Last night I happened to catch "The Wizard of Oz" on TBS and given the Rockoff reading for this week I thought I would watch for a few minutes. It had been quite a few years since I had seen the film and I haven't seen it that many times, yet I knew all the songs and many of the quotes. This is because the Wizard of Oz is so permeated in our culture. I'm not really sure that I understand why, but I thought that I would take a few minutes to point out some of its influences.
Check out the images in the album "What is it about the Wizard of Oz" for some visuals.
Re-makes and Re-imaginings:
- The Wiz
- Return to Oz
- The Muppet's Wizard of Oz
- Tin Man
Movies which quote The Wizard of Oz (to name a few):
- Honey, I Shrunk the Kids
- Hannibal
- Twister
Pop culture influenced by the Wizard of Oz:
- Pink Floyd "Dark Side of the Moon"
- Lost
- Star Wars
Know of any other pop culture references? Share them in the comments!
You forgot the film, "One Fine Day" with Michele Phiffer and George Clooney. The kids watch the Wizard of Oz near the end of the film. (Handy for getting them out of your hair while you can ogle George.
Posted by: Dianne Schmidley | 09/29/2009 at 08:22 AM
Oh yeah!
*George and Meg about to kiss*
"Mom we're scared, the mean woman took Toto"
*frantically fast forwards*
"Look, it's the color part, you LOVE the color part!"
Clearly I've seen that movie once or twice, sorry I forgot it!
Posted by: Lindsey Bestebreurtje | 09/29/2009 at 10:06 AM
The Broadway show Wicked tells the "unseen story" and does it both with heart, and lots of power pop ballads. One of the best thing I have seen in many a year. I will be thinking about how it plays as allegory.....
td
Posted by: TJD | 09/29/2009 at 09:44 PM