The Wizard of Oz (1925)
A Kansas farmhand learns he is the rightful prince of Oz and disguises himself as a Scarecrow to escape political enemies, while a cyclone carries him and his friends toward the throne he must reclaim.
The Wizard of Oz was a vehicle for comedian Larry Semon, who directed, co-wrote, and starred, loosely adapting L. Frank Baum’s novel into a string of slapstick set pieces; its commercial failure reportedly helped push Semon toward bankruptcy just a few years before MGM’s famous 1939 version made the story a household name.
Background
This silent Wizard of Oz was built as a vehicle for the comedian Larry Semon, who directed, co-wrote, and starred in it, loosely adapting L. Frank Baum’s novel into a series of slapstick routines rather than a faithful retelling. It bears little resemblance to the 1939 MGM musical that most audiences now associate with the story. Semon’s career was already in decline by the time the film was released, and its poor commercial performance reportedly contributed to financial troubles that followed him for the rest of the decade.
What to watch for
Watch it as a piece of silent-comedy history rather than as an Oz adaptation: the plot exists mainly to string together stunts and gags, in keeping with the freewheeling comic style common to the period. Baum’s son, Larry Semon’s business partner in the production, was involved in bringing the story to the screen, but the tone here is broad physical comedy rather than the fantasy most viewers expect from the title. It is an interesting example of how flexible early film adaptations of popular novels could be.
