Return to Oz (1985) Hello I am Randy Andrews and Today I’ll be discussing Return to Oz from 1985. I’ll discuss the cast, the background, the technical aspects and of course the score all today on Soundtrack Alley! Play Intro Hello everyone, today I’ll be discussing Return to Oz. There are plenty of things to discuss on this film. It’s dark and brooding, but so much fun. Here is the basic plot…Dorothy discovers she is back in the land of Oz, and finds the yellow brick road is now a pile of rubble, and the Emerald City is in ruins. Discovering that the magical land is now under the control of an evil empire, she sets off to rescue the scarecrow, the tin man and the lion with the help of her new friends. So let’s start with talking about the cast… Play clip A gymnast, Michael Sundin, stood upside-down (with legs bent) and backwards inside Tik-Tok's body to move the legs. Fairuza Balk actually performed most of the film barefoot, as she found her black shoes uncomfortable, and the ruby slippers were very fragile and easily damaged. Thus, the actress only wore shoes when they would be visible on camera. Fairuza Balk did all her own stunts. Fairuza Balk's ruby slippers were specially handmade with imitation rubies and rotoscoped in post-production to give them a magical look. The rubies were actually glass beads imported from Austria and individually attached to the shoes with a special spray adhesive. This later proved problematic, as the hot stage lights melted the adhesive, and the young actress' fidgety movements would often knock the beads off. Tired of chasing after detached beads, the wardrobe staff finally ordered the shoes to be worn only when visible on camera. The scene where Dorothy (Fairuza Balk) falls onto the couch with a thud and onto the Nome King's mountain was done in 11 takes This was Fairuza Balk's first feature film debut. She did appear in a TV movie before this but this is her first featured movie. Christopher Lloyd was considered to play the Nome King while Louise Fletcher, Teri Garr, and Mary Steenburgen were considered to play Princess Mombi. Disney regular of the 70s Don Knotts was considered to voice Billina and former Disney regular of the 60s Dick Van Dyke was considered to voice either Jack Pumpkinhead or the Scarecrow. Emma Ridley (Ozma) was dubbed in post-production by director Walter Murch's daughter Beatrice. Ridley's natural voice was deemed too British for the character. Pons Maar who plays the Lead Wheeler, one of the asylum orderlies, and provides the voice of the Nome Messenger also served as a movement coach on the film, working to develop the postures and movements of the Scarecrow and Jack Pumpkinhead. Emma Ridley, who plays Ozma, also auditioned for the role of Dorothy. Other actresses who auditioned for the role included Drew Barrymore, Alanis Morissette, Toni Ann Gisondi, Elizabeth Berkley, and Juliette Lewis. Leo McKern, who bore a strong resemblance to the character in the original Oz illustrations, was the first choice for the role of the Nome King. McKern turned down the role due to scheduling conflicts. While filming the sequence near the end of film where Dorothy rides atop the Cowardly Lion, actress Fairuza Balk became so overwhelmed by the temperature (in excess of 110 degrees Fahrenheit) that she passed out on the sound stage. Now Let’s get into some of the info on the director… Play Clip Director Walter Murch invited friend George Lucas to visit the set one day. During that visit Lucas wandered to different sound stages where he came across producer Rick McCallum working on a small film. The two became friends and later collaborated on the "Star Wars" prequels. Walter Murch never intended for this film to be viewed as a direct sequel to The Wizard of Oz (1939); rather, he intended it as a partial sequel with some direct ref