5. The Wizard Of Oz Is About Breaking Free Of The Mundane
It's all right there in the final line: "There's no place like home." Despite the fact that the intended message behind what is perhaps the most famous motion picture of all-time is given to audiences on a platter, a common response to The Wizard of Oz is: "Wow, I'd sure like to go to Oz," or "It's better to break free from the mundane!" The actual point, though, is quite the opposite: it's better not to fantasise and dream, and to appreciate what you have around you already. It's something of a numbing message, given that the movie creates such a lucid, vibrant world in Oz, and juxtaposes that with the dreary sepia melancholy of Kansas. But Dorothy starts out wishing of being anywhere but on her aunt and uncle's farm ("Somewhere Over the Rainbow"), ends up in Oz, and when she finally manages to get back home, realises that she never wanted to leave. Oz is kind of like... well, a punishment for all her idle day-dreaming.