocap the face. He can make some pretty precious big eyed faces. I want an all cgi lion. The problem with animatronic faces today is that cgi has surpassed them and animatronic faces don't look as awesome anymore. The only practical I would want is when it's interacting with live actors. I want real fur if there is a shot of hand on the fur. I want a real head if the actors are messing with the teeth or has a head in the mouth...whatever. I want a real paw if it's pressing on someone. That is only when I would want practical. Those shots can be focused and don't require an entirely animatronic lion. I also do not want a real lion as it becomes obvious when it's transitioned into cgi lion. Aslan looked pretty amazing in the Narnia movies so if they can match that then I would be a happy camper.

I completely agree. Cg lion is the way to go. When you go makeup for a lion it'll end up looking like Beast in First Class. While he looked pretty good, he's face was always best when it was cg and not makeup. He looked awkward and uncomfortable when it was full makeup.

 

[def28]

Don't think this has been posted yet. Sounds like theres little chance of Dorothy showing up in the next one.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-disney-oz-20130311,0,7563112.story

Roth said he saw a potential sequel as involving a lot of Baum's characters but said the film "would absolutely not" involve Dorothy.

Kapner told The Times that the end of "Great and Powerful" leaves a lot of runway for the sequel. "It's 20 years before Dorothy arrives," he said. "A lot can happen in that time."

Probably will bring in Ozma instead.

 

[dark_b]

a good animator can make a realistic looking Lion very interesting on screen. its all about the movement and facial animation. i think it can work.

 

[sueb1863]

Oh, I don't know - a lot of people thought it was wrong to remake 'True Grit' because the John Wayne version is such a classic. Yet when they did, the new version was praised for being much closer to the book. They're different enough and I think a book-based non-musical adaptation of WWoO would be the same.

A lot of the choices made for the 1939 version were based on the limitations of film at the time (there was no way they could do the land of china people) and what was currently popular (using former vaudeville performers to play Dorothy's three companions). It was also made with an eye towards capitlaising on the success Disney had had with 'Snow White'; the Wicked Witch was actually a glamorous sequin-covered bombshell before MGM decided she had to be the ugly witch from the book. Actress Gale Sondergaard had been cast and then dropped in favor of Margaret Hamilton when they changed directions.

The studio had also originally wanted Shirley Temple for Dorothy but Fox refused to allow it.

Another fun bit of trivia: Buddy Ebsen was the original Tin Man but had to quit after a few weeks of filming after having a life-threatening reaction to the silver-based makeup he wore. Jack Haley took over the role but you can still hear Ebsen singing in all of the group chorus parts of 'We're Off to See The Wizard'. They rerecorded the Tin Man's solo stuff but didn't bother to redo the parts where he was singing with the other characters.

 

[Trimmings]

Loved it! So is there any word on a directors cut? It just seems like a lot was taken out once they get to the Emerald City. Also, I hope they do something with the wicked witch's makeup if they do sequels. I can't tell what's wrong with it, but something definitely is.

 

[<(o_o)>]

Loved it! So is there any word on a directors cut? It just seems like a lot was taken out once they get to the Emerald City. Also, I hope they do something with the wicked witch's makeup if they do sequels. I can't tell what's wrong with it, but something definitely is.

I'm pretty sure Disney will milk it for all its worth If there isn't a directors cut/extended cut when it first comes out on bluray then there will probably be one later.

 

[Trimmings]

That makes me feel better about it lol. I'd really like one or two more scenes showing the wizard wooing mila. That and maybe letting us see the tour of the emerald city. It didn't seem like an actual city to me