Movie review: Alice in Wonderland

By Liliana Cerquozzi | gargoyle@flagler.edu

The movie that everyone has been waiting for finally arrived March 5th at midnight.

Expectations were pretty high for Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland” to match former adaptations of the book by Lewis Carroll. Some say they were disappointed, but it was love at first sight for me.

People are not used to Burton’s quirky ways of depicting characters. He was spot on with his representation of the Red Queen and her “big head,” and there could not be a better actor than Johnny Depp to play the Mad Hatter.

The story begins with a short glance into Alice’s past and a quick look into her present before she tumbles down the rabbit hole into her imagination of Underland (what many know as Wonderland), where she encounters talking caterpillars and grinning cats.

Burton’s depiction of “Alice in Wonderland” is nothing like Walt Disney’s 1951 verson. This is the nightmare of Alice and she just cannot seem to wake up. Burton has taken pieces from both of Carroll’s treasured works, “Alice in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking Glass” and turned them into one of his greatest films to date.

The movie was fully entertaining and was not hard to follow, either. Burton’s portrayal of “Alice in Wonderland” is both dark and mesmerizing. Underland is not attractive or bright in the slightest, it has a gloomy atmosphere with its often gray scenery with a nightmarish feel. I could not take my eyes off the screen for a second for fear that I would miss even the smallest bit of creative detail.

This is not your typical “Alice in Wonderland” cartoon story. Its dark and ominous set gives the viewers a front row seat to Alice’s nightmare. There is evil to be won over and the story seems a bit predictable, but, overall, it was a great film. It has some lovable characters and a few good laughs as well.