Technicolor And The Wizard Of Oz

The Wizard of Oz was a technological innovation of film and changed the way movies were presented to audiences. The Wizard of Oz was the definition of high tech for its time; this film utilized the Technicolor number 4 process which gave audiences a more realistic feel and connection with the movie. The Wizard of Oz also accurately portrayed the time period of the Great Depression; this film shows the desolate Kansas and gives the feeling of how bad the United States was during this time period. The Wizard of Oz has been a staple in classic films for decades; the implications that this film hold for the past, present, and future is endless. This film also was during a time of American history where America was in the verge of entering World

It utilized a new coloring process that was invented by Technicolor called the number 4 process. Jon Lewis writes,” Finally in 1932, Kalmus introduced Technicolor process No. 4 (also known as three-strip Technicolor), a three-color system that would become the industry standard in color film production for the next twenty years.” This new color process allowed the film to come alive and draw the audience in for a more captivating experience. The Wizard of Oz plays the color film, which was not a standard of the time, to its fullest potential by contrasting color with black and white. The films shows the real world, which for this film is Kansas, in black and white and, the film shows the mystical Land of Oz in full color. Carol Billman writes,” Seeing is believing in Oz. In the film, spectacular vistas appear, one after another, before the travelers. . . The cumulative effect of these vistas is that the viewers of the film do – as readers of the novel do not – have a point of view. We see things along with the four travelers, and we share in particular Dorothy’s awe at the foreign and marvelous things she sees.” This contrast helps the audience experience an escape from the bleak and dreadful Great Depression and provides them with the colorful and perfect Land of Oz where all your dreams come true by following the yellow brick road. This Hollywood trick of contrasting two opposites with the use of color

One such technique that the director used to help bring the film to life was the use of special effects. Numerous special effects were added to the film to help create a more realistic feel. Bilman writes,” Special visual effects, moreover, are put to intelligent use in the film; they enhance the visual dimension of the story. Arnold Gillespie, director of special effects, and his staff invented a thirty-five foot muslin cyclone suspended by and overhead crane to re-create the cyclone that transports Dorothy to Oz.” This use of special effects adds to the realistic feel of the film and further draws the audience in the Land of Oz. The Wizard of Oz had many new special effect scenes including the scene where the Wicked Witch spells out “Surrender Dorothy” in the sky with her broom. This adds a feeling of magic to the movie and further creates the illusion of the mystical Land of Oz. The Wizard of Oz uses many new special effects that were groundbreaking for the time period to create an aura of magic and awe to draw the audience into the mystical Land of