Nikki LeDree

Yesterday I went to see Alice in Wonderland. I was so bloody excited I mean this is a story I grew up watching and reading, my Nan even made a mad hatter teapot. So I love this story and when I heard that Tim Burton was doing it I thought that it would be a quirky, original yet dark take on the story. Though saying that I was hoping and hoping that it wasn’t going to be another Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

I was disappointed in this film. I don’t know if this is because my expectations were stupidly high but wow. There seems to be a trend among movies now where story takes a backseat to special effects. Is it too much to ask for both? I mean Alice in Wonderland looks fantastic even if sometimes a bit too crowded. I loved the vivid colours and the way the proportions were messed up. The Red Queens huge head was a nice touch as it’s true to the John Tenniel illustrations.

So, story. While there is a story it is quite underdeveloped I think. Trying to merge both books into one is a good idea. Of course there is then the problem of having so much to cram into the movie a lot of which seems to be a given. That you already know about them so they don’t need any or very little development . Well yeah they kind of do. It should be able to stand strongly on its own. Even more so if the narrative strays from the original.

There’s also a hint of American McGee’s Alice in Wonderland in this. I think a movie more like that would have been a nice twist on the story and could have come up with something a bit more original.

Alice was a bit wooden and a bit meh nothingy but not terrible. Again, she looks great just like you would image Alice to be. She doesn’t question things as much as she does in the books / previous adaptations. The only thing she really questions is whether or not she is dreaming. She did seem lifeless and somewhat faded into the background around almost every other character. Mainly the mad hatter.

Yes the mad hatter. This was a bit up and down for me. Sometimes I thought wow yes brilliant and other times I wasn’t so sure. I’m so happy he didn’t turn into another Wonka. That was rather cringe worthy. Sorry I will stop comparing these two movies. I do quite like the look of the hatter even though I think it’s trying a little too hard to be mad. Part of being mad is more in the way you act. I think he could have acted a lot madder rather than be dressed in a mad way. It’s all a bit too obvious.

He also changes sometimes and drops into a Scottish accent, his eyes go orange and he goes a bit serious and angry. This split personality thing could have been done a little better and a bit subtler but I like the idea.

At times the hatter seemed to be more of a focal point than Alice. Great because who doesn’t love the mad hatter. But he does completely over shadow Alice. Why not just do a movie about the mad hatter. Also why try and turn him into some kind of hero when the hero is meant to be Alice.

Other characters such as the door mouse got too much screen time in my opinion. Whereas the March hare could have had a bit more. The White Queen was a bit too floaty and aloof but that’s how she’s supposed to be. The knave of hearts was pretty good though a bit generic bad guyish.

The Cheshire Cat was rather good and not just because Mr Fry makes my panties wet. I loved his voice, perfect for the character. The Cheshire Cat and the hatter worked rather well together which was surprising. Speaking of good voices Alan Rickman as the caterpillar is just so amazingly perfect. When I think of monged out caterpillars, I think Alan Rickman. The cast for this movie couldn’t have been better… other than Alice … sorry.

I was impressed with the red queen as well. Helena Bonham Carter was crazy, mad and hot headed while still being vulnerable which is a nice touch. A good all round performance from her. Better than JohnnyDepp’s anyway, as her performance seemed effortless where as his was a bit too over the top sometimes.

The cgi was amazing for the most part. As I said before the film looks great however in some places there is just too much detail, too much to take in and it all gets confusing. Maybe this is because of the whole 3D thing and I didn’t see it in 3D. I can’t really talk fairly about effects because it’s getting to the point where they just don’t impress me. I would rather have a shitty looking film and a great story rather than an amazing looking film and shitty story. Or better yet a GOOD story with GOOD effects even though this is for another rant I bring it up because this film fits nicely into this category even if it’s not the worst offender.

The ending was a bit rushed and would have been far better to leave it after she leaves wonderland and not have the whole going to travel the world on her own real life adventures or whatever. But the caterpillar pulled it back for me and made the last part bearable.

Okay, to sum up my incoherent ramblings: Alice in Wonderland is entertaining and very enjoyable to watch though a stronger story and more character development would have prevented it from being a disappointment.

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