There are always images
we have seen during childhood,
so vividly imprinted in our mind.
It could be from a book, cartoon animation and even movie.
And sometimes we just do not know
or have forgotten where this particular image came from,
yet it is just so familiar.
I always remember a particular scene
I have seen from television:
a girl, a lion, (it appeared to me) a robot and a scarecrow,
walking hand-in-hand and singing chirpily in a forest.
How joyfully harmonic it is that.
But I never really know, this is the one
The Wizard of Oz.
Written in book,
scenes and settings filled up with fantasy
can be pinned down in details,
leaving it to the imagination of the readers.
However,
to capture the magical effects on movie scene
is not an easy task at all,
especially back then during the 1930’s.
Until re-watching the movie quite recently,
I came to realize,
the manipulation of colours is how they did it.
The vibrant colours engrave the scenes into our mind.
The first scene started off as black and white,
to portray the mundane life Dorothy was leading.
Then once Dorothy jumps into the magical door,
the screen suddenly transforms
into a colourful bust of sunshine, flowers and tiny huts.
Soon dwarfs dressing in all colours appear from all corners,
singing and dancing to their hearts’ content.
The yellow brick road disappears into the horizon,
slowly blending into the colour of the long unknown journey.
It symbolizes the path of hope.
Soon, the characters land themselves
on a hill of red blooming flowers.
They run care-freely,
feeling glad that
they have come out of the dark forest safely.
Finally, they reach The Emerald City,
where each and everyone dresses up elegantly
yet all costumes are in green.
It suggests uniformity and sophistication.
At the other end,
negative auras and creepiness
can be portrayed by colours as well.
Evil and risk are represented
by the contrasting red and green.
The green face witch,
all donned up in black always
disappears along with red smoke.
Then there is the green face wizard,
surrounded by burning flame whenever he is talking.
Last but not least,
how can we forget the glittering ruby shoes?
They are shiny and pretty yet mighty.
It grants wishes
and finally transports Dorothy back to her home.
Interestingly,
this pair of shoes was showcased few days ago
at an auction preview in Beverly Hills,
to be preserved through time
when it finds its new owner.
Magical as it is,
the movie relates itself
to the common weaknesses of human nature.
The scarecrow cannot make up his mind all the time
because he does not have a brain.
The “heartless” tin man wants a heart so badly
to have compassion to feel for the others.
The physically strong lion
who wishes he has more courage in life.
Each individual has his or her own weaknesses
but when they come together
and complement each other to overcome the hurdles.
And when the adventure is coming to an end,
everyone realizes what they have been asking for
have been fulfilled
since they have grown along the journey.
Compared with the high-tech fantasy movies of today,
not to say that they are not good,
Wizard of Oz is definitely
a sweet classic which is going to last longer,
never to fade away with time.
Putting it in simple words,
this is just the magical impact of colours.
p/s
quite like this
the witch wrote it with her broom
across the sky
Wizard of Oz / trailer / 1939
