Return to Oz (1985) Imagination or Mental illness? Film analysis

 

***Spoilers***

This is a beautifully constructed yet disturbing "kids film". The film begins with Dorothy basically being taken to an asylum for "shock treatment" because of her "waking dreams" and because she hasn't slept the night through since the tornado. In this way the film functions as a loose sequel to the Judy Garland The Wizard of Oz. However Return to Oz is based on a combination of the books written by L. Frank Baum. 

I feel Return to Oz is similar to Labyrinth in that it is about the journey into adulthood and acceptance of reality instead of turning towards escapism into fantasy. But what this film does differently is explore the nature of madness itself. Dorothy is steadfast in her beliefs of going to Oz and throughout her journey she believes in herself. But by the end of the film she has come to the realisation that she must keep her travels to Oz a secret. An interesting notion if it were to be examined in terms of modern concepts of mental illness. For instance today Dorothy would be diagnosed with psychosis/ Schizophrenia and her trips to Oz as hallucinations. In this view the end where Ozma tells Dororthy to be quiet and she says "it was just my reflection" would be interpreted as her voices/ hallucinations as command hallucinations working against her rational mind. 

In terms of cinematography and art and prop design this movie is a cult classic. The colour schemes, puppets, use of mirrors and costumes all contribute to the themes of the film. There are obvious parallels between the "real" universe at the start of the film and "Oz". 

This character turns into the gnome king at the end of the film. This is also a Checov's gun for the character of Tic Tok the "mechanical man". Arguably Dorothy absorbs this information and becomes part of her delusions of Oz.

Tick Tok the mechanical man "does everything but live"

This random scene where another girl from the asylum later Ozma gives Dorothy a pumkin and becomes Jack Pumkin Head who was a prisoner of Mombi. Jack likes to call Dorothy "Mom" and says "even if it isn't true". At the end it's revealed that Ozma is in fact his Mom.

Hospital green aligns with the green theme in Oz.

The wheelers are the orderlies from the asylum.

At the beginning the imagery details that Dorothy is in a cage even as she escapes in the water in the storm. Her "prison" takes her to Oz much like the house takes her in the tornado to Oz in the first book/ movie. But at the end of the film the nurse/ Mombi is imprisoned literally and imagery wise.

This depiction of the headless dancing girls is a Checkov's gun that shows how Mombi keeps all the women's heads locked up and changes them. An interesting theory of mind as it appears she has the same personality but a different external "beauty". Beauty is an interesting theme in the film. Mombi with a different head says Dorothy has "A certain prettiness" but needs to be kept a few years til she can become a head for her.

Costume design is so interesting in this film, the use of colour and texture. Mombi's outfit is brilliant it reminds me of the Skeskis costumes/ robes in The Dark Crystal. The way it has sharp porcupine style feather like shards coming out of her dress gives it a dangerous vibe.  And also similar red/ purple tones instead of the greens used by everyone else in Oz.

The Dark Crystal (1982)

Finally the use of mirrors and reflections is significant because I argue that Ozma is actually the twin/ self of Dorothy trapped in Oz by Mombi. She is the child like fantasy imaginative part of Dorothy that Dorothy learns to keep to herself and "grow up" by the end of the film.

It's similar to The Matrix and Alice in Wonderland and Through the looking glass in that Ozma is trapped in the mirror and Dorothy must help her come through the mirror into Oz. Conversely Dorothy use the mirror to contact/ see Ozma when she returns to Kansas. But Ozma tells her to be quiet and not tell other people.

Arguably this film is about childhood fantasy worlds and children learning to "grow up". However one could read this film as about psychosis and delusions and learning to keep that a secret from others. And that the film is in fact about belief in your own version of reality.