Alice in Wonderland review

By Jenny Johnston
 
     We loved him in “Pirates of the Caribbean,” discovered his musical talent in “Sweeney Todd” and thought he was a bit kooky in “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.” Johnny Depp steals the show as the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland.”
     Depp’s off the rocker performance mixed with a dark, Burton-esque style, turns this film into a twisted fairytale that is sure to impress fans.
Those of you who, like me, grew up watching Disney’s animated version of Alice in Wonderland, should expect something completely different. Burton took the original story and mashed it with Lewis Caroll’s sequel to Wonderland, “Through the Looking Glass.”
     In this version, we’re introduced to 6-year-old Alice, (Mia Wasikowsa) who is having funny dreams of a world with talking rabbits, caterpillars and other strange creatures. Fast forward 14 years and grown-up Alice is at her pre-arranged engagement party. She is reluctant to get married and live a life to please everyone. At the engagement ceremony she notices a large rabbit in the garden. She curiously follows it to a large hole under a tree. She falls in the hole into the world of Wonderland. Alice soon realizes this is the same world she has been dreaming about, complete with odd creatures, colorful shrooms and lots of drugs.
     In the infamous “eat me, drink me” scene, Alice takes multiple drugs which enlarges and shrinks her, leaving her naked every time she changes size. She then meets Tweedledee and Tweedledum, the dormouse, the white rabbit and an electric blue caterpillar who is literally smoking hookah. The caterpillar so oddly enlightens Alice that her fate is to defeat the Red Queen by killing her Jabberwocky to bring about the Frabjous Day, which I’ve concluded is a day of peace celebrated with even more drugs.
     At the point when Alice is completely confused and unsure of herself, the creepy Cheshire Cat appears out of smoke and leads her to a tea party with sworn enemies of the Red Queen who can assist her in her journey.
    This is our first glimpse at Depp as the Mad Hatter. He, the dormouse and the white rabbit are having a “tea” party where they’re smashing dishes, destroying the tables and acting like they’re hyped up on anything but tea. Alice grows fond of the half mad, half sane Mad Hatter and is now determined to set off on her quest.
     Depp has an astounding ability to bring a unique quality to each character he portrays, including the Mad Hatter. His constant switch from a sane Scotsman to a loopy, over-the-top hatter is brilliant.
     Another key element to this twisted film is Burton’s wife, Helena Bonham Carter playing the Red Queen. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen a Burton-Carter-Depp combo and it certainly won’t be the last. It’s evident that Carter had a little too much fun playing the outrageous Red Queen with an oversized head. Carter made the Red Queen one of my favorite characters to watch. Her signature phrase “Off with his head!” was all too perfect.
     Carter’s counterpart, the White Queen, was my least favorite person of the film. The White Queen is an odd character, who was oddly played by Anne Hathaway. Her dreamy, good witch of the east behavior was a little exaggerated for my liking. The horribly black accented lips and eyebrows against her white face and hair didn’t help and shouldn’t be adopted as a fashion trend.
     Seeing the film in 3-D isn’t necessary. I know everyone is on a 3-D hype after “Avatar,” but the effects won’t be the same and here’s why: James Cameron filmed the 3-D during production and Burton converted to 3-D in post-production. Thus, the 3-D effects in “Alice in Wonderland” are confusing and even nauseating to watch. Students can save the extra $8 by going to the regular 2-D version on a weeknight when tickets are only $5. With theaters being less than 10 minutes away, it’s a fun and cheap night out.
     Overall, the movie was fantastic. Every time a preview of it comes on TV, I always hear “it looks so creepy!” or “it doesn’t even look like the Disney movie!” Anyone who saw the Disney version on VHS will remember the original movie having a twisted plot with unusual elements. Burton successfully captured the odd fantasy and created a dark, fairytale masterpiece.