James Franco plays a decent performance as Oscar Diggs. The story is somewhat decently written, and it does capture the spirit of not only The Wizard of Oz, but also to an extent Return to Oz.Some wonderful and emotional moments, like where Oscar glues China Girl's legs back together and another scene where the characters ride in Glinda's bubbles to her kingdom.The film uses that traditional aspect from the first film where is starts in black & white and fullscreen and when we get to Oz, the film changes to color and widescreen.Likable and entertaining characters, like Oscar, Glinda, Finley and China Girl.Beautiful visuals and well-rendered CGI of the Land of Oz and the creatures.
Putting his magical arts to use through illusion, ingenuity-and even a bit of wizardry-Oscar transforms himself not only into the great and powerful Wizard of Oz but into a better man as well. Reluctantly drawn into the epic problems facing the Land of Oz and its inhabitants, Oscar must find out who is good and who is evil before it is too late. When Oscar Diggs (James Franco), a small-time circus magician with dubious ethics, is hurled away from dusty Kansas to the vibrant Land of Oz, he thinks he’s hit the jackpot-fame and fortune are his for the taking-that is until he meets three witches, Theodora (Mila Kunis), Evanora (Rachel Weisz) and Glinda (Michelle Williams), who are not convinced he is the great wizard everyone’s been expecting. Frank Baum’s beloved character, the Wizard of Oz.
“Oz The Great and Powerful” imagines the origins of L. The cast also includes Emmy® and Golden Globe® nominee Zach Braff (“Scrubs,” “Garden State”), who will play Franco’s circus assistant as well as lend his vocal talents to one of the CGI creatures in the story - Finley, the winged monkey who accompanies the magician on his journey to Oz and 12-year-old actress Joey King (“Ramona and Beezus”), who will voice another CGI character in the story, China Girl, who also joins the future Wizard on his excursion through Oz. Pontiac, MI., July 25, 2011-Walt Disney Pictures’ fantastical adventure “Oz The Great and Powerful,” directed by Sam Raimi, went in front of the cameras at the brand-new Raleigh Studios in Pontiac, Michigan, on Monday, July 25, 2011, boasting a stellar cast that includes Academy Award® nominee James Franco (“127 Hours”) as the young wizard, Golden Globe® nominee Mila Kunis (“Black Swan”) as the witch Theodora, Academy Award® winner Rachel Weisz (“The Constant Gardener”) as Kunis’ sister Evanora and two-time Oscar®-nominated actress Michelle Williams (“Brokeback Mountain,” “Blue Valentine”) as Glinda, the Good Witch.