Tin Man (NR, 2007)

TIN MAN is a dark reimagining of The Wizard of Oz. The O.Z. (Outer Zone) is ruled by the evil sorceress Azkadellia (Kathleen Robertson), who desperately wants to find a powerful mystical emerald that will help her rule the land but has no idea where to look. Enter DG (Zooey Deschanel), an everyday farm girl -- er, modern feminist who rides a motorcycle and likes to roll up her sleeves and repair engines -- from Kansas who is transported into the O.Z. by, yes, a twister. Turns out DG and Azkadellia share a mysterious bond; unraveling this puzzle may help them locate the gem. Joining DG on her journey are Glitch (Alan Cumming), a flexible and loyal pal who's been lobotomized by Azkadellia's mad scientists (in other words, he has no brain); Raw (Raoul Trujillo), a nervous, hairy sort who sometimes has magical visions; and Cain (Neal McDonough), a former lawman -- or Tin Man, as they're known in the O.Z. -- who wants nothing more than revenge on the Longcoats who attacked his wife and son years earlier.

If the cyclone had deposited Dorothy Gale not in Oz, but in the famed grim future of Ridley Scott's Blade Runner, the result might have been Tin Man. The movie is filled with clever shout-outs to The Wizard of Oz. Look for DG's blue gingham waitress uniform back in Kansas, and the Munchkin-like members of the Resistance Fighters of the Eastern Guild.

But Tin Man is definitely its own film and a totally different story -- though ultimately it offers a similar message about the value of family. The original, though a timeless classic, may seem a bit too sugary to some people these days; this dark, modern version is an exciting and interesting update (though, at six hours, it sometimes drags).