With the year of 2025 almost halfway done, Criterion are continuing to add more movies to their collection. Their latest release, however, might puzzle some movie buffs: 1978’s The Wiz. Directed by Sidney Lumet, the movie adaption of the hit Broadway musical was a box office bomb when it was released. Many people found it to be disappointing for various reasons. Now over four decades later, time has been kind to The Wiz: while it is a flawed product, the movie has some upsides from its visuals to its music. It’s now considered to be a cult classic and deserves its spot in the Criterion Collection.
A Bit of History
The story of The Wiz goes all the way back to 1901 when L. Frank Baum wrote and published The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The book would go on to become one of the best selling children’s books and would spawn several sequels. In 1939, MGM gave the book a big budgeted movie adaption with The Wizard of Oz. Starring Judy Garland as Dorothy, The Wizard of Oz would go on to become one of the most beloved movies ever made.
In the years that followed, there were other adaptations of the book that would follow. The Wiz, which premiered in Detroit in 1974, was an urban retelling of the L Frank Baum story with an all Black cast. Mainly written by Charlie Smalls and William F Brown, the show would make its way to Broadway in 1975. The show would go on to win seven Tony Awards, including the award for Best Musical. With all the praise for the musical, it was inevitable that there would be a movie adaption.
In 1977, Motown Pictures obtained the rights to produce a movie adaptation of The Wiz. The movie would go through several changes in personnel before settling on Sidney Lumet (12 Angry Men, Dog Day Afternoon, Network) as its director. With singer Diana Ross cast as Dorothy and a slew of other stars on board, the movie was filmed from October to December 1977 in New York.
The Movie
Diana Ross as Dorothy in The Wiz.
The Wiz takes place in New York. Dorothy, a 24-year-old teacher living with her uncle and aunt, and her dog Toto get caught in a snowstorm after a Thanksgiving dinner. While in the snowstorm, she’s whisked away to the land of Oz. Dorothy now must make her way to the Emerald City to meet the Wizard, who has the power to get her back home. While on her journey, she meets some new friends that join her on this adventure of self discovery.
There’s a lot to appreciate about The Wiz. The set design, colorful costumes and overall look of the movie are pleasing to the eye. When the movie was released, many criticized the over-the-top and campy nature of the set design. This is all true but even then, the movie has a distinct look and feel to it. One of the other criticisms of the movie was that it deviated from the original play. In the play, The Wiz takes place in Kansas and is similar to both the book and 1939 movie. Screenwriter Joel Schumacher barely looked to the stage book for his screenplay and changed several things. To be fair, the fact this version takes place in New York makes the movie more surreal. It’s a hoot to see an Oz taking place in New York City.
The acting in The Wiz varies from actor to actor. Despite being 33 at the time of filming, Diana Ross’ performance as Dorothy isn’t as bad as some people say it is. Sure, it’s not perfect. In fact, Ross’ character spends most of the movie crying during her lines. While some might find this annoying, others can find unintentional comedy in Ross’ performance. As Dorothy, Ross does bring a sense of grace to the character. On top of that, Ross’ singing is spectacular. Speaking of the music, it’s terrific. Songs such as “Ease On Down The Road,” “Don’t Nobody Bring Me No Bad News,” “Everybody Rejoice” and “Home” are all highlight songs and musical numbers.
Michael Jackson as the Scarecrow
The other actors are also good. Comedian Nipsey Russell charms as the Tinman while Tony Award winner Ted Ross almost steals the show as the Cowardly Lion. Though of the actors in this movie, Michael Jackson stands out the most. While the Scarecrow is underutilized in the movie, Jackson throws himself into this role. His lone number “You Can’t Win” showcases the talent that was to come from Jackson in the years that followed. Speaking of which, Jackson’s role in this movie marked the first time he worked with Quincy Jones, who served as the movie’s music producer. After the movie finished filming, Jackson would team up with Jones. From 1979 to 1987, the two would make Jackson’s next three albums: Off The Wall, Thriller and Bad. With that, viewers can be treated to being a pre-superstar version of Jackson.
Despite the good things in The Wiz, it’s far from being perfect. The movie is super long with its runtime of 134 minutes, which is mostly spent on long sequences that could’ve been shortened or cut from the movie completely. There’s also an awful lot of scenes and songs about believing in yourself, which get boring quickly. Another downside of the movie is the friendship amongst the four main characters isn’t as well developed as other adaptations. Whereas The Wizard of Oz showed scenes like Dorothy’s three friends coming to rescue her, there aren’t too many scenes showing the camaraderie of the main characters.
While it is a flawed movie, it can be entertaining to watch its flaws. If The Wiz were being compared to the first part of Wicked from 2024, a majority of the people would argue that Wicked is the superior movie. Even if Wicked is technically a better movie, The Wiz is far more fun to watch: sometimes, it’s more fun to watch the weaker movie.
Bonus Features
The main cast of the Wiz. Clockwise: Ted Ross, Nipsey Russell, Diana Ross and Michael Jackson
Unlike other Criterion releases, The Wiz does not come with a slew of bonus features. Nevertheless, they are as follows:
- audio commentary from scholars Michael B Gillespie and Alfred L Martin
- a 1978 interview with Diana Ross from the premiere with reporter David Sheehan
- 2001 interview footage of director Sidney Lumet filmed for a PBS American Masters program on Quincy Jones
- an essay from film critic Aisha Harris
It’s tricky trying to create new bonus features for this movie considering all the main players (aside from Diana Ross) have passed away. Criterion seem to have tried their best in finding unreleased features and they’re nice to have. If one were wanting more archival features, one could go on YouTube and find the old school “Making of the Wiz” featurette from other home video releases. Plus, you can also find Siskel and Ebert’s review of the movie from their Sneak Previews show.
Conclusion
While not as jam packed and complete as other Criterion releases, this re-release of The Wiz is a nevertheless solid. Despite its flaws, The Wiz serves as a unique late 1970s time capsule. With this coming out during Juneteenth and months before Wicked: For Good, it’s nice to see Criterion give this movie some recognition.
Movie Rating: 7/10
Release Rating: 6.5/10
I'm a writer/journalist with a passion for music and pop culture. Having graduated from King's College in Wilkes-Barre, PA in 2014, I've been looking for a platform in which I can share my passions. Since 2009, I've been posting to my own blog- The Walrus' Music Blog- via Blogger. I'm also the author of two self-published books, "The Camp: Stories from the Summer" and "The College: Stories from King's." Together, the two books cover the story of my life from 2004 to 2014. I've been lucky enough to interview several of my favorite musicians over the years and go to concerts from time to time. I'm also very devoted to the CBS reality TV show Survivor, which I started watching in 2002 when its fourth season started. I currently live in New Jersey.