I needed this film to sit and ferment in my mind before I could write about it. I had expected to LOVE it. Going in it had all of the ingredients of a perfect film for me: Johnny Depp, Tim Burton, arresting visuals, and a plot that was reminiscent of one of my favorite movies - The Return to Oz. But after the final credit swept up the screen, I wasn't wowed or even completely impressed by what I had just experienced. I didn't feel as blown away as I did after watching the Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.
Let's just say: shock therapy, a talking chicken, a man wearing ruby slippers, and a witch with multiple heads. It's one of my favorite movies from the 80s. I will say, take it on it's own, forget all the awesomeness of the Wizard of Oz. It is a VERY different and strange film. Not many people like it.
Our trip to see Alice was a belated Valentines Day present from the Captain. We aren't ones to celebrate sappy Hallmark holidays, but this year I decided I wanted to go to the movies (something he and I very rarely do) to see Alice. It was an easy sell, primarily because the Captain still had a $25 gift certificate for AMC that he received as a Christmas present a few years ago (see we never go to the movies.)
2 3D evening movie tickets: Free (Thank you Captain's Godmother!)Sign informing me "No Weapons Allowed": Priceless
We met fellow 3D virgin, Lorlita and had what the Captain liked to call a "A 3D Threeway." Classy!
Back to the movie review. So you were wondering what I didn't like about the film...
Firstly, I wasn't sold on the 3D aspect. Because of my actual glasses, the 3D glasses felt a bit bulky and were uncomfortable to wear. I found myself taking them off throughout the film to give my eyes a rest. Towards the end my eyes actually hurt when I blinked. Disappointment 1.
I also thought the coloring the film looked really washed out and in some scenes fuzzy. Having never seen a 3D movie, I didn't know if this was a effect of the 3D technology or if it were how Burton decided to film it.
With the desaturated look of the Pre-Underland scenes, I was really expecting the color in Underland to be mind blowing, similar to how Oz looked to Dorothy as she opened the front door of her dingy, sepia farmhouse. But it wasn't. Disappointment 2.
But what irked me the most about the 3D effect, was the few scenes that Burton added to remind you that you were watching a movie in 3D. A flower in the foreground that Alice's mother (or future mother-in-law, not sure) reaches for, a few scenes in Underland where something would jut out to the audience. I thought Burton was better than that. I thought he wouldn't resort to such sophomoric details. It's like "I get it. I'm in a 3D movie, things can jump out at me. Ooooo, how exotic." I'm not a 9 year old, I don't need tree branches "poking" me in the face. Disappointment 3.
The pace story felt completely rushed. It seemed no sooner they got you to Underland, the sooner they tried to get you out. Alice was working on a tight time frame, but the rushed pace seemed to be due to editing and not the storyline. I wanted to take my time with the movie and enjoy the sets, costuming, and characters like Burton did with Edward Scissorhands. You felt like you were part of that no name town and that you cared what happened to Edward and his adoptive family. Not so with Alice. By the end of the film I felt no real connection with her nor did I care about the fate of Underland. Disappointment 4.
I wouldn't necessarily call myself a true film buff. I couldn't tell you while watching a movie if it was shot on traditional film or digital. Or if the cinematographer also worked on such and such a film. But I do see a lot of films, stay up-to-date on the entertainment industry, and know the works of directors/actors fairly well. And I do appreciate the talent that goes into movie making. So to help nurture my quest for useless knowledge entertainment by subscribing to a number of film review podcasts, most notably Scene Unseen (which I am sad to say is no longer recording. Please come back Chris and Jimmy!). More recently, I have started listening to Filmspotting. If I am going to be honest it is not as good as Scene Unseen, but they brought up an interesting idea in their review of Alice in Wonderland which I will leave you with:
If you heard that it was going to be released in 1994 (after Beetlejuice) with Winona Ryder playing Alice and all of the characters in Wonderland were made using the same-stop motion technology used in Beetlejuice, would you feel differently?
Think about it.
YDB
Dorothy, saved from a psychiatric experiment by a mysterious girl, is somehow called back to Oz when a vain witch and the Nome King destroy everything that makes the magical land beautiful.
And watch out for the WHEELERS!
I remember being forced to watch "Return To Oz" in first grade. I was disgusted then and I am still. My brother met Fairuza Balk at a horror convention in Cherry Hill last year. I enjoyed her in "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever".
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