The Magic In Fantasy Lives On

Written by Matheus Clorado.

The fantasy genre has established itself in the miscellany of genres that have endured for decades of Film History. Grown-ups and children from all over the world will likely be able to name at least one feature film that has touched their imagination and changed them forever. Considering the genre has such a large lifespan, it’s remarkable how more recent movies still share ideologies with their predecessors of the previous century. For instance, despite the sixty-two years between the release dates of Fleming’s The Wizard of Oz and Columbus’ Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, it’s clear they both transcend the genre’s iconography to inspire life out of the status quo, at the same time they reflect their time’s hopes and fears.

Friedman argues in his book An Introduction to Film Genres that “more evolved fantasy films stretch the ordinary understanding of reality for a higher, more serious purpose: to encourage an expanded sense of the possibilities that are necessary if we are to avoid a clichéd and limited, ultimately hopeless attitude toward our lives”. (161) He also presents a brief history of the genre and informs the reader that its roots lead to George Méliès’s experimentations with special effects and the 1902 classic Voyage to the Moon. He adds, “The advent of synchronized-sound film in 1927 opened up new opportunities for fantasy films” (163). It should not come as a surprise that the advent of color would do even more for the genre. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by Walt Disney Studios was released in 1937 and it was able to provide escapism for a population heavily reliant on entertainment as escapism from the harsh realities that have shaped the 1930s in the United States due to The Great Depression. The success was immediate and many other similar features followed suit.

The second screen adaptation from the 1930s of the children’s book by L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, mimicked the first one and it chose to depict the Kansas portion in black and white as opposed to the land of Oz in color. That can be interpreted as a metaphor in the sense that it allowed the audience to experience Dorothy’s point of view in a sensorial manner. Her dream-like escapist vision during the twister is more colorful than her difficult normal life, per the lyrics from “Over the Rainbow” sung quite early in the feature, still in its black and white portion. Dorothy’s hardships were no different from the common American of that time. The Depression brought unemployment to unprecedentedly high numbers and with its climate an urge for something better.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone came to the theaters long after the Depression ended, but not so far from the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Cold War’s reported end date, and other global conflicts. The 2001 Chris Columbus masterpiece of the genre “pushes back the boundaries of ordinary life through fantasy to give us a chance to see the repressiveness of modern Western culture through the eyes of a magical boy” (Friedman 162). Similar to Fleming’s The Wizard of Oz, the young protagonist is restrained in his starting point, repressed by the unfairness of the world. The novel which the movie is based upon was released in the late 1990s, and perhaps the approach of a new millennium inspired the author J.K. Rowling to write a new world waiting for discovery.

It is important to add that in both films, the existence of a better world seemed to be available at all times, and within the individual. Despite the impressiveness and magic aspects of Oz and Hogwarts, it is Harry’s awakening to his powers and education that frees him from the suffering caused by the Dursleys’ oppressiveness. Dorothy longs to return home throughout her entire journey along the Yellow Brick Road, somewhat valuing what she once took for granted.

Friendships are a shared theme in these fantasy films as well. The myth of teamwork towards a better, fulfilling society is practicalized by the characters of Ron, Hagrid, and Hermione in Philosopher’s Stone and in the Tinman, the Lion, and the Scarecrow in Oz. The values of courage, reason, and sacrifice are also embodied by these characters, who all play an important part in the hero’s journey of the protagonist.

The iconography elements are most explicit when comparing these fantasy films. The broomstick and the witch’s hat are present in both, slightly updated for fashion and sports in the 2001 example. The cloaks, magical wands, and cauldrons remain necessary elements to depict the wizarding world.

A key scene to look at from The Wizard of Oz is the death of the Wicked Witch of the East, which is Dorothy’s arrival at Munchkinland and first encounter with her godmother-like friend, the Good Witch of the North. Dorothy’s home loss turns out to be the reason for the evil witch’s death and her fame amongst munchkins. Strangely, it’s Dorothy’s loss that becomes the prompt for her life-changing journey, hinting at a transmutation of obstacles into fortune, an underlying message relevant to the times, and part of the mythology of the fantasy genre. “It’s always best to start at the beginning”, says the Good Witch, who does not do much more than provide the information necessary to send the protagonist on her way to Oz, who supposedly holds all solutions.

