Based on the Broadway musical of the same name, The Wiz is a reimagining of The Wizard of Oz told through the lens of contemporary African-American culture. In this version, Dorothy Gale is whisked away from her apartment in Harlem to an urban-fantasy rendition of the Land of Oz. The Wiz was panned by critics and became a box office bomb upon its initial release in 1978, but it’s since been re-evaluated as a beloved cult classic. It’s a movie like no other, but the experiment doesn’t always work.
From Lena Horne as Glinda to Richard Pryor as the Wiz himself, The Wiz has an absurdly star-studded cast. Diana Ross is every bit as charming and lovable as Judy Garland in the role of Dorothy; she radiates warmth and kindness, and effortlessly carries the film on her legendary shoulders. Mabel King, best known as Mama from What’s Happening!!, brings just as much over-the-top theatricality to the Wicked Witch of the West as Margaret Hamilton did, but also makes her strangely lovable. This Wicked Witch is less of a mustache-twirling villain and more of a bawdy hothead.
Michael Jackson, in his feature film debut, chews every last bit of the scenery as the Scarecrow. Obviously, he had the stage presence and the musical gifts to pull off the song-and-dance numbers, but he proves to have real acting chops, too. Ray Bolger overacted this part to an absurd degree, but the King of Pop gives an endearingly sympathetic portrayal of this timid, victimized character who’s so deeply insecure that he lets people push him around.
Sidney Lumet Was Probably The Wrong Choice To Direct The Wiz

The Director Of Serpico & Dog Day Afternoon Was An Odd Choice For A Lavish Musical

The Wiz might seem like a drastic departure for director Sidney Lumet. One of the most acclaimed filmmakers of the New Hollywood movement, Lumet was known for helming gritty crime dramas like Serpico and Dog Day Afternoon. A lavish musical reimagining of a glitzy Golden Age classic might seem as far from his wheelhouse as possible. But, at least on paper, it does somewhat line up with Lumet’s sensibility. Lumet’s dramas portrayed social injustices through the eyes of New York’s working class and, in its own special way, that’s what The Wiz is about.

Under its glossy surface, the film’s allegorical depiction of the Black experience — touching on everything from discrimination to disenfranchisement to the dark history of slavery — lands as intended. The problem is with the glossy surface.

To his credit, Lumet understands the deeper themes of The Wiz. Under its glossy surface, the film’s allegorical depiction of the Black experience — touching on everything from discrimination to disenfranchisement to the dark history of slavery — lands as intended. The problem is with the glossy surface. Lumet seems afraid to lean into the silliness, and his filmmaking fails to match the energy of the performers onscreen.
The Wiz’s Soundtrack Is All Bangers, All The Time

The Songs Are Brought To Life With Dazzling Choreography

The Wiz’s soundtrack, composed by Charlie Smalls and produced by Quincy Jones, is jam-packed with catchy musical numbers. It’s all bangers, all the time, mixing in the stylings of R&B, soul, and disco. Every single song is an earworm with a distinctive hook, reminiscent of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Disney songs, and they’re brought to life with world-class vocals and dazzling choreography.

The Wiz marked Michael Jackson’s first time working with Quincy Jones, who would later produce his hit albums Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad.

But Lumet shoots the film like the original West Side Story, with a static camera capturing each number like a live-recorded stage show. “Ease on Down the Road” is one of the liveliest, most invigorating songs on the soundtrack, but Lumet couldn’t have shot it in a blander way. He refuses to move the camera or even get close enough to his actors to catch the nuances of their dance moves. This number is played off with a sustained 30-second wide shot of Dorothy and the Scarecrow dancing down the Yellow Brick Road.

There are gorgeous costumes in every sequence, from Nipsey Russell’s steampunk Tinman look to the shiny, gold-clad dancers in the Emerald City, and the set designers masterfully reimagine Oz as a grimy modern metropolis.

The art department is firing on all cylinders. There are gorgeous costumes in every sequence, from Nipsey Russell’s steampunk Tinman look to the shiny, gold-clad dancers in the Emerald City, and the set designers masterfully reimagine Oz as a grimy modern metropolis. The film is beautiful to look at, the all-star cast brings their A-game, and L. Frank Baum’s original story is solid. In the hands of a better-suited director with a bit more energy behind the camera, The Wiz could’ve been truly great. As it stands, it’s a fun, quirky, if flawed retelling of a classic.

The Wiz

6/10

Release Date

October 24, 1978

Runtime

134 Minutes

Director

Sidney Lumet

Writers

Joel Schumacher

Michael Jackson

Scarecrow

Pros & Cons

There isn’t a single weak musical number in The Wiz; they’re all earworms
The actors all give fantastic performances, especially Diana Ross as Dorothy and Michael Jackson as the Scarecrow

Sidney Lumet’s bland, lifeless direction lets the film down