Comparing and Contrasting Film: the Wizard of Oz Versus M*a*S*H

Comparing and Contrasting Film:

The Wizard of Oz versus M*A*S*H

ENG 121

Comparing and Contrasting Set Design

While the movies The Wizard of Oz and M*A*S*H appear at first glance to be very different movies, I learned during my Introduction to Film class that there is always more than meets the eye when it comes to analyzing films. In this paper I’d like to compare and contrast the films The Wizard of Oz and M*A*S*H. I’d like to show that while these films do indeed appear to be two very different movies, each is about being in a place far from home and wanting to go back and both use color, set design and character development to depict mood, theme and overall plot.

At the beginning of The Wizard of Oz we see a farm in Kansas and a young girl who feels out of place, lonely and in need of something more. The setting is stark and drab, it’s filmed in black and white and the farm and surrounding areas are comprised of dirt and few trees, the buildings are slightly run down and appear as if they might fall apart at any moment, lastly the people appear colorless and tired. M*A*S*H opens in Korea and shows a young man who feels out of place, lonely and looking as if he wishes he were someplace else. The setting is again drab and dreary; lots of dirt, few trees with lots of dull greens and brown and the buildings are temporary and not well constructed. And although the film is shot in color the people once again appear colorless and tired.

As The Wizard of Oz progresses we move to Oz, a fantasy land that is bright and colorful, the buildings are imaginative and cheery, the colors are bright and because of this you know that Oz is the happier place, the idyllic place, the place the young girl may find happiness. As M*A*S*H progresses we begin to meet the other characters in the film. These characters wear bright colors, Hawaiian shirts, bright hats and colorful bathrobes. The women have red hair, blond hair; they wear makeup and standout...