'Cinephilia' called this film a "reworking of 'The Wizard of Oz'" whilst 'Memorable TV' says that this film is "an allegorical updating of 'The Wizard of Oz'". 'Shock Cinema' said that "it's a rock-'n'-roll homage to 'The Wizard of Oz', Down Under style" whilst 'Allmovie' calls it a "1976 Australian retelling of 'The Wizard of Oz'".
The first ever Australian theatrical feature film that was a rock musical.
The concert seen at the end of the movie was actually a real concert. The footage was from a rock concert held at the Myer Music Bowl in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The bands that were playing were the Little River Band and AC/DC. The concert scenes were obviously not filmed in the Palais Theatre as everyone must be seated in the Palais. The after-concert scenes, though, were filmed in the Palais.
According to the book 'The Last New Wave' by David Stratton, the film's writers, 'Chris Lofven' and Lyne Helms, were not aware of the existence of the Motown rock music stage musical 'The Wiz' when they wrote the original first draft of this film's screenplay.
The characterizations of 'The Wizard of Oz''s famous characters in this modern rock music re-working are as follows: Dorothy is rock band groupie; The Tin Man is Greaseball, a heartless petrol station car mechanic; The Cowardly Lion is Killer, a cowardly biker guy; The Scarecrow is Blondie, a dumb blond surfer dude; Glin, The Good Fairy is Glin, a camp boutique clothier; The Wicked Witch is a large-build menacing truck driver; and The Wizard is a glam rock superstar.