Product Description

From the Oscar and Emmy winning team of Berry Levinson (Rain Man Diner) and Tom Fontana OZ is set deep inside the Oswald Maximum Security Prison in an experimental unit known as Emerald City. Em City focuses on prisoner rehabilitation over public retribution. There's one set of rules from the outside looking in and another once you're inside. Every group - Muslims Latinos Italians Aryans - stick close to their mutual friends and terrorizes their mutual enemies. OZ is a wake-up call.Running Time: 480 min.System Requirements:Running Time 451 MinFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: NR UPC: 026359920424 Manufacturer No: 99204

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2437 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2002-03-19
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 3
• Dimensions: .55 pounds
• Running time: 451 minutes

Amazon.com
HBO's violent men-behind-bars drama is an addictive, testosterone-driven soap opera for guys. The eight episodes of the first season set the style for the show: a massive cast of a vivid characters on both sides of the bars, four or five stories unleashed at a breakneck pace and framed by angry, oddball introductions, and a soaring casualty rate. Created by Homicide producer Tom Fontana, this drama quickly earned its rightful reputation as the most brutal show on TV. It's simple chemistry: combine volatile ingredients in a confined space, shut tight, and shake.

The yellow brick road of the Oswald Correctional Facility (affectionately known as "Oz" among the inmates) leads to "Emerald City," an antiseptic cellblock of cement and glass overseen by prison-reform advocate Tim McManus (Terry Kinney). The first episode introduces its two most compelling inmates: meek lawyer Beecher (Lee Terguson), who transforms from a vulnerable lamb to a fearless, drug-addicted wildcat, and Muslim activist Kareem Said (Eamonn Walker), a fiercely non-violent leader whose campaign for reform explodes in a season-climaxing riot. The stunning first-season cast also features Ernie Hudson (the warden), Rita Moreno (a worldly drug-counseling nun), and Edie Falco (who jumped from her role as a single-mother prison guard to mob wife in The Sopranos). It carries no rating, but the drug use, nudity, and brutal violence make this highly inappropriate for young viewers and unsuited to the squeamish. Oz pulls no punches in its portrayal of prison violence and predatory abuse. --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews

surprise season
I had never seen this season and it came to me quickly and didn't disapoint.

Such a wonderful show!
I own and have watched every episode of OZ ranging from season 1-6. The story is compelling and very deep and of course for adult audiences only. I love how the characters unfold and progressively become more complex. This series portrays prison life as very brutal and unforgiving, but there is always a subtle reminder that these convicts are still humans with feelings and a heart. Season one starts off with a bang, and some of the annoyances are cleared up by season two. Save yourself the trouble and buy all the seasons when they are on sale through amazon. You won't regret it.

Put This Show In Prison
Do NOT believe the hype and the 5-star reviews that this show is getting - trust me. Some (but not all) of the reasons I "sentenced" this show to a 1-star rating are mentioned below:

OUTDATED: This show is seriously outdated. Compared to "The Wire" which should hold up for at least 10 years, this show just seemed very ancient and not relevant to today at all.

STORYLINES: This is HBO, so you know this show is going to be extremely politically correct and left-wing. But come on HBO and OZ writers, do you have to be so blatant about it? As for the specific storylines, there were so many flaws that I won't waste your are my time dissecting each episode. Besides, the stories were so boring and unbelievable anyways, that it's not even worth discussing. If you know anything about prison (which I'm not saying I do) or have watched tv specials/documentaries about a real prison you'll know that this show is full of "you know what" and the premise would never hold-up.

SETTING: The setting for this show was absolutely horrible. The jail setting(s) were completely fabricated on a bad film stage and just made the show visually boring. I mean the producers couldn't chalk up some more money to have a `yard' scene or more realistic shots!? The lighting was too bright and everything was closed in too tight - but not in a good and intentional way.

CAST OF CHARACTERS: What were the casting directors and producers thinking? I mean Edie Falco as a tough security guard. A washed-up Ernie Hudson as the warden? Quite laughable. And the rest of the stereotypical cast of characters - were insanely unbelievable and just awful actors. All of them were extremely cheesy and seemed like they should be on a Sesame Street show depicting prison. Seriously.

OZ was supposed to be extremely cutting-edge and very gritty when it came out? The water-cooler talk parts (the few fight scenes, gay rape, etc.) were not a big deal at all and in fact were watered down and unmemorable.
Finally, what was with having the narrator spewing his words of wisdom to the viewer in some sort of spinning contraption? Not only was this technique not needed but it was quite cheesy. As for the show being gritty? - nah, this show is nothing but a lamb chop.