Posted by Banky Fan at spider-tp071.proxy.aol.com on November 27, 1999 at 00:05:41:
Hey Boarders. Hope everyone's holiday rocked the casba.
Anyhoo, tonight, I popped THE WIZARD OF OZ into the VCR. A highly enjoyable film, as all of you know (and if you don't, allow me to kick over the fucking rock). However, halfway through the film, as I saw the image of Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tinman, and the Lion marching to Emerald City, a bizarre analogy clicked into my head:
Dorthy: Scarecrow, Tinman, and the Lion::Bethany:Jay, Silent Bob, and Rufus.
Now, before you all accuse me of hitting the crackpipe one too many times, hear me out. I think that the two films share a number of similarities which I'm sure are merely coincidental.
First off, look at the stories themselves: WIZARD is the story of four travellers on their way to Emerald City; DOGMA is the story of four travellers on their way to Red Bank, New Jersey (granted, it's MUCH more than that, but, you know, in a nutshell...)
Bethany and Dorothy, in my opinion, share some similarities; both are going through a bout of depression and leaps of faith (see: "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and Bethany's "God is Dead" Shpiel at the beginning with Liz). Then, through bizarre circumstances, are guided by two, uh, "heavenly" people (Glinda and Metatron...both guides and plot-filler-iners) are given their task (to travel a great distance to interact with someone, causing something tremendous to happen). Through the way, the two ladies are guided by three men apiece (Dorthy: Tinman, Scarecrow, the Lion; Bethany: Jay, Silent Bob, Rufus...all three in each case, unlikely, to say the least).
Along the way, both groups encountered intriguing and unique villians (Apple Trees, Flying Monkeys, Stygian Triplets, and a Shit Demon). Villian-wise, I mean, MAIN baddie-wise, Azreal and the Witch of the West are sly, subversive, cunning, and take other's ignorance to their advantage.
Lastly, my personal favorite, the Wizard and Cardinal Glick are virtually one and the same. Both are men who hide beneath a costume of authority, but are basically cowardly and faithless people who are not what they appear.
Now, I know my theory leaves out a lot of people who are crucial (including Bartleby, Loki, Serendipity, and, of course, GOD), but that's why I'm putting this out here; I'm trying to get input from everybody, and once in a while, revise what others have thrown in the ring, and occasionally repost revised version, until one of those in green...I mean, red, responds.
Thoughts?
-M@tt