Oz (1976 film)

Oz
2004 Collector's edition DVD cover
Directed by	Chris Löfvén
Produced by	Lyne Helms Chris Löfvén
Written by	Chris Löfvén
Starring	Joy Dunstan Graham Matters Bruce Spence Gary Waddell Robin Ramsay
Music by	Wayne Burt Baden Hutchins Ross Wilson Gary Young
Cinematography	Dan Burstall
Editing by	Les Luxford
Release date(s)	29 July 1976 (1976-07-29) (Australia)
Running time	103 min (Australia) 90 min (US version)
Country	Australia
Language	English
Budget	$150,000

Oz (aka Oz – A Rock 'n' Roll Road Movie also released as 20th Century Oz in United States) is a 1976 (see 1976 in film) Australian film written, directed and co-produced by Chris Löfvén.^[1] It stars Joy Dunstan, Graham Matters, Bruce Spence, Gary Waddell, and Robin Ramsay; and received four nominations at the 1977 AFI Awards.^[1] The musical score is by Ross Wilson (frontman for Daddy Cool and Mondo Rock).^[1] The plot is a re-imagining of the 1939 The Wizard of Oz film transferred to 1970s Australia and aimed at an older teen / young adult audience. It was released on DVD in 2004 as Oz - A Rock 'n' Roll Road Movie : Collector's Edition with additional material.^[2] The poster and album sleeve for the American release was done by rock artist Jim Evans.

Plot summary

Dorothy (Joy Dunstan) is a sixteen-year-old groupie riding with a rock band, Wally (Graham Matters) and the Falcons. Suddenly, the van is in a road accident, and she hits her head. She wakes up in a fantasy world as gritty and realistic as the one she came from and learns she killed a young thug in the process. A gay clothier, Glin the Good Fairy (Robin Ramsay), gives her a pair of red shoes as a reward to help her see the last concert of the Wizard (Matters), an androgynous glam rock singer. She is pursued by the thug's brother (Ned Kelly) who attempts to rape her on several occasions. She also meets a dumb surfer Blondie (Bruce Spence), a heartless mechanic Greaseball (Michael Carman), and a cowardly biker Killer (Garry Waddell).^[1][3]

Soundtrack

Wilson, Gary Young and Wayne Burt were all former members of Daddy Cool. Their biggest hit single "Eagle Rock" had a promo video directed by Löfvén in 1971. By late 1975, Daddy Cool had disbanded and Wilson was waiting out his contract with Wizard Records by producing a Company Caine album for his own label Oz Records. Wilson signed Jo Jo Zep & the Falcons with members Young and Burt to his label. Contractually free, Wilson recorded his first solo single "Livin' in the Land of Oz" and produced Jo Jo Zep & the Falcons' second single "Beating Around the Bush" both released mid-1976 from this soundtrack.

Track listing

Track listing for Australian version Oz - A Rock 'n' Roll Road Movie released on Oz Records / EMI in 1976, US version 20th Century Oz released on Celestial Records in 1977.^[4]

1. "Livin' in the Land of Oz" (Ross Wilson) — Ross Wilson - 4:12
2. "The Mood" (Wilson) — Ross Wilson - 3:31
3. "Beating Around the Bush" (Wayne Burt) — Jo Jo Zep & the Falcons - 3:30
4. "Our Warm Tender Love" (Gary Young) — Joy Dunstan - 3:46
5. "You're Driving Me Insane" (Baden Hutchins) — Graham Matters - 3:25
6. "Livin' in the Land of Oz" (Reprise #1) — Ross Wilson - 1:43
7. "Greaseball" (Wilson) — Ross Wilson - 3:43
8. "Glad I'm Living Here" (Burt) — Jo Jo Zep & the Falcons - 4:07
9. "Who's Gonna Love You Tonight" (Wilson, David Pepperell) — Ross Wilson - 4:41
10. "You're Driving Me Insane" (Reprise) — Graham Matters - 5:53
11. "Livin' in the Land of Oz" (Reprise #2) — Ross Wilson - 1:45
12. "Atmospherics" (Wilson, John French, Ian Mason) — Ross Wilson - 1:35

All songwriters according to Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA).^[5]

Personnel

• Ross Wilson — producer, arranger
• John French — engineer
• Peter Ledger — cover illustration & design

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} "Oz (1976)". IMDb. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075030/. Retrieved 2008-05-16. 
2. ^ "Oz - A Rock 'n' Roll Road Movie". Cinephilia. http://www.cinephilia.net.au/show_amovie.php?movieid=2460. Retrieved 2008-05-16. 
3. ^ "Cult Flick: 20th Century Oz". Detour Mag. http://detour-mag.com/assets/2008/05/02/cult-flick-20th-century-oz/. Retrieved 2008-05-16. 
4. ^ "20th Century Oz soundtrack". CastAlbums.org. http://www.castalbums.org/recordings/11351. Retrieved 2008-05-16. 
5. ^ "Australasian Performing Right Association". APRA. http://www.apra.com.au/cms/worksearch/worksearch.srvlt?action=workSearch. Retrieved 2008-05-18. 

External links

• "Oz". National Film and Sound Archive. http://colsearch.nfsa.afc.gov.au/nfsa/search/display/display.w3p;query=Number%3A4506;rec=0. Retrieved 18 May 2010. 
• "Oz - A Rock 'n' Roll Road Movie". Australian Screen. http://aso.gov.au/titles/features/oz-rock-n-roll-road-movie/. Retrieved 18 May 2010. 
• Oz at the Internet Movie Database
• Oz at AllRovi