Big Box Office?

Nobody is old enough to remember...

This movie aired recently on Turner Classic Movies and host Robert Osborne said that the movie ran so far over budget that the film company went bankrupt. I also read under the trivia for this movie because of what happened to Chadwick films, a lot of movie theaters that were booked to show the movie never received it. So I'm guessing it probably didn't make much money at the box office.

Ten years after the OP, but the last response was a year ago, so I shall give my answer!

Basically, the film was a huge flop. Semon's comedy and techniques were dated and he strayed so far from the stories audiences were familiar with that no one (not even children) were pleased with the film. It is a mess in all departments, and audiences recognized that. It is very primitive looking for a film made in 1925. Semon's films from his prime seven years earlier have a more immaculate production value despite the smaller budget. Perhaps this is because Semon had complete control over Oz, something he lacked on these earlier productions.

Semon's over-used tropes had also gone out of fashion many years earlier. It seems that what made Semon a hit also sunk him. Semon films (even his hits) were very basic. Included in each film that he made were the same characters and the same comedic devices, which worked well in his two reel films, but weren't cohesive in a feature. Oz was Semon's second attempt at a feature. The first (The Girl in the Limousine) had also failed both critically and commercially.

In addition to these elements, as previously posted, the film went ridiculously over budget, though it was not the sole reason that the studio fell into bankruptcy. And, also previously mentioned, many theatres did not even receive their prints only furthering the damage.


I had this movie on VHS when I was a kid, and I remember being very confused by it. I had seen other silent films, and even then I recognized that it was a disaster. But it is rather interesting.