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The Wizard of Oz (1933)
The Wizard of Oz (1933) poster

The Wizard of Oz (1933)

Animation, Comedy, Fantasy • 9m

Director: Ted Eshbaugh

Thunderbean Technicolor Dreams and Black and White Nightmares Blu-ray

Best English-friendly, video & audio release · updated 1 year ago

Overview

A storybook opens to depict little Dorothy on the grey Kansas prairies, when suddenly a cyclone comes up, turns her world to color, and she lands on a Scarecrow, who promptly gets up and walks with her. Her dog Toto finds a woodcutter made of tin, so the Scarecrow oils him up and he accompanies them. They watch some animals reproduce before being ushered into the Emerald City by singing suits of armor and a lavish parade of overweight cops before meeting the Wizard, a devious little man who transforms eggs into uncontrollable forms, much to Billina's dismay.

Release details

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Length
9 mins
Type
Movie

Part of The Land of Oz films

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Directors: Francis Boggs & Otis Turner

Video format: Lost Film

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Director: Otis Turner

Best English-Friendly & Video:

2000/2010 Image Entertainment DVD or 2013 Warner Bros The Wizard of Oz (1939) 3D 75th Anniversary Limited Edition Blu-ray Disc 3 (in SD)

Directors: L. Frank Baum & J. Farrell MacDonald

Video format: DVD

Best English-Friendly & Video:

SD: 2013 Warner Bros The Wizard of Oz (1939) 3D 75th Anniversary Limited Edition Blu-ray Disc 3

Additional Info:

4K restoration has been screened at conventions

Director: J. Farrell MacDonald

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Quality: 2005 AlphaVideo DVD
Longer Footage: 2013 WB The Wizard of Oz (1939) 3D 75th Anniversary Limited Edition Blu-ray Disc 3

Director: J. Farrell MacDonald

Best English-Friendly & Video:

2000 Smithsonian Video Origins of Film DVD

Director: Larry Semon

Video format: HD Streaming

Best English-Friendly:

2013 WB 3D 75th Anniversary Limited Edition Blu-ray Disc 3 of The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Best Video:

HD: Only available through Streaming SD: Available on various WB DVD and Blu-ray set releases of The Wizard of Oz (1939) since 2005

Best Audio:

-

Director: Victor Fleming

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly & Video:

2D: Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray

3D: Warner Bros 3D Blu-ray or Apple Vision Pro

Best Audio:

1989 MGM LaserDisc

Audio Notes:

(caveat: "there's" in first "there's no place like home" utterance in final Kansas scene truncated)

Director: Tunç Başaran

Video format: Only Unofficial Sources

Best Video:

Unofficial DVD

Director: Sidney Lumet

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly, Video & Audio:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Audio Notes:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray replacement disc for fixed audio (there were some dialogues missing)

Additional Info:

While the video on the replacement disc is exactly the same as the original release, the Atmos with missing lines has been corrected as it was also corrected on the Criterion commentary. Criterion also included the 6-track which is almost identical to the PAL track; It’s 4.0 in a 5.1 container. This 6-track is slightly better than the PAL DVD track as the PAL has some flutter on some parts that Criterion doesn’t have.

The Atmos on the replacement is identical to the Imprint AUS Blu-ray track which also has all the lines. The compatibility track is also the same,

It is worth mentioning the Imprint only has the Atmos and no 6-track. The 5.1 surround is with LFE and split surrounds and it’s just a downmix of the Atmos. Ditto for the LPCM 2.0 on said Blu-ray.

Director: Walter Murch

Best English-Friendly & Video:

2015 Disney Movie Club Blu-ray

Best Audio:

2002 Buena Vista UK DVD

Additional Info:

2004 Buena Vista US DVD has exclusive extras

More Animation on Blu-ray

TV series

Best English-Friendly & Video:

UK Anime Ltd. Blu-ray

Video Notes:

UK has reportedly better compression than the US Viz Media

TV series

Best English-Friendly & Video:

UK Anime Ltd. Blu-ray

Video Notes:

UK has reportedly better compression than the US Viz Media

Director: Simon Wells

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Dolby Stereo: THX Certified Laserdisc

Director: Hayao Miyazaki

Video format: UHD Blu-ray

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly:

2026 Japan Studio Ghibli (remastered) Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

France 4K Blu-ray announced

Video Notes:

Remastered Blu-ray only included as a pack-in with the 4K Blu-ray. Includes English subtitles and a dub, which the 4K Blu-ray does not.

Best Audio:

Japan Studio Ghibli 4K Blu-ray

UK StudioCanal Blu-ray for the English dub

Audio Notes:

4K Blu-ray includes the original 5.1 mix in its unaltered form, all other releases after the LaserDisc, as well as the remastered Blu-ray, had its dynamic range lowered.

For the English dub, the UK StudioCanal Blu-ray is the least limited mix.

Additional Info:

US Disney Blu-ray has dubtitles. US GKIDS Blu-ray and Japan Studio Ghibli Blu-ray releases (both 2013, box set, and RM4K) have proper English subtitle translations.

Director: Hayao Miyazaki

Best English-Friendly & Video:

2014 Japan "Hayao Miyazaki Collection" Studio Ghibli Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Japan Studio Ghibli 4K Blu-ray announced for a November 25, 2026 release

Best Audio:

Japanese audio: 2014 Japan "Hayao Miyazaki Collection" Studio Ghibli Blu-ray/US GKIDS Blu-ray

English dub (Disney): 1998 US Disney VHS has better sounding vocals despite altered music and sound effects, the US Disney LaserDisc has limited audio, and 2003 DVD is a fake 5.1 upmix

Releases from 2010 onward have the original music and sound effects, but distorted vocals

English dub (Streamline): 1996 Japan remastered LaserDisc, available in Ghibli Ga Ippai Collection boxset

Additional Info:

2012 US Disney Blu-ray has dubtitles. US GKIDS Blu-ray has bonuses that are absent on the US Disney Blu-ray

Director: Wolfgang Reitherman

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Original: 35mm scans or Disney LaserDisc (1.33:1 open matte)

Restored: Disney Limited Issue DVD (1.33:1 open matte)

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Later Disney DVDs and Blu-ray are altered

Best Audio:

35mm scans or Disney LaserDisc

Director: Martin Rosen

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

BFI 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Best Audio:

2002 R2 WB DVD

TV series

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Warner Archive Blu-ray

Video Notes:

4K restoration from Original Camera Negative for all episodes

Director: Ralph Bakshi

Best English-Friendly & Video:

OOP Germany Ascot Blu-ray

Video Notes:

Tentative alternative is US Xenon DVD

Director: Hayao Miyazaki

4K · Disappointing
Best English-Friendly & Video:

2025 Discotek US Blu-ray SteelBook

Video Notes:

4K Blu-ray is denoised

The 2025 SteelBook uses the same transfer as the 2014 Japan Studio Ghibli Blu-ray and 2015 Discotek US Blu-ray but with better white balance.

Best Audio:

Japan: 1995 Japan LaserDisc 

English: 2012 UK Blu-ray

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Researched and maintained by

vanshadyJojoTheMovieOtter

· last reviewed 1 year ago

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