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Alice in Wonderland
Movie Review
March 20, 2010
Directed by Tim Burton
Starring Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne
Hathaway, Crispin Glover, Matt Lucas, Stephen Fry, Michael Sheen, and
Alan Rickman.
Backstory
Tim Burton was one of the first directors I identified with and glommed
onto. When I got my DVD player, I said I would get all his
movies on DVD. (Still missing Beetlejuice, Mars Attacks!, and
Sleepy Hollow, in case you're thinking of gift ideas.) So
when I heard that he was hopping on the 3D, performance capture
bandwagon to do Alice in Wonderland, I was intrigued. It
seemed that Burton's unique visual flair would be ideal to realize
Wonderland on the big screen. So how'd it all turn out?
Plot
We catch up with Alice as a young woman in her late teens or early
twenties. She has forgotten all about Wonderland, dismissing
it as little more than a childhood dream. And now, it seems
her life is all mapped out for her. She's about to go into an
arranged marriage and settle down and lead a dull and ordinary life.
But then, at her engagement party, she spies a White Rabbit,
and once again falls down the rabbit hole. But this is not
the Wonderland of her youth. The Red Queen is on a mad quest
to become ruler of all, and is carving a swath of destruction across
the land. The Mad Hatter and his band of rebels see Alice as
the chosen one...the one who will end the Red Queen's reign and return
the White Queen to the throne. It seems even in this world,
Alice's life is all mapped out for her. Will she ever be able
to find her own destiny?
What I Liked
Well, it's Tim Burton, so all the Burton touches that I like are on
display. There's some wild visuals, a pretty good Danny
Elfman score, and top notch performances by Depp and Carter.
The special effects are amazing, especially the climactic
battle with the Jabberwocky...truly one of the most frightening dragons
ever seen on the big screen.
What I
Didn't Like
The plot is your fairly basic fantasy plot. On a quest, find
the magic sword, slay the dragon. Alice really has grown into
a Disney princess in this film...feeling enslaved by the trappings of
her position, and looking for a better life out there.
Final
Assessment
Familiar characters shoehorned into a familiar plot...the whole darn
thing just feels so familiar. I feel like Burton just did
this for the paycheck.
2 Nibs
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