White Wall Cinema: RETURN TO OZ

This wonderfully creepy kids classic still lives rent free in the minds of all who saw it in their youth. Forget Arianna Grande, this is the ONLY truly WICKED adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s Oz novels.

When the mother (Piper Laurie of Twin Peaks fame) of the young Dorothy Gale (played by the one and only Fairuza Balk from The Craft) fears her daughter is too disturbed by her memories/visions of the imaginary world of Oz, she takes her for psychological experimentation. Dorothy manages to escape to Oz, only find a vain witch and evil king have turned the yellow brick road to rubble, and left the Emerald City a pile of ruins. Determined to save the day she, with the help of some new friends like Billina, Tik-Tok, Jack Pumkinhead and The Gump, heads off to rescue her old friends the scarecrow, the tin man and the lion.

Given the awesome reputation of the original Wizard Of Oz film, spin-off adaptations were inevitable, but from The Wiz to Wicked no other Oz movie will ever quite achieve the cult status of this bizarre, brilliant and often dazzling creation that all adds up to the most wonderfully unexpected sequel to the 1939 MGM classic. Ingenious production design and irresistible nightmarish special effects combine to create a fantastic voyage that is burned into the psyche of every 80s kid and still stands today as a joyously creative and stylish take on the world over the rainbow. 

• DOORS: 7.20pm*
• START TIME: 7.50pm*
• RUN TIME: 113 mins
• CERT: PG (Under 16’s must be accompanied by an adult).