''Lion of Oz'' is a 2000

animated Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most ani ...

film set before the 1900 children's novel ''

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' is a children's novel written by author L. Frank Baum and illustrated by W. W. Denslow. It is the first novel in the Oz series of books. A Kansas farm girl named Dorothy ends up in the magical Land of Oz afte ...

''. It tells the story of how the

Cowardly Lion The Cowardly Lion is a character in the fictional Land of Oz created by American author L. Frank Baum. He is depicted as an African lion, but like all animals in Oz, he can speak. Since lions are supposed to be "The Kings of Beasts," the Cowardl ...

, formerly part of the Omaha Circus, came to be in Oz and how he stopped the

Wicked Witch of the East The Wicked Witch of the East is a fictional character created by American author L. Frank Baum. She is a crucial character but appears only briefly in Baum's classic children's series of ''Oz'' novels, most notably ''The Wonderful Wizard of ...

from getting the Flower of Oz. It is based upon the 1995 book '' Lion of Oz and the Badge of Courage'' by Roger S. Baum (great-grandson of

L. Frank Baum Lyman Frank Baum (; May 15, 1856 – May 6, 1919) was an American author best known for his children's books, particularly ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' and its sequels. He wrote 14 novels in the ''Oz'' series, plus 41 other novels (not includ ...

, the original author of the Oz books).

Plot

A lonely lion is shown in a

circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclis ...

, where everyone is afraid of him apart from his friend, the eccentric and virtuous balloonist Oscar Diggs. One evening, Oscar Diggs takes Lion up on his balloon and gives him a Badge of Courage. A

thunderstorm A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder. Relatively weak thunderstorms are some ...

drags them to the Land of Oz and Lion falls from the balloon. Lion comes across a living

Oak Tree An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

being harassed by flying monkeys. Lion frightens them off and the Tree thanks him. The Wicked Witch of the East appears, claiming that Oscar Diggs is her prisoner. She demands Lion find the Flower of Oz for her or he'll never see Diggs again. Tree explains to Lion that The Witch is bent on conquering Oz, but is prevented by the Flower. Lion saves the fairy Starburst from drowning. Starburst and her friends tell Lion to go to a certain castle to find the Flower. Lion meets a springy

teddy bear A teddy bear is a stuffed toy in the form of a bear. Developed apparently simultaneously by toymakers Morris Michtom in the U.S. and Richard Steiff under his aunt Margarete Steiff's company in Germany in the early 20th century, the teddy b ...

named Silly Oz-bul, who follows Lion to the castle, where they are confronted by a

toy soldier A toy soldier is a miniature figurine that represents a soldier. The term applies to depictions of uniformed military personnel from all eras, and includes knights, cowboys, American Indians, pirates, samurai, and other subjects that involve ...

named Captain Fitzgerald. They are joined by a young girl named Wimzik and her toy

ballerina A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on ye ...

Caroline. Finding out from Gloom about Lion's interference, the Witch teleports Fitzgerald to a

dungeon A dungeon is a room or cell in which prisoners are held, especially underground. Dungeons are generally associated with medieval castles, though their association with torture probably belongs more to the Renaissance period. An oubliette (from ...

. But while there, the captain learns from a flying monkey guard the Witch was lying about Diggs being her prisoner. The friends come to a waterfall with a silver

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

to a floating

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

. Silly attempts to cross the bridge, which turns out to be an illusion. Lion saves him, from falling over the cliff and they come to the town of the Mini-Munchkins, who built the original Silver Bridge before it was destroyed by the Wicked Witch of the East. The bridge the group saw was just an illusion caused by the Mini-Munchkins' sadness and doubt. Wimzik inspires them to believe in themselves and not to give up, somehow breaking the Witch's spell over them and restoring the bridge. Caroline's battery runs out just as the Witch returns and casts Caroline's unconscious body into a whirlpool. Lion and Wimzik save her. Wimzik's touch gives Lion extra strength and recharges Caroline. Next, the group meets the Seamstress, an elderly enchantress who turns Silly and Caroline into quilt patches. Realizing the Seamstress is under the Witch's spell, Wimzik calmly talks her into remembering who she really is. The Seamstress gives them a petal she says came from the Flower of Oz. Lion gets a whiff and tracks it to a large garden encased in ice. When Wimzik touches the flower, the garden is instantly thawed and Lion realizes Wimzik is really the Flower of Oz. The Witch and Gloom show up. Fitzgerald, having stowayed, reveals the Witch's deceit. A fight ensures. Lion takes the Witch's blast for Wimzik, nearly dying. But Wimzik sits on her throne, regaining her powers. Enraged, the Witch spitefully steals Lion's Badge of Courage and throws it to Gloom who destroys it. Wimzik defeats the Witch and destroys Gloom. Beaten, the Witch swears vengeance before vanishing. Lion is sad to have lost his badge, but Wimzik explains his courage doesn't come from a badge, but from his brave and noble heart. Lion bids his friends goodbye as he must go find Oscar, but promises to come back someday. The movie ends with Lion meeting

Dorothy Gale Dorothy Gale is a fictional character created by American author L. Frank Baum as the protagonist in many of his ''Oz'' novels. She first appears in Baum's classic 1900 children's novel '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' and reappears in most of it ...

, the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and Toto, thus stepping out of his own story and into "

Cast

* Henry Beckman as Narrator *

Dom DeLuise Dominick DeLuise (August 1, 1933 – May 4, 2009) was an American actor, comedian, director, producer, chef, and author. Known primarily for his comedic performances, he rose to fame in the 1970s as a frequent guest on television variety sho ...

Oscar Diggs Oscar Zoroaster Phadrig Isaac Norman Henkle Emmannuel Ambroise Diggs (also known as the "Wizard of Oz" and, during his reign, as "Oz, the Great and Terrible" or the "Great and Powerful Oz") is a fictional character in the Land of Oz created by Am ...

