RATING: B-

ITN Films presents a ChampDog Films production. Directed by William Stead. Produced by Louisa Warren. Written by Michael Miceli, based on the ‘Wizard of Oz’ books by L. Frank Baum. Cinematography by Nikhil Ranade. Edited by Harpreet Singh. 

Stars Karolina Knight, Paul Andrew Goldsmith, Lauren Staerck, Megan Roberts, Connor Horrigan, Alina Varakuta, Dylan Reeves-Follows, with Liam Edwards, and James Shenton.

From the director of Popeye’s Revenge comes this horror film based on the L. Frank Baum classic with the Tinman taking center stage. 

Ethan Willoughby and his family are planning an outing into the Silver Forest. He is joined by his son Ryan and daughters Dorothy, Claire, and Lily. They are warned by a local of the man known as the Hollow Chest as he has been known to wreak havoc in the forest. At first, they believe the old man is talking about some sort of urban legend. The family soon will realize that the legend is all too real. 

While in the forest, the family comes across Woodman’s Cottage and decides to go in. When Ryan convinces the others to stay a bit as they meet trepidation, they come across a room where they notice various hearts. They soon discover the Tinman, the man with the Hollow Chest, is alive and soon, it becomes a fight for survival as they attempt to escape the forest before the Tinman collects their hearts. 

The public domain horror film has now officially become a subgenre thanks to the Twisted Childhood Universe, which in turn, led the team behind ITN Studios to become the go-to studio for many horror films with public domain characters, especially those made in the United Kingdom. William Stead, who directed Popeye’s Revenge and Popeye Returns, helms this Wizard of Oz horror film with the Tinman taking center stage as its antagonist. 

Karolina Knight takes on the role of Dorothy Gale Willoughby, a Tiktoker who is on an excursion with her family, which includes two sisters, a brother, and their father. While Lily seems to have sympathy towards Dorothy, Claire and Ryan seem to dislike and mock Dorothy due to her social media presence. However, as the film progresses, the family must overcome their differences to evade the Tinman, played by actor/stuntman James Shenton. 

The kills are nicely done in this film. There are decapitations, heart rippings, and plenty more. The SFX are nicely done and even the use of a victim getting their face smashed in with a yellow brick. The only downside of the film is that there is a little bit of a drag in the middle. However, the finale of the film takes a very unexpected turn but instead of hindering the film, it makes up for the bit of slow down of the film in a positive way.

Wizard of Death: Tinman’s Rise, or Rise of the Tinman, starts out pretty well done, then sort of drags a bit before giving you a massive uppercut to the gut in the shocking finale. The finale makes this a surprisingly decent PDH (public domain horror) movie. 

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