The Wizard of Oz (BFI Film Classics)
by Salman Rushdie
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Book Summary Information
Author: Salman RushdieEditor: Melvyn Bragg
Editor: Richard Maltby
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1992-05-27
ISBN: 0851703003
Number of pages: 96
Publisher: British Film Institute
Book Reviews of The Wizard of Oz (BFI Film Classics)
Book Review: Quite Nice
Summary: 5 Stars
It's impossible to separate The Wizard of Oz from the deep emotion it inspires. The movie rapidly plunges a viewer back into childhood fears/dreams and the context in which one first saw it.
But by handing this topic to the improbable figure of Salmon Rushdie, an essay follows that persaudes open minds of how deeply personal and specific a movie becomes after one cathects it. For that I found the piece to be a revelation; as a way of opening a topic one thought as so general as to reject non-approved non-mass narratives; the deeply personal nature of a reading of a film; and the beauty/value of film writing to offer readers thoughtful personal associations. It changed the way I wrote about film.
This is the exact opposite of bad film-writing in which some self-christened film snob sits on his throne, beknighting utterly safe products because of their good taste and high production values, while appealing to some non-existant "objective" set of criteria. Inevitably the jackass will use the word "masterpiece" which is how you know he's a bad writer; Whenever you see the word in a review, just substitute "Don't question me, or my inability to use language to persaude you of this film's merit!"
P.U. You can keep the ninety percent of film writing that issues from that horrid, unpromising foundation. Rushdie's reminiscences go back to his childhood in India, which is both the last place you'd imagine a strong reading of this most American film to come from, and miraculously, yes, a vivid, strong analysis of The Wizard of Oz.
Summary of The Wizard of Oz (BFI Film Classics)
For Rushdie The Wizard of Oz is more than a children's film, and more than a fantasy. It's a story "whose driving force is the inadequacy of adults," in which the "weakness of grown-ups forces children to take control of their own destinies."
While Salman Rushdie has treasured The Wizard of Oz since his boyhood, the movie's idea of returning "home" has had a special resonance for him as an adult. In this lovely appreciation of the MGM classic, Rushdie does not dwell upon his continual flight from any "home" after writing The Satanic Verses. But his affinity for Dorothy and her predicament comes through in his analysis.
This is a marvelous little book, full of wonderful tidbits about the making of The Wizard of Oz. Rushdie also talks about the movie's contrast of black and white and color, order and disorder, good and evil. The volume ends with "At the Auction of the Ruby Slippers," a surrealistic short story in which Rushdie meditates on the value of fantasies like The Wizard of Oz.
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