*Gerard Plunkett as The Oak Tree *

Jason Priestley Jason Bradford Priestley (born August 28, 1969) is a Canadian actor and television director. He is best known as the virtuous Brandon Walsh on the television series ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (1990–1998, 2000), as Richard "Fitz" Fitzpatrick in t ...

as Lion *

Lynn Redgrave Lynn Rachel Redgrave (8 March 1943 – 2 May 2010) was an English actress. She won two Golden Globe Awards throughout her career. A member of the Redgrave family of actors, Lynn trained in London before making her theatrical debut in 1962. B ...

as The

Miklos Perlus Miklos Perlus (born March 23, 1977) is a Canadian actor, writer, and story editor. Perlus has appeared on Canadian series '' Student Bodies'', ''Road to Avonlea'' and ''Sidekick''. He has written for '' Degrassi: The Next Generation'' and other se ...

as Sunbeam *

Eleanor Noble Eleanor Noble (born June 15, 1980) is a Canadian actress. She is President of the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA). Career She voiced Lori Mackney in later episodes of ''What's with Andy?'' following Jaclyn Lin ...

as Moonbeam *Elizabeth Robertson as Starburst *

Scott McNeil Scott McNeil is an Australian-born Canadian actor. He currently resides in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. One of the best-known Canadian voice actors of all time, McNeil has provided voices to many characters in animated shows, most notabl ...

as Gloom *

Bobcat Goldthwait Robert Francis "Bobcat" Goldthwait (born May 26, 1962) is an American actor, comedian, director and screenwriter, known for his black comedy stand-up act, delivered through an energetic stage persona with an unusual raspy and high-pitched voice. ...

as Silly Oz-Bul *

Jane Horrocks Barbara Jane Horrocks (born 18 January 1964) is a British actress. She portrayed the roles of Bubble and Katy Grin in the BBC sitcom ''Absolutely Fabulous''. She was nominated for the 1993 Olivier Award for Best Actress for the title role in th ...

as Wimzik *

Tim Curry Timothy James Curry (born 19 April 1946) is an English actor and singer. He rose to prominence for his portrayal of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the film ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' (1975), reprising the role he had originated in the 1973 London ...

as Captain Fitzgerald *

Kathy Griffin Kathleen Mary Griffin (born November 4, 1960) is an American comedian and actress who has starred in television comedy specials and has released comedy albums. In 2007 and 2008, Griffin won Primetime Emmy Awards for her reality show '' Kathy ...

as Caroline *

Peter Kelamis Peter Kelamis (born December 11, 1967) is an Australian-Canadian actor, stand-up comedian and impressionist. He is known for playing Tail Terrier in ''Krypto the Superdog'', Dr. Adam Brody in ''Stargate Universe'', Goku in Ocean's English dubs ...

as Tog * Don Brown as Pin Cushion *

Maxine Miller Maxine Miller (born June 18, 1928) is a Canadian actress who appeared in the first three seasons of ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood''. In the 1980s, she voiced True Heart Bear in '' The Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation'' (1986) and appeared ...

as Seamstress

Home media

The film was released onto Region 1 DVD in 2000 by Sony Wonder with special features on the disc including Sing Alongs, Music Videos (which were straight from the movie), Games, Interviews with Behind the Scenes and a Gallery. The film was later released onto Region 2 DVD in 2002 but had no special features and only a scene selection on the DVD menu.http://img.amazon.ca/images/I/517Z4ZQE8RL._SS500_.jpg

Other animated Oz films/series

* ''The Wizard of Oz'' (1933) *''

Tales of the Wizard of Oz ''Tales of the Wizard of Oz'' is a 1961 animated television series produced by Crawley Films for Videocraft (later known as Rankin/Bass Productions). This is the second animated series produced by the studio and the first by Rankin/Bass to feature ...

'' (1961) *''

Return to Oz ''Return to Oz'' is a 1985 dark fantasy film released by Walt Disney Pictures, co-written and directed by Walter Murch. It stars Nicol Williamson, Jean Marsh, Piper Laurie, and Fairuza Balk as Dorothy Gale in her first screen role. The film is ...

'' (1964) *'' Journey Back to Oz'' (1972) * ''The Wizard of Oz'' (1982) *''

'' (1986) *''

Dorothy Meets Ozma of Oz ''Dorothy Meets Ozma of Oz'' is a 1987 direct-to-video animated short film introduced by Michael Gross of '' Family Ties''. It is based on the 1907 novel ''Ozma of Oz'' by L. Frank Baum. Plot On an ocean voyage bound for Australia with her ...

'' (1987) *'' The Wizard of Oz'' (1990) *''

The Wonderful Galaxy of Oz ''Space Oz no Bōken'' ( Japanese: スペースオズの冒険, Hepburn: ''Supēsu Ozu no Bōken'', ''Adventures of Space Oz'') is an anime TV series based on the 1900 novel ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' by L. Frank Baum. Produced by Enoki ...

'' (1992) *'' The Oz Kids'' (1996) *''

Tom and Jerry and the Wizard of Oz This is a list of feature length films of the ''Tom and Jerry'' franchise. Theatrical films Direct-to-video films All direct-to-video films are produced by Turner Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation. ''Tom and Jerry: The Magic Ring'' ...

'' (2011) *'' Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return'' (2013) *'' Guardians of Oz'' (2015) *'' Tom and Jerry: Back to Oz'' (2016)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lion Of Oz Animated films based on children's books 2000 films Canadian animated feature films Animated films based on The Wizard of Oz Animated films about lions British animated films 2000 animated films English-language Canadian films 2000s American animated films 2000s English-language films 2000s Canadian films 2000s British films