Movies: Alice in Wonderland
I saw Alice in Wonderland over the weekend. I am not reading anyone else’s reviews before I am typing this entry.
My history of Alice in Wonderland isn’t very big or atypical. I have seen the Disney version and few TV Miniseries. I must’ve seen a few other places as well, but one thing is definite: I have never read the books. I once tried and I even bought the book in French. For whatever reason the result is I have read a few of the poems and I know most of the storylines, but that is all.
Armed with this lifetime of information about the story, I walked into the theatre to view the 3D version at an IMAX. I was feeling a little trepidatious. I have a weak eye that has a history of getting a bit sore watching 3D shows, resulting in a headache halfway through the movie and forcing me to remove my glasses and close my eyes. I was worried this would be a factor, but I didn’t want to view this flat either. I bravely took my glasses and made my way into the theatre. To my immense relief, this is the second 3D movie in a row that hasn’t set off my weak eye. The first was Avatar. The 3D effects were all subtle and simply present, very few, if any, deliberately broke the fourth wall. I simply felt as though I was walking through the scenes next to Alice.
The coloring in the movie intrigued me, it was the first thing to strike me. It was as if the world was sort of dipped into a sepia solution. The colors were there, and they were brilliant, but not the brilliance of technicolor, it was more billiant in contrast to the sepia overall.
Before long, I learned the reason for the ‘old’ feel. This story wasn’t the story I was expecting. All the favorite characters existed and even the story to the rabbit hole was pretty typical, but in this story Alice is nearly 20 years old and apparently they all believe someone named Alice had visited long before that time. The world is at war and most likely dying, the dead trees, the feel of being burnt out and seer, barren.
As the story progressed, I realised this wasn’t actually Alice in Wonderland, it may have been more like Through the Looking Glass, but since I never read the books so I don’t know for sure.
With certainty I can say, I loved Johnny Depp’s portrayal of the Mad Hatter. When I answered the question a friend asked about the madness of said hatter, my response along the lines of: He wasn’t as mad as Captain Jack Sparrow nor as intelligently mad as Willy Wonka, however he was definitely mad as a hatter. In my opinion, I believe Johnny Depp pulled off yet another amazing role. I was rarely reminded of the actor as I watched the movie. Only small bits and parts, reminded me this hatter wasn’t a real person. I do love actors who get consumed by the character. It makes for a much more interesting story.
The graphics were beautiful. There was amazing detail in every corner and it seemed like a world I could walk through. The Cheshire Cat has to be my favorite bit of art. I have always liked the cat, but in this story he was more cuddle-worthy than typical.
Although I enjoyed the movie, I have to admit the storyline was simple and straight-forward with few points to detour from, almost bland and typical in make-up. While it was all these things, it also gave a chance for every actor to shine brilliantly in their roles. Without extraordinary actors, this movie would fall flat in spite of the art direction, filmography, special effects and costuming.
On the whole, I was extremely satisfied with the experience and I eagerly await the opportunity to own it on DVD.
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