Harry’s inciting incident comes after his guardians decide to hide on an island during a storm on his eleventh birthday, a plan to avoid receiving any more letters from Hogwarts, and therefore exterminate all magic in their lives. Hagrid arrives at the last minute, and in a soft voice announces: “You’re a wizard, Harry”, sending the birthday boy to a confused state. If he had already known his life was bad because of his parents’ death, then he knew it had been worse for it has been fueled by lies from his blood. Things seem to get better after knowing this new friend, who not only rescues him but fights his bully cousin for him, giving him a pig’s tail.

Once Dorothy and her friends finally encounter The Great Wizard of Oz, they only learn he is a farce and unable to give them what they believed they lacked. However, his speech is greatly important as he awakens them to their inherent potential, calling out to a lack of self-appreciation or even just plain victimization behavior on their part. He recognizes his laziness over change, which explains his continuous make-believe. As the Nicholas Flamel character at the end of Harry Potter, The Wizard of Oz gives up glory to embrace the truth. His words can convince the Scarecrow, the Lion, and the Tinman of their capabilities, however, raising them to a higher position in the land of Oz. This is all quite relevant to the 1939 collective state of mind of eagerness to rise socially and economically but also a call to harsh inner transformation. It is up to the Good Witch to magically send Dorothy back to black and white Kansas, where she wakes up from this colorful dream, changed enough to appreciate her family better.

Another key scene to closely observe is Harry’s time with the Mirror of Erised, which shows the most desperate desires in someone’s heart, in Dumbledore’s words (on a side note, Dumbledore fills a spot for the enlightened master, a character practically present in all fantasy films, and part of the genre’s conventions). Harry sees his parents in the mirror, wishing to be by their side, something he never experienced and will not be able to, even in the magical world he found himself in. The dialogue between Dumbledore and him is very rich and insightful. “Many people drove themselves insane in front of this mirror”, says Albus, as he hopes to convince Harry to let the mirror go and stop spending time with it.

This so-called Mirror of Erised serves as a device for contemplation inside the feature. Harry is nostalgic about what he never had and is responsible for creating a life of happiness. He needs to fight oppressiveness at his old home (in the Dursleys) and in his new home (in Voldemort), achieving nothing but a quick fix to his emotional needs. The hard work needs to be done from within. This message resonates with The Great Wizard of Oz’s remarks on the requests for courage, a brain, and a heart.

I cannot leave out of this essay the manipulation of technology in both features. Firstly, it’s clear that the industry evolved quite a lot in sixty-two years, enabling computer-generated imagery (CGI) to bring to life the experimentations seen in 1902 with Voyage to the Moon. But that is not all there’s to it regarding Oz and Potter. Secondly, the CGI state in 2001 was extremely advanced following The Matrix bullet-time, yet it would still go further in that same decade while the advent of color in film was pretty much in the same moment in 1939. Now, what is special about technology in these films is that they both use them and the fantasy genre vehicle to convey their tale. In other words, Dorothy’s hopeful vision is more colorful than her real life, and Harry’s magical world presents the audience with creatures never seen before through a stunning new technique. The genre and the story allowed these filmmakers to use technology to present that more impactfully and even metaphorically.

All in all, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and The Wizard of Oz both display iconographic elements such as witchcraft materials and myths of utopic alternative realities, while faithfully following conventions of the fantasy genre. They inspire, but do more than that as well – they reflect the current state of society, whether looking forward to a new world of possibilities or looking back at more successful times. They warn against power-seeking figures and promote unity between the people to create the places where they long to be.

Works Cited
Friedman, Lester D. et al. An Introduction to Film Genres. W.W. Norton & Company, 2014.