"Have I gone round the bend?"

"I'm afraid so.  You're absolutely bonkers.  But let me tell you a little secret.  All the best people are…."

 

Alice Kingsleigh is prone to nightmares, and when she has them, her father, Charles Kingsleigh, is there to comfort her, tuck her in and send her back to sleep.  His words make her smile again, for he is her white knight, as well as being a business visionary.

 

Fast forward thirteen years…

 

Charles Kingsleigh has passed, and Alice is a little older, a little bit on the melancholy side.  Her mother doesn't understand her the way her father did.  They are on their way to a party, and Alice is scolded for her lack of a corset – as well as wearing no stockings.  Alice has her own way of doing things – and saying things – but she feels underappreciated, and unsure of herself for being different.  And everyone expects things from her.

 

At the party, her hostess directs Alice in no uncertain terms to dance with her son, Hamish, so Alice does.  Hamish is a red-headed prudish snot with absolutely no sense of humor and all the charm of a piece of wood. As they dance – a stiff quadrille, which Alice finds stilting – he speaks of their life after marriage, and when she offers her own observations on the world around her, he is less than interested.  When she accidentally bumps into another dancer, she says that she was wondering what it was like to fly, and Hamish acts as if that were the most incomprehensible thought ever.  Then he directs her to meet him in the gazebo in precisely ten minutes, and he departs.

A confused Alice walks about, trying to make sense of things.  A pair of girls who seem almost joined at the hip let it slip that Hamish is going to propose today!  Hamish's mother takes Alice aside for a private walk in her rose garden – she is very annoyed that there are only white roses when she distinctly ordered only red ones to be planted.  When Alice suggests she paint them, she looks at her as if she has grown a second head.  Alice is distracted by a rabbit who is mucking about in the bushes, but Hamish' mother is too busy telling her of Hamish' delicate digestive tract to notice anything else.  She also sees her brother-in-law kissing another woman, although he claims she is just a friend.

 

And then ten minutes have passed and the moment arrives.  Alice goes to the gazebo, where Hamish awaits – and so apparently is everyone else in attendance at the party, who have been led to believe that it is an engagement party.  She knows what is expected of her, what everyone wants from her – but what does she want?  Just then she spies the rabbit.  He is standing near the entrance to the garden, and pointing at his watch.  Suddenly she knows what to do, says she needs a moment and runs off after the rabbit.

 

And then she falls down a hole…..

Overall

 

Twas brillig and the slithy toves did gyre and gimble in the wave, all mimsy were the borogroves and the mome raths outgrabe….

 

If you think you know Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland and what to expect from director Tim Burton – take another look.  This isn't your mother's Alice in Wonderland, it's the next chapter.  Actually, he could have titled it Return to Wonderland, had he wished, for Alice has been there before.  We think.  No one is sure if she is the Alice – she isn't even sure herself.  But the inhabitants do seem oddly familiar.  And although some of the creatures decide early on that it is not their Alice, the Mad Hatter has no doubt whatsoever that it is she and that she has returned to Wonderland.

 

Tim Burton has done it again, this time with the timeless story of Alice in Wonderland – but with his own special brand of Burtonism applied.  And he's brought a stellar cast along with him. Mia Wasikowska portrays Alice beautifully.  She is insecure, unsure of herself, and her place in the scheme of things, always does what is expected of her – but she isn't happy.  And the fact that she only has one dream confuses her – don't  normal people have more than that?  A touch of sulkiness, a hint of rebellion, all suggesting that there is more to this girl than what lies on the surface.  Johnny Depp excels as the Mad Hatter – I was really apprehensive that his performance would be simply over the top and manic, but far from it, as he actually portrayed him as quite layered, and although perhaps I like to think of the Hatter as a love interest, for which purpose JD's bizarre makeup didn't really work, I came to accept his portrayal for what it was, and to find myself caring for this Hatter very much.  What you see isn't necessarily what you get, at least not in this film.  Alan Rickman's sexy voice simply made the Caterpillar, while Stephen Frye was the perfect Cheshire Cat.  The repartee between the Cat and the Hatter is priceless!  Timothy Spall voiced Bayard the dog, with Michael Gough appearing as the Dodo Bird and Christopher Lee as the Jabberwock (alright, I'll get really anal here – if you read the poem, the Jabberwock is the name of the creature, and Jabberwocky is the poem, which just means I've read the book too much, but there you go). Helena Bonham Carter and Anne Hathaway are a treat as the queenly sisters, the Red and the White, while Crispin Glover is a very knavely knave (and while there are stolen tarts, he didn't do it this time!).  "OFF WITH HER HEAD!"  You knew it had to be said, right?  Anne's White Queen is sweet and gentle, unwilling to harm anyone – even perhaps a touch on the naively vapid side, while Helena's Red Queen is tartly bitchy, and deliciously selfish and unfeeling – for instance, when she calls for a pig to rest her weary feet upon.

 

The cinematography is simply perfect, and has a decided Tim Burton/other world feel to it.  He orchestrates the colors beautifully, and attends to the tiniest details, so that we are inundated with the most wonderful imagery.  Nothing is left to chance, all is accounted for.  I especially loved the way that the poem Jabberwocky was used – we even get to meet the Jubjub Bird and the Bandersnatch!  And, of course, the Vorpal Blade!  More than just an adventure of the mind, Alice is a sort of coming of age journey, a coming in to herself, if you will.  The growing smaller or bigger can be seen as analogies for growing into her own skin, realizing who she really is, and what she wants her life to be.  This film is a treat for young and old alike.  The animation is incredible, the music a fitting accompaniment to the images on the screen.  I honestly can't think of anything I didn't like about it. Alice in Wonderland is far from being a simple children's story, by no means is it just for children.  It will make you laugh, it will bring tears to your eyes.  You will even gasp with amazement.  But whatever you do, don't miss this film; it's bound to become a classic that will stand the test of time.

 

I'll leave you with this riddle – why is a raven like a writing desk?  See you in Wonderland!

 

ComicsOnline gives Alice in Wonderland 5 out of 5 vorpal blades.

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