Alice in Narnia: it could be worse
Tim Burton churns out a suitably bizarre franchise-starter for Disney
By Erik Hayden 03/10/2010
Alice in Wonderland
Directed by Tim Burton
Starring: Johnny Depp, Mia Wasikowska, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway
Rated PG for fantasy action/violence involving scary images and situations, and for a smoking caterpillar*
1 hr. 48 min.
Forget about watching Alice in Wonderland. But do see the movie. Here’s the biggest secret of the film: the studio just used the Alice moniker to ensure opening weekend crowds (to the jaw-dropping tune of more than $120 million). But Tim Burton’s Disneyfied spectacular couldn’t be further from some of the more classic and, well, British interpretations of Wonderland. There’s very little subtlety in this big-budgeted behemoth . . . at least at first glance.
Initially, the film appears to be nothing more than a thinly veiled theme-park contraption perfectly positioned to reap the rewards of the 3-D resurgence and gleefully ride Avatar’s coattails all the way to the bank. Or it could be a naked bid to resurrect the Narnia franchise (which Disney inexplicably gift-wrapped to Fox after the poor performance of Prince Caspian).
Don’t laugh. As stupid as it seems, this may be the first chapter of an absurdist Pirates of the Carribean-toned Alice trilogy. It’s got Willy Wonka/Jack Sparrow himself, so why not?
Sure, you’ll find all the familiar Alice characters in this incarnation (the Mad Hatter, the Red Queen, the time keeping rabbit). But they’re all scrambled about in a story that is part Pride and Prejudice, part “any Tim Burton movie,” mostly Narnia and capped off by a delightfully bizarre (and at some points, tiresome) performance by Johnny Depp.
And shockingly, that turns out to be quite an appealing formula for an event-movie/theme-park ride.
Think of the plot of Alice as something like Spielberg’s early ’90s Peter-Pan-grows-old-fantasy, Hook — except the film isn’t played for laughs. In the same vein that Robin Williams, the befuddled accountant, slowly realized that he was, at one time, Peter Pan, so, too, does a grown-up Alice (Mia Wasikowska) vaguely remember that she had visited Wonderland when she was a young girl.
That slight tweak of the script opened up a whole new world for Tim Burton to explore and dabble in, without being constrained by having to tell a proper “origin story.”
So what does Burton do with this creative capital (other than turn Alice into a fantasy epic)? Invests it in some of the best visual effects and 3-D sequences ever painstakingly crafted on a computer. As much as I enjoyed Avatar (and believe it to be a far superior movie to Alice), I admit that Burton has something of a knack for wringing out truly convincing 3-D scenes. As hardened as I was to wearing the unwieldy glasses once again, I admit that I flinched slightly when teacups or playing cards were flung my way.
Speaking of the James Cameron epic, if Avatar is to be hailed for its groundbreaking motion-capture system as “the future of cinema,” then perhaps Alice can hold the mantle of a more dubious honor: “the future of the typical 3-D blockbuster.”
Hey, it could be worse.
*Amusing side note: As a murderous dragon is beheaded, its fantastical tendons spray purple goo everywhere — yet the movie is rated PG for “a smoking caterpillar.”
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Truth is... It's all about ENTERTAINMENT!!! It's certainly not a particularly strong script, but having the acting genius of Depp helps to make up what is lacking in the writing. Viewing Alice (now 13 years older), I kept having to remind myself that the film is just an EXTENSION of Lewis Carroll's novel. You of course are correct. Burton turned Carroll's wonderful Alice into a fantasy epic, using amazing special effects. Certainly an entertainment for the senses, and an appeal to those who delight in the far out. What an adventure! Alice in a new kind of la-la land wonderment! It is certain that Disney Studio's are pleased with the $116.3 million dollar opening weekend. Yep, I guess it could be worse!