The iconic, classic “The Wizard of Oz” (1939) is my favorite movie and is beloved by the vast majority of movie fans. The “Sphere” in Las Vegas has made a new version, which Robin and I saw a few weeks ago. The Sphere version is great, and I highly recommend that you take a weekend trip to Las Vegas to see it, even if you hate the place. The original film has been shortened from 102 minutes to 75, but the basic plot and good songs remain. The Sphere has a 160,000-square-foot 16K wraparound screen, which needs to be experienced to be believed, and the musical score has been re-recorded to work with the amazing 167,00-speaker sound system. The film is expanded in detail thanks to generative AI.
The film “speaks” to most of us for many reasons, but, in my opinion, what makes it so special is how well it resonates with the human psyche. As most of you know, I am a psychiatrist, but I rarely go into depth concerning the psychodynamics of the film I am reviewing. This blog post will be an exception. It also won’t be short.
Beyond briefly, as Sigmund Freud discovered in his topographic theory of the mind, the human being has an unconscious, preconscious, and conscious mind. Deep down in our unconscious mind are powerful feelings (primarily love, rage, grief, and guilt) based on events and fantasies with our nuclear family members. None of us can fully resolve all these feelings. Those unconscious unresolved feelings try to become conscious, activating anxiety and creating neurotic symptoms, called “compromise formations.” Depth psychotherapies such as psychodynamic therapy can help resolve some unconscious conflicts, thus improving many areas of a person’s life such as capacity for intimacy and closeness, and reducing or eliminating symptoms such as anxiety and depression. Freud, in his structural theory, also identified the id, the ego, and the super-ego. The super-ego essentially involves our conscience and sense of guilt. When it is too harsh and strict, it causes severe problems for us.
So what does my many years of psychoanalytic training have to do with the “Wizard of Oz,” you may ask? My hypothesis is that the film is about an inner journey into the unconscious to resolve neurotic conflicts. Dorothy is in a crises when her dog “Toto” is going to be taken from her. This sets off an inner crises, symbolized by the tornado. When the house lands on the “Wicked Witch of the East,” this symbolizes the healthy ego’s wish to face their unconscious demons and to achieve psychic freedom. The “Scarecrow” represents insight, the “Tin-Man” represents the unconscious feelings, while the “Cowardly Lion” represents the courage needed to face these powerful and terrifying negative feelings. The “Wicked Witch of the West” represents the pathological super-ego that demands that the person be miserable, in order to expiate their unconscious guilt regarding their unconscious rage towards nuclear family members. The “Wizard of Oz,” being essentially useless, represents the fact that the journey needs to be made primarily by oneself. Another person can’t do it for you, although the “Yellow Brick Road” (therapist) can guide you along the way. The main curative factor in psychotherapy is the bringing into consciousness of the unconscious rage, grief, and guilt, so that these conflicts can be resolved and eliminate the pathological super-ego’s power over the psyche, creating inner freedom. Dorothy pouring a bucket of water (tears of grief and guilt) on the “Wicked Witch of the West” represents this psychotherapeutic process. After accomplishing this mission, Dorothy has completed her inner journey and arrives back home, but now with inner freedom.
I hope you have found the above interesting. If you have a different theory, that’s “A Horse of a Different Color.”
