Oz: The Great and Powerful trailer hits the InterWeb

Disney last night released the first trailer for its 2013 movie "Oz: The Great and Powerful," starring James Franco as the man who becomes the Wizard of Oz. Set before the time when Dorothy shows up, we get to see the land of Oz and how he becomes the Wonderful Wizard. Take a look:

Prequels are always tricky, and this could even be trickier. First, there are generations of children and adults who've seen the 1939 MGM version, and might be expecting characters from that film. Second, the musical 'Wicked' (based on a Gregory Maguire novel) has been on Broadway for almost a decade, and that has covered similar ground in terms of being a story set in Oz before Dorothy arrives. At least this film looks at the point of view of the wizard, rather than the two witches, but I still think it could be a tough sell for families. We still haven't shown our children the 1939 version yet (you know, scary flying monkeys), so I'm not sure yet who this will ultimately appeal to.

Keith Shaw rounds up the best in geek video in his ITworld.tv blog. Follow Keith on Twitter at @shawkeith. For the latest IT news, analysis and how-tos, follow ITworld on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.

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