The Wizard of Oz remake idea; please give feedback!
**TL,DR:** The Wizard of Oz will probably be remade into a new film eventually, and if it's going to be done, I think a new prologue featuring Dorothy being adopted by Aunt Em and Uncle Henry would be a worthy addition.
Whether we like it or not, there will probably be another Wizard of Oz movie eventually, and it will likely be mostly a remake of the 1939 film (the most famous version of the story). Given this, I've been thinking for a while about how it would best be done, and how to avoid the pitfalls of all the soulless, cash-grabbing remakes out there. I think it's correct that the 1939 film should provide the music and emotional undertones/themes. Baum's source material should be used to tighten the plot and give Oz more depth (separating the Good Witch of the North and Glinda, providing the backstory to characters like the Tin Man, explaining the Winged Monkeys, etc.). And there should be lots of little nods to Oz's enduring legacy over the years: The Wiz, Wicked, Return to Oz, etc. So it should largely be a remake of the 1939 film, but reworked to stick closer to Baum's source material as well as pay homage to what Oz has meant to so many people over the last 125+ years.
The main idea I have for a new Wizard of Oz movie that I want to share is a brand new opening scene, set just a few years before the main events: it would begin by showing how Aunt Em and Uncle Henry came to adopt Dorothy. We already know that she's an orphan raised by her aunt and uncle, but no Oz adaptation (that I know of) has ever explored this in depth, nor how it might thematically tie in to the larger story.
The film would open with Henry and Emily Gale working on their gray Kansas farm, in the 1890s. They look tired and old. They see a wagon coming up the road, which draws their attention because visitors and passersby are rare in their parts. An official-looking man asks if this is the Gale residence and asks to come inside for a word; he's traveling with another adult or two but tells them to stay in the wagon (we don't see that a young Dorothy is in there too).
We cut to Em and Henry sitting at their table with the official man, who tells them that Em's younger sister has died. They hadn't spoken in a while (nothing dramatic, just age difference and being far apart geographically), and Em is upset at the news, but thanks the official for coming to tell them. The official man then explains his real purpose for being there: Em's sister had a young daughter (unbeknownst to Em or Henry), and Em and Henry are her only known relatives.
Em and Henry are surprised by this news, and anxious words are exchanged about how times are hard and how they never expected to be raising a child at this stage in life (they're probably in their 50s or 60s). The official man then calls for the other adult (perhaps some church lady or school teacher) to bring Dorothy in. A toddler-aged Dorothy (barely walking and can't be older than 2) is brought in and the audience immediately falls in love with her adorable self, especially after the relative bleakness of everything else so far (dreary landscapes, a lonely old couple, a dead sister).
Little Dorothy approaches Henry with curiosity, who bends down in wonder, and Dorothy looks at him, takes a curious yank of his funny big beard, he yelps in pain, and this causes Dorothy to laugh in delight. The sound of her laughter is alien to Em, who gasps and puts her hand to her chest in surprise (a direct nod to the opening bit in Baum's book about how Dorothy's laughter is such a wonder to Em). This causes Dorothy to notice Em, and their eyes meet. Dorothy waddles up to Em and reaches up to her to be picked up. Em is still in a weird state of shock and wonder, but picks Dorothy up in her lap and they look at each other. This is the emotional hook of the movie. Em and Dorothy look into each other's eyes, a light instrumental of "Over the Rainbow" plays, Dorothy smiles at her, and Em (for the first time in the movie, maybe the first time in years) can't help but smile back at her. We see that they have already fallen in love. Henry sees Em and Dorothy looking at each other, and we understand that everyone knows what's going to happen now. The official man finally breaks the silence to ask what he came all this way for: "So Mrs Gale...how would you feel about--" and then Em, still smiling and without breaking eye contact with Dorothy, simply says, "I will. Why, of course I will." We linger with this new family for just a moment more before cutting to ~10 years later, where the main story begins.
I think this prologue does a lot of good things. It provides greater context for what makes Dorothy's home so special: Em and Henry chose her, even though they didn't have to and even though it would be hard. Dorothy later passes on this same kindness to her friends in Oz: when the Scarecrow asks if she'll take him with her, her reply of "Why, of course I will" is the same thing Em said when she agreed to be Dorothy's caregiver. The whole idea of home not being a physical location, but an emotional/spiritual place where people have chosen to love and accept each other, is made stronger. And it provides a beautiful bookend: at the beginning of the story, Em and Henry are alone until Dorothy comes into their lives to brighten them. At the very end of the story, we'd see Em and Henry alone again, but even sadder than they were at the start (since Dorothy's been gone for weeks and they think her dead), until they hear Toto's barking outside their newly built farmhouse, go to see what it is, and see Toto and Dorothy running outside to greet them. They break down in tears and embrace, everyone finally "home" once more.
I've been mulling over this idea for a while and I really want to know what other Oz fans think, so please let me know what you like/don't like about this! I have many other ideas for a potential Oz remake, so I'd love to explore them with fellow fans if this sparks any interesting discussions/thoughts!