Alice In Wonderland is the film adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s well known story. This time Alice is older and making life decisions, many of which she’d like to escape at the moment, including a marriage proposal. Alice succeeds in escaping her problems by falling down the rabbit hole into an other worldly adventure.
How magical can Lewis Carroll fable translate to on film? Incredibly magical if Tim Burton is involved. The lead actors are uniformly excellent in this film. Considering the added difficulty of CG animation combined with live action, they do a superb job. The cast, both live action and voice talent, is engaging. Mia Wasikowska is perfect as Alice, her character combining Alice’s innocence seamlessly with great wit and intelligence. Johnny Depp as always is a fascinating actor, his Mad Hatter truly seems mad, eccentric with moments of lucidity. Helena Bonham Carter plays the Red Queen as completely mad and power hungry, which is how I’ve always thought the part should be played. Anne Hathaway as the White Queen provides an elegance, honesty yet an off-based feel to the character that can often be too one dimensional. Crispin Glover as the Knave of Hearts is menacing and odd, a strange and captivating villain.
Tim Burton’s view of Wonderland is truly wonderful, with his direction, artwork and screenplay excellent. The overall art direction in this film is superb. Burton’s dark art style melds perfectly with the quirky and odd aspects of this beloved tale. The live action, motion capture and animation combinations are flawless in this film, it is difficult if not impossible to tell where the motion capture stops and animation begins. Parents should be forewarned this dark tale may be scary for young children.
If you are looking for an exact replica of the original Alice In Wonderland book, this is not it, but it is a great film adaptation of the story. Alice In Wonderland is a movie to watch again and again in order to discover the magic and art that director Burton has weaved into this breathtaking film.
2010. Directed by Tim Burton. Starring Johnny Depp, Mia Wasikowska, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway, Crispin Glover and the voice talent of Alan Rickman, Michael Sheen and Stephen Fry.
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