Customer Reviews

Return To Oz (Soundtrack)

5 star:		(3)
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This album is wonderfully moving. I don't really understand why it never received an Oscar nomination, or win for that matter. It's by David Shire, who won a few years earlier for Saturday Night Fever. It was also a Disney film. It was nominated for one other Oscar so it wasn't like the Academy was snubbing them... A mystery forever.
This album is wonderful because if you've seen the movie first, you can pick up on what parts of the score each character comes into it. Each character has his or her own instrument/theme. Dorothy's theme reflects Ozma's as well, so that they seem like different themes on their own but finally at the end when they are played at the same time, they are completely in sync. It's beautiful. And the score manages to convey each emotion shown in the film. Particular mention should go to the violins, and the large part of the film they convey. From the beginning they introduce us to a darker version of Oz, and particularly at the end in a sort of rampaging duet with another violin, it portrays Dorothy's loneliness to perfection. I almost cry just thinking about it.

One of the best soundtracks I've ever heard. It's safe to say this whole movie is better than the MGM one. But... who's competing.

This movie apparently flopped at the box office, but I grew up loving it.

Even critics of the film admit that the original score has been wonderfully composed.

It is difficult to find an enjoyable score that immediately brings a movie to mind. Return to Oz, Star Wars, and The Crow are three that do so very quickly for me.

Obviously if you haven't watched the movie you should do that first. But then be sure to get the soundtrack if you can still find one for a reasonable price. As someone who is a composer myself and a film score aficionado, I can attest to the quality of David Shire's score to Return to Oz. It is wonderfully enjoyable, delightfully original and fits perfectly with the atmosphere of the film. A truly underrated work among film scores.

The "Return to Oz" March (track 12) is a brilliantly fun rag that fits wonderfully with the period. It is probably my favorite track and the one that sticks in my head the most. But don't discount the rest of the score which is full of a wide range of rich, exhilarating, fantastical, and quirky themes. I would point to Tic Tok's theme which is about half way through the 4th is appropriately brassy and martial while also slightly mechanical and disjointed. The Flight of the Gump (track 7) is the most exhilarating theme. And the Finale and End Credits (track 11) is so emotionally rich, at some places it sends those musical tingles down my spine that only a very few pieces can do so effectively.

I will admit though, that the whole experience of listening to this soundtrack is amplified if you already have some nostalgia for the film.

Thanks for reading my review! :)